Record Reviews

JOACHIM KUHN TRIO ~ CHALABA ACT 9502 (Barcode: 614427950222) ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2010 Released: 2011 This is the third album by German pianist / composer Joachim KuhnFind albums by this artist and his trio with Moroccan Guembri (Arabic acoustic bass) and oud player / vocalist Majid BekkasFind albums by this artist and Spanish drummer Ramon LopezFind albums by this artist. Expanding the realms of Jazz and turning it into Jazz-World Fusion is the essence of these meetings and the musicians involved are all Masters of their trade, playing together not because it is fashionable to do so, but because they feel a deep personal bonding of musical spirits. The music combines Free Jazz with Middle-Eastern music, which are not that far away from each other anyway, in a new and fresh way, creating a whole which is better than its parts. Masterly played, brilliantly recorded and full of unexpected turns and twists, this is a music one can listen to again and again, always discovering something fresh and new. Wholeheartedly recommended!

Updated: 16/07/2020Posted:

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JOACHIM KUHN TRIO ~ KALIMBA ACT 9456 (Barcode: 614427945624) ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2006 Released: 2007 This is the debut album by German pianist / composer Joachim KuhnFind albums by this artist and his trio with Moroccan vocalist and oud / Guembri Master Majid BekkasFind albums by this artist and Spanish drummer Ramon LopezFind albums by this artist. Kuhn and Bekkas met three years prior to the recording of this album and their immediate friendship proved to be lasting, producing this and several follow up albums. The album presents ten original compositions: four by Kuhn, three by Bekkas and three co-composed. Combining seemingly unbridgeable Cultural origins, from Avant-Garde European Jazz, via African desert music, Middle Eastern, Flamenco and Indian rhythms and back to Improvised Music, the music made by the trio manages to ignore these imaginary chasms, proving that music is One. The mystique of the human brain and the infinite associations it is able to create, often completely spontaneously, never ceases to amaze. Creating a perfect aesthetic harmony of the musical / Cultural elements collected on this album is a miracle; no less dramatic statement could describe this phenomenon. And yet the music works beautifully, not only on the emotional level, but also on the cerebral / analytical plain, which is absolutely amazing. It is fascinating to hear how deeply the idea of improvisation is embedded in West African and Middle Eastern music, despite the differences of the localized approaches. The actual concept of improvising, sometimes for a seemingly endless period of time, on a basic melodic theme, is completely natural in the region, as it is natural in Jazz. As someone who is surrounded with Middle Eastern Culture at home this music sound perfectly homey to me, but surely it can and in fact does work as well for true music lovers around the world. As all recordings by Kuhn, this is an absolute must to all serious lovers of European Jazz, Avant-Garde, Jazz-World Fusion and sublime music in all its forms. Wholeheartedly recommended!

Updated: 16/07/2020Posted: 16/07/2020

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JOACHIM KUHN TRIO ~ OUT OF THE DESERT ACT 9475 (Barcode: 614427947529) ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2008 Released: 2009 This is the second album by German pianist / composer Joachim KuhnFind albums by this artist and his trio with Moroccan vocalist and oud / Guembri Master Majid BekkasFind albums by this artist and Spanish drummer Ramon LopezFind albums by this artist, this time recorded in Rabat, Morocco and featuring guest Gnawa and Benin musicians. The album presents six original compositions, three each by Kuhn and Bekkas, but the music is largely spontaneously improvised. The music is a brilliant example of cross-Culture / cross-genre pollination, creating Jazz-World Fusion at its best. Kuhn´s openness to a wide range of musical influences during his long and fruitful career, which explored diverse musical genres combined with his Avant-Garde approach, as well as his prolific recorded legacy, is a glorious portrayal of the European Jazz idiom. His fascination with African / Middle Eastern music is not surprising and his affinity and ability to channel his musical ideas into that specific direction is an absolute marvel. It is fascinating to hear how deeply the idea of improvisation is embedded in West African and Middle Eastern music, despite the differences of the localized approaches. The actual concept of improvising, sometimes for a seemingly endless period of time, on a basic melodic theme, is completely natural in the region, as it is natural in Jazz. It is highly recommended to compare this album to the "Out Of The Desert LiveFind albums with this title" album recorded a couple of years later, which combines the trio with the hr-BigbandFind albums by this artist, which will emphasize both the differences and the similarities between this unique project and its expansion into the Jazz idiom, which can be truly educational. Of course all other recordings by this trio are equally fascinating. As all recordings by Kuhn, this is an absolute must to all serious lovers of European Jazz, Avant-Garde, Jazz-World Fusion and sublime music in all its forms. Wholeheartedly recommended!

