Biography
Idrees Sulieman, recognized as a leading bebop trumpeter possessing an expansive range, relocated to Scandinavia in 1961, a choice that tempered broader recognition yet secured consistent employment across Europe. He trained at the Boston Conservatory and accumulated initial professional experience alongside the Carolina Cotton Pickers as well as the Earl Hines Orchestra during its wartime years from 1943 to 1944. For a period he maintained a close musical partnership with Mary Lou Williams, performed with Thelonious Monk in 1947, and held engagements under Cab Calloway, Count Basie, and Lionel Hampton. In 1957 he recorded alongside Coleman Hawkins, then worked with Randy Weston from 1958 to 1959 while appearing in numerous additional contexts. Sulieman traveled to Europe in 1961 for a tour with Oscar Dennard before establishing residence in Stockholm and relocating to Copenhagen in 1964. From the mid-1960s until 1973 he served as a principal soloist in the Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland big band and maintained frequent collaborations with radio orchestras. His leader dates appeared on Swedish Columbia in 1964 and on SteepleChase in both 1976 and 1985. Sulieman’s activity diminished markedly during the 1990s with advancing age, and he succumbed to bladder cancer on July 23, 2002, at St. Anthony’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Albums
