Geir Jenssen (born 1962), a Norwegian musician with a noteworthy discography of ambient electronic music, performs primarily under the name Biosphere. His use of music loops, strange samples from sci-fi sources, and ‘ambient techno’ and ‘arctic ambient’ styles have made him well-known. Levi’s used his song ‘Novelty Waves’ in their 1995 advertising campaign, and his 1997 album ‘Substrata’ was voted as one of the all time classic ambient albums. Jenssen’s diverse musical background makes him stand out in the experimental and ambient scene. First off, what is ambient music? Instrumental music that emphasizes tone, texture, atmosphere, and mood is known as ambient music. It uses waves of auditory textures to create ambience rather than the formal melodies and steady rhythms present in most popular music. There is no one Biosphere sound or aesthetic because of his versatility in terms of instruments, gear, and obscure software, and because he modifies his studio setup for each album. Live performances by Biosphere are a regular feature of electronic music festivals, clubs in Europe, and other locations worldwide. Typically, Jenssen uses a laptop to perform improvisations or variations on recent songs while video art is projected behind him. For instance, during his Picturehouse cinema tour in April 2006, full-screen video art was displayed.

In an interview with Andrew Ryce, Biosphere further touches on his music, describing it as “music you shouldn’t listen to, it should be more like wallpaper or background music”. Something I personally was able to grasp from this interview was how he goes through his older work, re-releases it and re-packages it. He spends a lot of time going through his archives and improves certain parts of his pieces that haven’t yet been heard by the public. I find this particularly interesting because it is something I can implement into my routine and style of work.