Lionel Friedli
inspirational drummer
Lionel Friedli, who lives in Biel, is one of the most sought-after jazz drummers of the new generation. Born in Moutier in 1975, he studied with Norbert Pfammatter from the age of eleven, first at the conservatory in Biel, then at the Lucerne Academy of Music. A jazz musician with a pronounced taste for the experimental, he combines the power of rock with the free-spiritedness of jazz in his inspirational drum-playing, enriching countless music projects. Lionel Friedli has performed with the likes of Lucien Dubuis, Vera Kappeler, and Colin Vallon. He was a member of Christy Doran's New Bag, and of the formation Elgar with Hans Koch and Flo Stoffner. With Vincent Membreze, he has formed the drum and synth duo Qoniak since 2005. Their album "Mutatio" (Hummus Records), released in 2020, creates a futurist technoid form of music with infinite pull using drums, old synthesizers, jazz, sci-fi and 8.Bit. In 2015, he was awarded the Jazz Prize of Fondation Suisa for his creative and innovative work.
