Music like Julia Hülsmann Trio

Julia Hülsmann (born 17 July 1968 in Bonn, Germany) is a German jazz pianist and composer. Her compositions are often based on literary works, especially poetry.

Hülsmann received music lessons from the age of eleven, and like both of her parents, she plays the piano. As a teenager, she heard a lot of pop music, with particular songwriters like Sting or Randy Newman impressed her. Mediated by her piano teacher, she heard and played music by Chick Corea, Bill Evans, Michael Brecker and Miles Davis.

During her schooldays, she played keyboards and piano in various ensemble instrumentations. After a short period in Frankfurt am Main she moved to Berlin. She was trained as a piano teacher and earned a degree in jazz piano at the Berlin University of the Arts in 1991. Her teachers include Walter Norris, Aki Takase and David Friedman. In particular, she was inspired and influenced by US pianist and composer Don Grolnick. In 1992, Hülsmann joined the Federal Youth Jazz Orchestra, then directed by Peter Herbolzheimer. After graduating in 1996, together with bassist Marc Muellbauer and drummer Rainer Winch she founded the Julia Hülsmann Trio. The trio played music, initially borrowed mainly from the standard repertoire of jazz, at various festivals and smaller tours. In early 2000, Hülsmann took lessons while studying in New York with Richie Beirach, Maria Schneider, Gil Goldstein and Jane Ira Bloom.