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Mats Gustafsson

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Swedish reeds player, improviser and composer. Born on 29 October 1964 in Umeå, Sweden. Lives in Nickelsdorf, Austria since 2011. Gustafsson's extended saxophone techniques draw equally from the fiery free jazz blowing tradition and the European microtonal schools. His first improvisations were with drummer Kjell Nordeson, who would later form the AALY Trio with Gustafsson. Gustafsson moved to Stockholm in the mid-1980s, where he met musicians such as Sten Sandell and Raymond Strid. The 3 formed Gush in 1988, 2 years after Gustafsson's duo with Christian Munthe, Two Slices Of Acoustic Car, had begun. He also worked with Berlin-based Sven-Åke Johansson during this time. In 1990, Gustafsson performed in Derek Bailey's Company in London. He also began visiting the USA regularly, becoming a regular in the Chicago improvising community as the 1990s progressed, working extensively with Hamid Drake and Ken Vandermark, among others. Gustafsson has also performed and recorded with Sonic Youth, Barry Guy, Paul Lovens, Georg Gräwe, Jaap Blonk, and as a member of Peter Brötzmann's all-star Chicago Octet / Tentet.