Jazz at its best is more cooperative than competitive. Pictured here is legendary Swedish bassist Palle Danielsson (center) with French pianist Michel Petrucciani (left) and American drummer Eliot Zigmund left. They performed and recorded as the Michel Petrucciani trio in the mid-late 1980s, most famously on “Pianism,” Petrucciani’s 1986 Blue Note debut.
With names like Grappelli, Petrucciani, and LeGrand, the French have the legacy heavyweights. BUT, Swedes like pianist Bobo Stenson and the late bassist Palle Daniellson have been indispensable to the "Nordic Sound," the distinct aesthetic of icy, atmospheric minimalism most associated with producer Manfred Eicher's ECM Records, the label famously known for producing "the most beautiful sound next to silence."