Record Reviews

ALBERT MANGELSDORFF ~ THE JAZZ SEXTET MOOSICUS 1305 (Barcode: 885513130525) ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz Recorded: 1957 Released: 2017 This is a wonderful archival album by the German trombonist / composer / bandleader Albert MangelsdorffFind albums by this artist, recorded with his sextet, which included Hungarian (at the time resident in Germany) guitarist Attila ZollerFind albums by this artist, German drummer Karl SannerFind albums by this artist and American visiting musicians: saxophonist / flautist Bud ShankFind albums by this artist, oboist Bob CooperFind albums by this artist and bassist Gary PeacockFind albums by this artist. The sextet was expanded to a septet by the addition of American clarinetist Tony ScottFind albums by this artist, who plays on one lengthy track, which lasts for over twenty minutes, which was highly unusual at the time. The album presents seven tracks, all of which are standards. Despite the fact that the music was recorded almost seventy years ago, the sound quality is absolutely spotless. The music was recorded in 1957 by the NDR radio, at their studio in Hamburg. Starting from 1953 onwards, the NDR broadcasted regularly Jazz recorded in their studios for many years, and, as usual with the Germans, they have an enormous vault of superb music, which includes over 2000 recordings, and which hopefully will see the light of day. This album is the fifth volume of the “NDR Jazz Edition” series, which does just that. To put things in the right perspective, Mangelsdorff was just twenty-nine years old and the great Gary Peacock was only twenty-one years old. Germany was devastated by the war, but the Jazz spirit was already highly developed, and one must recognize the great role the German radio stations played in that process, which led to Germany becoming the European Jazz Mecca in just a decade later. The music is, not surprisingly, quite standard, but perfectly executed and reflects the exceptional musical abilities of the participants. Stylistically bot Bebop and Cool are well represented, and the American tradition dominates, but the Europeans were learning and soon after were about the revolutionize Jazz entirely. Overall, this is a splendid and highly enjoyable piece of European Jazz history, captured here for eternity, which explains the development path of the European Jazz, by embracing and learning the American Jazz tradition, which goes beyond being just entertainment, and becomes quite educational. Highly recommended!

Updated: 30/08/2025Posted: 30/08/2025

CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend