Lucas Niggli was born in a thunderbolt in 1968, West Kamerun. He lived there before he moved to Switzerland. Today he lives in Uster with his three children, Felix, Gaudenz and Emilia and his partner Annette Meier.
His affinity to Music, especially to percussion instruments, was quite strong at a very young age. Between 1987 and 1995, he played at the experimental New Jazz formation «Kieloor Entartet». The group published three CDs, conquered many stages in diverse countries, formed a not every day orchestra, «ENAO91 and ENAO93», and connected to other artists and composers. After that, Lucas Niggli took charge of the management of the alternative Swiss label «UNIT-Records» until 1998; he was the president of the Swiss Professional Association of Jazz and Improvisation Musicians, SMS, and a long member of the board of the WIM (werkstatt für improvisierte Musik Zurich).
In 1995 he founded the avant-core band «Steamboat Switzerland» with Dominik Blum and Marino Pliakas. More than 150 concerts, 4 cd and 2 vinyl recordings testify to the group’s intense and hard work. «Lucas Niggli’s Zoom» was founded in 1999 (with Nils Wogram And Philipp Schaufelberger) They performed at all of Europe’s big festivals, (Moers, Saalfelden, Willisau, Le Mans) as well n Vancouver and they recorded a first cd in 2001 followed by a CD in 2003. As an extension of this trio, Lucas Niggli created «Big Zoom», a quintet with Claudio Puntin and Peter Herbert as guests, with two releases (Big Ball, Sweat). Since 2002 he plays regularly in the Piano Trio with Jacques Demierre and Barry Guy. Since 1994 Lucas Niggli has played in a variety of different bands with Pierre Favre as his partner. These are, amongst others, «Singing Drums», «European Chamber Ensemble», «The Drummers», as well as a duo.Since 2006 he is composing for and performing with the international Drum Quartet Beat Bag Bohemia (with Kesivan Naidoo (SA), RolandoLamussene (MZ), and Peter Conradin Zumthor (CH). The Duo Black Lotos with chinese Guzheng Player Xu Fengxia is also a long lasting working band, like the Drum Duo Lucas Niggli and Peter Conradin Zumthor. Since 2011 the Trio Biondini – Godard – Niggli with Luciano Biondini and Michel Godard tours extensivly in Europe with two CD Productions for Intakt Records. Since 2013 regulary also in Projects with the Drum Trio Klick with Fritz Hauser and P.C.Zumthor and in a Duo with Swiss Singer Andreas Schaerer.
Lucas Niggli was always musically active. He toured through all of Europe with different musicians, played on stages in Russia and America, Egypt and Canada, China and Southafria, Taiwan and m.o. He performed on major Jazz festivals in Vancouver, Berlin, Moers, Saalfelden, Willisau, Rome, Nürnberg, Capetown, Le Mans, Münster and Zurich. And New Music Festivals like Huddersfield (UK), Donaueschingen ( D) , Ultima (N), MaerzMusik (D). He is always being tempted into different corners of the music business. If he doesn’t perform a contemporary piece by David Dramm, Michael Werthmüller, Felix Profos, Sam Hayden, Kagel, Polanski, Cage, or Rzewski; he will regularly improvise in the Zurich «Werkstatt für Improvisierte Musik.» And he plaied in several Bands from Swiss Singer Erika Stucky, like „Bubble and Bangs”.
In his bands and projects, Lucas Niggli had the chance to work hand in hand with musicians from all over the world, from all kinds of different scenes. People like Barry Guy, John Cale, Pierre Favre, Butch Morris, Trevor Watts, Fred Frith, Hans Koch, Peter Kowald, Peter Waters, Samul Nori, Tom Cora, Ikue Mori, Tenko, Michel Doneda, Michel Wintsch, Collegium Novum, Urs Leimgruber, Arkadij Shilklopper, Jean-Luis Matinier, Martin Schütz, Irene Schweizer, Susanne Abbuehl, Wu Wei, Phil Minton, the filmmaker Peter Mettler , Susanne Abbuehl, Erika Stucky, ARTE Quartet, Andrew Cyrille, Andreas Schaerer, Tim Berne and many more.
