His musical education started in 1987 in the Karol Szymanowski National Music School in Warsaw. He first played the piano, but after three years he switched to percussion as his main instrument. In the beginning he focused on classical music, but in the end 1990’s he became interested in jazz. In 1999 he started studying percussion in Fryderyk Chopin’s Musical Academy in Warsaw. At that time, he was inspired by jazz, contemporary music and improvisation.
He is a co-creator of several important independent Warsaw-based bands: Horny Trees, Kapacitron, Slalom (with Bartosz Weber and Bartłomiej Tyciński), Piętnastka (with Piotr Kurek), Shy Albatross (with Rafael Rogiński and Natalia Przybysz), Pilokatabaza (with Paweł Szpura), Opel (with Piotr Bukowski), Zebra a Mit (with Kamil Szuszkiewicz, Wojtek Traczyk, and Piotr Dąbrowski), LAM (jazz trio with Krzysztof Dys and Wacław Zimpel). Together with Paweł Szamburski and Patryk Zakrocki, he is a member of the SzaZaZe trio, with whom he prepared, among others, new music for films by Franciszek and Stefania Themerson. Member of the Babadag formation, which experiments with traditional music, created in 2010 on the initiative of Ola Bilińska.
He also takes part in projects which are of great importance for Polish culture, such as the first Polish performance of Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians (organised by the Kwadrofonik ensemble) or contemporary music composition concerts (Tadeusz Wielecki, Arturas Bumsteinas). He also cooperates with, among others, Dada von Bzdulow dance theatre. In 2015, during the inaugural concert of the Warsaw Autumn Festival, Zemler performed the piece AIR composed by Helmut Lechenman. He has collaborated with, among others, Gyan Riley, Agusti Fernardez, John Tilbury, Felix Kubin, Reinaldo Ceballo, Kwadrofonik, Mitch&Mitch band, and Kawalerowie Błotni collective. He has given concerts all over Europe, in the Middle East as well as in Korea and Japan. Recently, apart from his collaboration with Polish musicians, he has also started cooperating with an American clarinettist and composer Evan Ziporyn, with whom he has recorded material for an album and given concerts in Poland and the US.
Hubert Zemler, as a versatile drummer, developed a recognisable style thanks to his extraordinary sensitivity, ingenuity and incredible playing technique. One of Zemler’s solo concerts was recorded and then released as an album entitled Moped by Lado ABC label. In autumn 2014, Lado ABC released Zemler’s second solo album, Gostak & Doshes. This time, the album includes composed songs, not just full improvisation as in the case of the live album Moped. The recording took place in a basement of a Camaldolese church in Warsaw’s Bielany district, and Zemler was accompanied in some songs by another drummer, Miłosz Pękała, known from such projects as Kwadrofonik, Mitch & Mitch and Hob Beats Percussion Group. Two years later, Hubert Zemler’s third solo album entitled Pupation of Dissonance was released. The album is a tribute of sorts to the history of percussion music and its gradual development over the 20th century. Zemler’s oeuvre also includes compositions and performances of music for films and television shows.
Discography:
- Rei Ceballo & Calle Sol – Perro Volando (BMG, 2001)
- Bronisław Szałański – Tria (Open Fly Records, 2004)
- Dominik Bukowski & Projektor (Allegro Records, 2005)
- Horny Trees (Kilogram Records, 2007)
- Wojciech Staroniewicz – Alternations (Allegro Records, 2008)
- Marcin Olak Trio – Simple Joy (4Ever music, 2008)
- Namanga – Zdzisław Piernik plays compositions of Piotr Zabrodzki (Vivo Records, 2008)
- Ritmodelia – It's not Batucada (self published, 2009)
- Horny Trees – Branches of Dirty Delight (Lado ABC, 2009)
- Incarnations – Radio Retro (Kayax, 2010)
- Natu – Gram Duszy (Mystic Production, 2010)
- Agnieszka Szczepaniak - Ale Szopka (Polskie Radio, 2011)
- Neurasja (Unzipped Fly Records, 2011)
- Hubert Zemler – Moped (supported by Lado ABC, 2011)
- Arturas Bumsteinas – Three Sixteenes (Con-V, 2012)
- Maja Kleszcz & Incarnations – Odeon (Kayax, 2012)
- Marcin Olak Trio – Crossing Borders (Luna Music, 2012)
- Frozen Bird – Terry's Tale (Karrot Kommando, 2012)
- Babadag (Lado ABC, 2012)
- Natu – Kozmic Blues (Warner, 2013)
- Marcin Ciupidro – Talking Tree (Unzipped Fly, 2013)
- Michał Przerawa - Tetmajer – Doktor Filozofii (2014)
- Slalom (Lado ABC, 2014)
- Gostak & Doshes (Bôłt, 2014)
- Wunderkamera (LADO ABC, 2015)
- Ziporyn / Zimpel / Zemler / Riley - Green Light (Multikulti Project, 2015)
- Pupation Of Dissonance (Bôłt, 2016)
- Szabolcs Esztenyi, Hubert Zemler - Kreatura (LP, Bôłt, 2018)
- Debashish Bhattacharya, Wojciech Traczyk, Hubert Zemler - JOY!Guru (Unzipped Fly Records, 2018)
- Bryndal / Dutkiewicz / Dziedzic / Janicki / Młynarski / Moskal / Rak / Zemler - Portrety (U Know Me Records, 2019)
Contact:
http://hubert-zemler.bandcamp.com
https://soundcloud.com/hubert-zemler
tel: 604613056
Updated by MG, November 2019.
