Jon Larsen
1959– · Norwegian gypsy jazz guitarist and record producer
Jon Larsen (born 1959 in Bærum, Norway) is a gypsy jazz guitarist and record producer from Norway, best known for his work in the gypsy jazz style. He is also a painter, and in the 1970s he worked mainly as a painter. His interest in the guitar began when he heard "Tears" by Django Reinhardt on the radio, which made him want his own guitar to sound that way. At seventeen he formed a string trio and landed his first professional job.
In 1980 he founded the Hot Club de Norvege with Per Frydenlund and Svein Aarbostad, a group that gained attention when it performed with pop singer Lillebjørn Nilsen. He later started the label Zonic Entertainment to record musicians influenced by Frank Zappa, and his label Hot Club Records has released more than 450 jazz records. He has worked with artists such as Chet Baker and Stéphane Grappelli, and in 2007 he received the Buddy Award for his lifelong contribution to jazz.
His film work includes Symphonic Django, released in 2008, and the documentary Jon & Jimmy, about him and guitarist Jimmy Rosenberg, which won the Dutch Edison Award. After eight years of research he published In Search of Stardust in 2017, a book on micrometeorites in urban environments, and in 2020 he appeared in Werner Herzog's documentary Fireball. His legacy combines the spread of gypsy swing in Norway with an unusual bridge between music and science.