e.s.t. Pianist Esbjorn Svensson Dies At 44

On Saturday June 14th, Esbjorn Svensson fell victim to a lethal diving accident outside of Vrmd, Sweden's archipelago near Stockholm. Svensson had been diving in a group at a landing stage and was later discovered at the bottom severely injured. The pianist and founder of e.s.t. (Esbjorn Svensson Trio) died at age 44.

Renowned for bringing jazz to a young audience with influences as wide ranging as classical to funk, e.s.t.'s roots began to sprout in the 1980's, and eventually they released their debut album When Everyone Has Gone in 1993. The trio quickly rose to notoriety in the Swedish and Danish jazz communities. Esbjorn Svensson was awarded accolades, including Swedish Jazz musician of the Year (1996), Songwriter of the Year (1998), a Swedish Grammy for 1997's Winter in Venice, Trio of the Year by Jazzwise, the Hans Koller prize as European Artist of the Year and countless more.

"Musically, he was the light that lit the world because in what he did he was pushing boundaries," said Burkhard Hopper, EST's manager. "His music inspired people in all corners of the world."