Having been active for two decades, the trio has established itself on the improvisational music scene as one of the most distinctive ensembles. Formed in 2005 on the initiative of Rob Mazurek and Mauricio Takara, it continues to redefine the possibilities of spontaneous electro-acoustic composition, combining Brazilian musical traditions, the search for original sonic realms, electronic experimentation and improvisation.

Every performance by this trio is a unique event – a journey through unfamiliar soundscapes.

São Paulo Underground has performed at major festivals and cultural institutions throughout Europe, the Americas, and Asia while building an acclaimed discography.

Rob Mazurek, an American composer of electro-acoustic music, multidisciplinary artist, cornetist, improviser and band leader, has been regarded as a trailblazer in improvisational music for four decades. Hundreds of compositions and more than 70 released albums have earned an artist, delving in a wide variety of stylistic contexts, a reputation as one of the most prominent improvisers of his generation.

His work has received the highest praise in influential music publications. Mazurek’s creative vision is supported by foundations and other institutions in the US, Brazil, Italy and France, the artist has been commissioned to create projects by festivals and galleries in these countries.

The most prolific periods of the improviser’s career are associated with Chicago and Manaus in Brazil. Inspired by Sun Ra’s music at the Chicago Jazz Festival whilst still a teenager, Mazurek resolved to strive for the heights of improvisation, whilst he took up painting after being captivated by the works of Mark Rothko, a leading figure of abstract expressionism in Chicago.

While living in Brazil in 2000–2007, the musician crafted exotic soundscapes from the sounds of the Amazon rainforest and, inspired by the local natural environment, created sculptures and painted. Having met his future creative partners, Mauricio Takara and Guilherme Granado, in Brazil, he developed an interest in Brazilian musical traditions.

Mazurek’s work is as colourful as his life experiences. The artist concocts his compositions with a shamanic intensity, drawing on modular synthesisers, electronic effects, computer programming and keyboard instruments.

Having emerged from the circle of Chicago’s jazz experimentalists in the 1990s, the artist has shared the stage with the most prominent figures in jazz, electronic, rock and improvisational music from the Americas and Europe, including Yusef Lateef, Pharoah Sanders, Roscoe Mitchell, Jim O’Rourke, Fred Anderson, Jeff Parker, Joshua Abrams, Emmett Kelly, Sam Prekop, Bill Dixon, Mike Ladd and Marcelo Camelo.

At this year’s Vilnius Jazz, Mazurek will be performing with two of his ensembles – the trio São Paulo Underground and the avant-garde jazz orchestra Exploding Star Orchestra. He has led and composed music for numerous other ensembles of varying line-ups, including Exploding Star International, Desert Encrypts, Immortal Birds Bright Wings, Pharaoh and the Underground (with Pharoah Sanders), Chicago Underground, Pulsar Quartet, Alternate Moon Cycles, Alien Flower Sutra and Star Splitter.

The artist combines his solo performances with exhibitions of his videos, paintings, lithographs and sculptures, as well as sound installations; he sometimes improvises based on graphic scores and 3D lithographs. He organises solo exhibitions of his own work and takes part in group exhibitions. Mazurek’s works have been exhibited in galleries and other art venues across the US, South America and Europe, as well as at the Lyon Biennale (2017).

Guilherme Granado is a versatile Brazilian multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer and electronic music artist, one of the leading figures on Brazil’s experimental scene and a representative of what is known as ‘electronic spiritualism’.

In his music, he masterfully blends live improvisation, jazz, ambient music, traditional tropical motifs and loop-based beats.

In addition to being a member of São Paulo Underground and Mazurek’s Exploding Star Orchestra, he is a member of the Brazilian alternative rock band Hurtmold; creates and produces solo projects under various pseudonyms (one of the best known being Bodes & Elefantes).

Throughout his career, the musician has collaborated on the stage and in recording studios with a host of legends from the worlds of jazz and experimental music, including Pharoah Sanders, Roscoe Mitchell, Bill Dixon, Naná Vasconcelos, electronic music producer Prefuse 73, Marcelo Camelo, John Herndon and Josh Abrams. He also composes soundtracks for films and audiovisual projects.

Mauricio Takara is a talented Brazilian jazz drummer, percussionist and electronic music composer. In his music, he blends elements of jazz, rock and electronic music; uses samplers and synthesisers.

Besides the trio São Paulo Underground and Mazurek’s avant-garde jazz orchestra, Takara is actively involved in composing experimental music in a duo with sound artist Carla Boregas and is the founder and a member of the Brazilian instrumental rock band Hurtmold.

He has recorded and performed with leading figures in jazz, improvisational and experimental music, including Pharoah Sanders, Yusef Lateef, Archie Shepp, Damo Suzuki and others.