SURENSEMBLE

Contemporary jazz shaped by Latin American roots, improvisation and a constantly evolving ensemble sound.

Surensemble was founded in Cologne in 2015 by Chilean drummer and composer Pablo Sáez. From the beginning, the project was conceived not as a fixed band, but as an evolving musical constellation — a space where different musicians, backgrounds and musical traditions intersect.

Its music brings together contemporary jazz, Latin American rhythmic and folkloric influences, Afro-American traditions, chamber music, rock and elements of electronic sound. Rather than treating these influences as separate genres, Surensemble integrates them into spacious compositions and arrangements in which improvisation, collective interaction and contrasting sonic textures play a central role.

Across the albums Surensemble (2017), Inmanencia (2022) and Stay Together (2024), the ensemble has developed a distinctive musical language that combines rhythmic complexity with lyrical and contemplative passages. Stay Togetherfurther expanded this palette through a larger instrumentation, Latin percussion, electronics and wind instruments, while exploring ideas of connection, migration, empathy and coexistence.

Álvaro Severino is part of the current touring ensemble on electric guitar and also appears on Stay Together on guitars. His acoustic and electric guitar work contributes to the ensemble’s broad harmonic and textural spectrum, within a musical setting that moves freely between composed material and improvisation.

Current touring ensemble
Norman Peplow — piano
Maria Mendoza — flute
Jens Böckamp — tenor saxophone
André de Cayres — bass
Álvaro Severino — electric guitar
Pablo Sáez — drums & composition