Where tradition meets modernity in a unique musical experience

Experience the richness of Brazilian music as award-winning pianist, composer, and bandleader Jesper Hedegaard performs with a new international lineup. A lifelong dedication to Brazilian instrumental music (MIB) has shaped a pianist who took a bold leap at the age of 24, traveling to the homeland of samba and bossa nova. Audiences can look forward to a dynamic and engaging concert experience with strong audience connection. BrasilExperience appeals to both jazz and world music audiences.

BrasilExperience has performed extensively in Portugal, Brazil, and Denmark. The repertoire includes compositions by some of Brazil’s greatest masters such as Antonio Carlos Jobim, Guilherme Vergueiro, Arismar do Espírito Santo, Adriano Giffoni, as well as original works by Jesper Hedegaard. The concert explores rhythms including samba, choro, baião, and samba-canção.

In Denmark, BrasilExperience has performed to enthusiastic audiences at venues such as Portalen (Greve), Giant Steps (Svendborg), Lyngby Public Library, Paradise Jazz (Copenhagen), Gentofte Main Library, Aarhus Jazz Society, Lyngby-Taarbæk Jazz Club, Hornbæk Jazz Club, Værket (Randers), Klaverfabrikken (Hillerød), Ministeriet (Ebeltoft), Krudttønden (Copenhagen), Kulturhuset Islands Brygge, and Tranquebar (Copenhagen).

MIB (Música Instrumental Brasileira), also known as Brazilian Jazz, is a distilled and refined expression of key elements of the Brazilian musical tradition, to which BrasilExperience is deeply devoted. Since the 1960s, MIB has undergone significant development and today stands as one of Brazil’s most exciting musical forms, characterized by improvisation, extended harmonies, and beautiful melodies.

Line-up: Jesper Hedegaard (DK) – piano, Mats Andersson (SE) – guitar, Yasser Pino (CUB) – bass, Pedrinho Augusto (BRA) – drums

Bio – True dedication

Jesper Hedegaard is a pianist, composer, producer, and bandleader, and one of Denmark’s most dedicated interpreters of Brazilian music. Since the mid-1970s, he has worked extensively within the genre, developing a rare and authentic connection to its cultural and musical roots—most notably through 12 years as a resident musician in Brazil.

Jesper Hedegaard has performed internationally and collaborated with a wide range of Brazil’s most renowned musicians, including Miúcha, Zezé Motta, and members of bands associated with Djavan and Ivan Lins. In 1987, he was awarded the Troféu Caymmi in Salvador, Bahia, in recognition of his work.

His performances are characterized by intensity, musicality, and a strong connection with the audience. With a repertoire spanning bossa no

A lifelong immersion in Brazilian music has shaped Jesper Hedegaard as a pianist, composer, bandleader, and producer.

In 1987, he was awarded the prestigious Troféu Caymmi in Salvador, Bahia, in recognition of his artistic work.

For more than five decades, Jesper has performed Brazilian music alongside many of Brazil’s leading musicians across Brazil, Portugal, and Denmark. He spent 12 years living in Brazil, working as a performing pianist, and has collaborated with a wide range of renowned artists, including Miúcha, Zezé Motta, and musicians associated with Djavan and Ivan Lins.

Since 1976, Jesper Hedegaard has led an extensive cultural exchange initiative, bringing more than 100 Brazilian musicians and artists to Denmark. He has also produced major events such as Festival Brasil in 1994 and 2001 and organized more than ten national tours in Denmark.

His international career has taken him to stages in Brazil, Portugal, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and the United States. He has performed at prominent events including the Copenhagen Jazz Festival and the European Festival in Coimbra, Portugal.

In addition to performing, Jesper has taught Brazilian music at the Rhythmic Music Conservatory (RMC) and MGK in Denmark, as well as at university and jazz school in Lisbon.

In 2012, he released the album Time to Change with the Jesper Hedegaard Trio, which received an outstanding review from Jens Lohmann in Jazz Special.

In April 2025, he released Frutos do Nagé in collaboration with Dominique. The album was met with highly positive reviews, reaffirming the artistic maturity, contemporary relevance, and lasting significance of his work.

The band

Jesper Hedegaard (DK) – pianist, composer, and producer – has devoted his life to the Brazilian music tradition. For five decades, he has performed Brazilian music with leading Brazilian musicians in Brazil, Portugal, and Denmark. He lived and performed in Brazil for 12 years, where he received the Troféu Caymmi award in 1987. There, he collaborated with artists such as Miúcha, Zezé Motta, Sizão Machado (Djavan), Marcelo Martins (Djavan, João Bosco), Renato Massa (Azymuth), Rodrigo Villa (Família Jobim, Mart’nália), and Diogo Gomes (Ivan Lins).
In 2012, he released the CD Time to Change, which received excellent reviews in Jazz Special. His new album Frutos do Nagé was released in April 2025 to critical acclaim.

Mats Andersson (SE) – guitar – graduated from the Malmö Academy of Music in 1998 and has been a lecturer there since 2001. He plays a prominent role in Sweden within the Brazilian music tradition, both as a performer and educator. Through numerous trips to Brazil, he has developed a deep understanding of the music alongside some of the country’s leading musicians.
He has performed internationally in Brazil, Denmark, Estonia, England, Finland, Italy, Japan, Croatia, Latvia, Luxembourg, Norway, Spain, Germany, the USA, and throughout Sweden. He has collaborated with artists such as Miriam Aida, Joyce Moreno, Mimi Terris, Vitor Casagrande, Luis Barcelos, Marco Pereira, Magnus Lindgren, and Rosalia de Souza.

Yasser Pino (CUB) – bass – born in Havana in 1976 and now based in Copenhagen. He graduated as a classical guitarist and teacher from the Amadeo Roldán Conservatory in Havana in 1995, and later as a double bassist from the Rhythmic Music Conservatory in Copenhagen in 2006.
In Cuba, he worked with artists such as Gerardo Alfonso, Raul Torres, Polito Ibáñez, Chucho Valdés Jr., Roberto Fonseca, and many others. An in-demand musician, he collaborates widely and has worked with artists including Morten Grønvad, Jonas Johansen, Jakob Dinesen, Calixto Oviedo, and members of groups such as Afro-Cuban All Stars and Cubanismo. He is also an active educator.

Pedrinho Augusto (BRA) – drums & percussion – from Brasília, with more than 10 years of international experience as a performer, educator, and session musician. He holds degrees from Berklee College of Music and the University of Louisville.
He has worked with artists such as Gilberto Gil, Dominguinhos, Victor Wooten, Jovino Santos Neto, and Michael League. He has performed and taught in Cuba, Colombia, Ecuador, the USA, Cape Verde, the UK, Portugal, Spain, and France, and has appeared at festivals including Formentera Jazz Festival, Jazz à Juan, and Havana Jazz Plaza Festival.

Photos

Videos

4 videos from Giant Steps

Time to Change by Jesper Hedegaard

Reviews

“A great master and composer. Jesper Hedegaard is so deeply rooted in his craft that ‘Brazilian’ should be listed as his nationality.” – Thorsten Rasmussen, Chairman, Hornbæk Jazz Club

“The music is beautiful and captivating, and Jesper is almost more Brazilian than Danish.” – Jens Lohmann, Jazz Special

“Jesper Hedegaard truly knows his samba, and the music blended beautifully with his piano playing.” – Søren Damving, Helsingør Dagblad

Tech Spec

Get in touch

For bookings or general enquiries get in touch using the form or direct email: mail(@)jesperhedegaard.dk