Percussionist, drummer, composer and bandleader “It is almost as indispensable as breathing” says Marilyn Mazur about the act of dancing, and thus she reveals the bodily approach she has to the variety of her artistic expressions. Marilyn Mazur has during her life continually explored different artistic expressions such as singing, drumming and composing as well as dancing and drawing. Somehow for Marilyn Mazur the disciplines are all connected through her persistent curiosity of the artistic expressions – in the universe of Marilyn Mazur the boundaries between genres are undefined. For instance when she plays live it is not just a concert – it is a performance where the deeply devoted Marilyn Mazur puts her body and mind in play in front of the audience. The performance evolves around the music, but the visual potential of Marilyn Mazur is an important factor and a powerful force of the live experience of Marilyn Mazur. Marilyn Mazur was born in New York in 1955 and moved to Denmark at the age of 6 where she has been living since. She is educated at The Royal Danish Academy of Music, but she is mainly autodidact on her instruments. Marilyn Mazur’s career reached a peak in 1985 when Miles Davis hired her as his permanent percussionist of his group. She played with the group for some of years, but left Miles Davis in 1989 to concentrate on her own compositions and projects, mainly the seven-piece international orchestra Future Song. As many artists Marilyn Mazur is not fond of categorizing her work: “Obviously the music contains jazz, rock and ethnic elements, but it is none of them – and does not try to be,” maintains Marilyn Mazur about her music. Even though her most established projects Future Song and Percussion Paradise both have a strong connection to world music. Marilyn Mazur’s music is highly innovative and her compositions are often characterized as colourful. Not without reason, she maintains the free elements and elements of experimentation in her music, just as her swinging and alternative percussion style adds life to the music. During her musical career Marilyn Mazur has always maintained a high level of activity, and she has collaborated with various musicians such as Jan Garbarek, Pierre Dørge & The New Jungle Orchestra, NHØP, Lena Willemark, Palle Mikkelborg, Nils Petter Molvær og Jon Balke. In 2001 Marilyn Mazur received the Jazzpar Prize after nominations for the prize in both 1998 and 1999. In 1998 Marilyn Mazur received the lifetime grant from The Danish Arts Foundation By Louise Yung Nielsen Oktober 2007

Marilyn Mazur was born 18 January 1955 More information and discography at: www.marilynmazur.com Marilyn Mazur on MySpace: www.myspace.com/marilynmazur