• The New York Jazz Album 8 (2008)
• Swedish Traditional Songs (2006)
• Songs of Finland (2006)
• Moomin in Finnish (2005)
• Saga (2004)
• Moomin in Swedish (2003)
• Landmark (2002)
• Live at Hubbard Hall (1998)

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Scandinavian folklore and jazz vocalist Johanna Grüssner was born and raised in the Åland Islands in Finland. After brief studies in Sweden, she moved to Berklee and Boston, earning a Degree in Music Education in 1996. From there she moved to New York City and graduated with a Master's Degree in Performance from Manhattan School of Music in 1998. Grüssner made headlines in major U.S. television broadcasting companies in 2001 when she had trained her Bronx public school children to sing groovy gospel, and touring her native Finland. She made a particular impression on New York Times journalist Anemona Hartocollis, who wrote the book Seven Days of Possibilities, describing Grüssner's ambitious dedication.

Grüssner has recorded several albums with pianist Mika Pohjola. Additionally she has performed and recorded with her Manhattan Jazz Orchestra and Grammy award winning musicians Darmon Meader and Peter Eldridge. Her quintet, featuring drummer Antonio Sanchez, guitarists Miles Okazaki and Paul Pesonen and bassist Hans Glawischnig recorded for the Swedish Prophone-Naxos Jazz label in 2002. A follow-up album was recorded two years later.

Johanna Grüssner is currently based in Stockholm, Sweden where she is a busy performer and teacher.

Story on NPR, National Public Radio

All Things Considered: Ten years ago, jazz singer Johanna Grussner moved to New York from Finland to study music and pursue stardom. Instead, she discovered a second love -- teaching music to 10, 11 and 12-year olds at P.S. 86, an underprivileged Bronx school.

Nine out of 10 students enrolled at the school were poor. Only four in 10 spoke English; only two in 10 could read at grade level. Many were considered troublemakers and underachievers.

Hoping to show the students what they were capable of, Grussner formed a children's choir. Three and a half years ago, the group traveled to the Åland Islands, Grussner's homeland, for a performance that captivated their hosts. Their story is chronicled in the new book Seven Days of Possibilities, by New York Times education reporter Anemona Hartocollis.

Shortly after that performance in Finland, Grussner left the states. This summer, Grussner reunited with many of her former students for one last performance. NPR's Claudio Sanchez talks with the students about what the experience meant to them.

With a voice akin to ice wine, crisp, pure and clear while simultaneously warm and chilled. Grussner adeptly navigates ten standards. Jazz Times

Expressive and full of emotion, a jazz vocalist, who can put the right groove into every song, be it jazz, blues or pop. Jazz Dimensions

There are precious few who do have a distinct solo voice, and most of all, an ability to create new music based on a combination of influences. Verge Music

Honestly, I do not know what thrills me more, the fact that Johanna Grussner's No More Blues makes a great companion disc to Peter Cincotti's On the Moon or the fact that it is the first Naxos Jazz release in two years. Let's address the second fact first. Naxos Records began Naxos Jazz in the late 1990s with the hope of replicating the same phenomenal success that the label's classical side has experienced. The result was sixty plus releases that I have written on in the past. The label has lain dormant for the past two years and now reemerges with the hope that the independent market is more receptive than at that time. This reemergence takes the form of a new vocal release by the beautiful Finnish chanteuse Johanna Grussner. Ms. Grussner makes No More Blues a notable recording in her choice of repertoire and instrumentation. The selections on this recording are eclectic and well chosen, ranging from the well covered The Touch of Your Lips and The Very Thought of You to the less frequently recorded My Ship and The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face. The big surprises lie in the pop covers, Help and Hallelujah I Just Love Him So, which treat the pop icons well and will surprise and delight. In her choice of instrumentation, Grussner forgoes the standard piano trio or quartet for the guitar variety. This effectively brings out the bossa nova quality of the singer's intentions and adds a particular synergy to the title tune and Desafinado. This theme extends to the untethered The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face and the rocking Out of This World, which unconsciously mimics Cincotti's cover of St. Louis Blues on his On the Moon. Like Cincotti, Ms. Grussner covers a Ray Charles standard, Hallelujah I Just Love Him So. She delivers the piece in a sultry fashion over the gutbucket guitar-bass-trio rhythm section. Her use of this ensemble is not unlike that of Cassandra Wilson, only more disciplined. Disciplined is how I would describe this recording, but not boring. This is a superb album deserving of anyone's year-end list. This is hyper-smart music that should satisfy the most critical among us. C. Michael Bailey, All About Jazz

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