Chris Koelma

At the age of 21, virtuoso bassist Chris Koelma's music is inspired and innovative. As a bass guitarist, composer and solo artist, Chris Koelma’s unique blend of music genres was set to redefine the sound of the bass guitar from the moment he first struck the strings six years ago. The new sound of jazz, fusion and funk has been both influenced by and likened to Victor Wooten, a premiere bassist from the USA, but Koelma’s greatest achievement is in his ability to both preserve and develop his own style while adding a post-modern twist to existing bass expressions. He is acclaimed for both his solo repertoire and for the music of his band, in which Chris explores an incredibly wide range of musical genres.

As a session musician, Koelma has performed and recorded with an array of artists such as Dale Willis, Shane Fritsch, Marty Simpson (Australian Idol 2007) Amanda Stevens, Nick & Liesl and Kelvin Brown. As a solo artist, Chris has been featured at schools, festivals, jazz clubs and statewide church events as well as performing as a support artist for 'Diesel' and ‘The Sons of Korah’. He is carving his own niche in the music world and is set to both inspire and challenge the next generation. He is currently studying his final year of music and teaching at a tertiary level, keeping in mind his ambition of sharing the ‘universal language’ of music not only through education but also through his own free expression during performances and workshops. The Central Coast based musician admires music’s ability to touch individuals, and will use the medium to pass on ‘whatever I can’.

This is reflected in his self-titled, debut album launched in January 2008, where his unique feel for ‘bass-driven’ contemporary jazz is highlighted. Having composed almost all of the songs himself, Koelma recorded the album at the prestigious Grove Studios.

On his album, Koelma performs with saxophonists Luke Gallen and Mike Hutchens, pianist Steve Earp, vocalist Mikaela Prout and his brother Eric on drums. His playing of the bass guitar with phenomenal dexterity remains the central focus however, with the mixing of as many as six overlapping tracks of bass. Koelma, as the song titles from his album ‘A Day in the Life of a Spaniard’ and ‘The Bodhi Tree’ suggest, delves in and mixes music from across all cultures, while also using it to reach people from every way of life.