Olle Holmquist

Olle Holmquist
Background information
Birth nameBert Olav Holmquist
Born(1936-11-15)15 November 1936
Skellefteå, Sweden
Died26 March 2020(2020-03-26) (aged 83)
GenresJazz
OccupationMusician
InstrumentTrombone

Bert Olav Holmquist (15 November 1936 – 26 March 2020) was a Swedish trombonist who was active in the European music scene since the 1960s. Holmquist was born in Skellefteå. A self-taught musician, he began his career in a Swedish armed forces band (I20). He began playing tuba, then switched to valve trombone, and then to slide trombone. As a freelance musician, he worked for the Swedish Radio big band in 1963 but continued to freelance throughout the 1960s. During this period, he often worked with Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, who were later members of ABBA. He also worked regularly with American musician Quincy Jones.

In 1971, Holmquist joined the Swiss Radio big band, and in 1976 he moved to Berlin as a member of the RIAS (Radio in the American Sector) big band. In 1978, he became a member of the James Last Orchestra, a position he held until 2013. He performed with Kai Warner, Freddy Quinn, Jerry Lewis, The Manhattan Transfer, and Lill Lindfors.[1]

Holmquist died on 26 March 2020, after suffering from COVID-19 and Alzheimer's disease.[2]

References

  1. ^ James Last Appreciation Society magazine, May–June 1987.
  2. ^ Musikern Olle Holmquist död av coronaviruset Archived 2020-03-26 at the Wayback Machine Expressen. Retrieved 26 March 2020.