Updated: 14/07/2020Posted: 14/07/2020

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JOACHIM KUHN TRIO ~ VOODOO SENSE ACT 9555 (Barcode: 614427955524) ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2011 - 2012 Released: 2013 This is the fifth album by German pianist / composer Joachim KuhnFind albums by this artist and his trio with Moroccan vocalist and oud / Guembri Master Majid BekkasFind albums by this artist and Spanish drummer Ramon LopezFind albums by this artist, this time recorded with invited guests: legendary American saxophonist Archie SheppFind albums by this artist and World Music musicians from Morocco including percussionist Kouassi Bessan JosephFind albums by this artist. The album presents six pieces, three of which are original compositions by Kuhn, one by Joseph, one co-composed by Joseph and Kuhn and finally the "Kulu Se Mama" by Juno LewisFind albums by this artist, made immortal by John ColtraneFind albums by this artist. The music is a brilliant example of Jazz-World Fusion at its best. Kuhn´s openness to a wide range of musical influences during his long and fruitful career, which explored diverse musical genres combined with his Avant-Garde approach and the prolific recorded legacy is a glorious portrayal of the European Jazz idiom. His fascination with African / Middle Eastern music is not surprising and his affinity and ability to channel his musical ideas into that specific direction is an absolute marvel. The music is a direct and logical continuation of the stylistic platform the trio managed to create, combining European Avant-Garde Jazz with African and Middle Eastern musical tradition. The presence of Shepp, who plays on three tracks only, strengthens the Jazz element slightly as compared to the earlier recordings by the trio, but has little overall effect on the character of the music. Nevertheless his contributions are perfectly suited to the music and show him to be in full strength despite his advanced age. Of course, as all recordings by Kuhn, this is an absolute must to all serious lovers of European Jazz, Avant-Garde, Jazz-World Fusion and sublime music in all its forms, and as always is wholeheartedly recommended!

Updated: 09/09/2020Posted: 09/09/2020

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JOACHIM KUHN TRIO / HR-BIGBAND ~ OUT OF THE DESERT LIVE ACT 9521 (Barcode: 614427952127) ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2010 Released: 2011 This is the fourth album by German pianist / composer Joachim KuhnFind albums by this artist and his trio with Moroccan vocalist and oud / Guembri Master Majid BekkasFind albums by this artist and Spanish drummer Ramon LopezFind albums by this artist, accompanied by the hr-BigbandFind albums by this artist (Frankfurt Radio Big Band) and recorded live at the 2010 JazzFest Berlin. It is a continuation of the "Out Of The DesertFind albums with this title" studio album recorded by the same trio in Morocco a couple of years earlier, but offers seven new compositions, six by Kuhn and one by Bekkas. Kuhn also arranged the music to include the wonderful hr-Bigband conducted by Ed PartykaFind albums by this artist. The music is a brilliant example of Jazz-World Fusion at its best. Kuhn´s openness to a wide range of musical influences during his long and fruitful career, which explored diverse musical genres combined with his Avant-Garde approach and the prolific recorded legacy is a glorious portrayal of the European Jazz idiom. His fascination with African / Middle Eastern music is not surprising and his affinity and ability to channel his musical ideas into that specific direction is an absolute marvel. Kuhn and his cohorts play superbly, as expected, and the Big Band arrangements manage to add a new dimension and incredible power to the music, creating one of the most colorful and profound statements of this kind. It is highly recommended to compare this album to the other recordings by this trio, which will emphasize both the differences and the similarities between this unique project and the source it originates from, which can be truly educational. The fascination with the African dessert music is of course share by many European musicians since the 1960s, including Rock stars like Brian JonesFind albums by this artist. Of course, as all recordings by Kuhn, this is an absolute must to all serious lovers of European Jazz, Avant-Garde, Jazz-World Fusion and sublime music in all its forms. Go get it as every day of your life before you heard this album was missing something…

Updated: 18/07/2020Posted: 10/07/2020

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ROLF KUHN / JOACHIM KUHN ~ RE-UNION IN BERLIN B.FREE 6271 ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz Recorded: 1965 Released: 2016 This is a reissue of a legendary album by brothers: clarinetist Rolf KuhnFind albums by this artist and pianist Joachim KuhnFind albums by this artist recorded in a quartet setting with bassist Klaus KochFind albums by this artist and drummer Reinhard SchwartzFind albums by this artist originally released in 1965 by CBSFind albums on this label in West Germany. Joachim Kuhn, Koch and Schwartz formed the Joachim Kuhn TrioFind albums by this artist, the first modern / Free Jazz group in East Germany. Rolf, the older brother, who lived at the time in West Germany, joins the trio to form a sensational quartet, recording this, one of the pivotal modern German / European Jazz albums. The album presents five original compositions, three composed by Joachim and two by Rolf, recorded at the renowned Amiga Studios in East Berlin. The music is a fascinating mixture of tradition and modernism, with Rolf exploring completely novel approach to the clarinet and Joachim developing his advanced harmonic structures, which were about to turn him into one of the greatest pioneers of European Jazz. This album and the "SolariusFind albums with this title" album recorded a year earlier and released on the AmigaFind albums on this label label constitute the early iconic recordings by the Kuhn BrothersFind albums by this artist, which to this very day sound absolutely stunning and lost nothing of their power of expression and historic significance. As usual in such circumstances, it is truly amazing that this music, which signifies the freedom of expression and intellectual liberty, was recorded at the heart of the most oppressive regime behind the Iron Curtain, similar to the numerous other Free Jazz recordings released by the East German Amiga label. This phenomenon deserves a serious historical study, which strangely has not been tried so far. For connoisseurs of early European Free Jazz and listeners interested in the development of Jazz in Europe, this album is an absolute must have. But of course the album offers sublime music, which any serious Jazz fan anywhere on this planet should be able to enjoy and appreciate, regardless of its historic significance. A true gem!

Updated: 08/10/2018Posted: 08/10/2018

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