| Jazz |
With the record number of jazz album releases this year, I have to get ahead by starting to tell you about this little gem that will be released at the end of August. If you are not European, it is likely that you do not know the name of this excellent drummer who has already accompanied, in his career, Chaka Khan, Al Jarreau, Pat Metheny, The Brecker Brothers, Ivan Lins, Jan Garbarek, Gregory Porter, Michael Franks, Roy Ayers, Bugge Wesseltoft, The Manhattan Transfer, Nils Petter Molvaer, The JB Horns, Esbjörn Svensson, Bob James, Mezzoforte, Lee Ritenour, Till Brönner, Joe Sample, Larry Carlton, Cassandra Wilson, Clark Terry, Johnny Griffin, Nils Landgren, Mike Stern, Chuck Loeb, Hildegard Knef, Konstantin Wecker, Die Fantastischen Vier, Xavier Naidoo, NDR Big Band, WDR Big Band, just to name a few. Wolfgang also collaborates with heavyweights of the electronic music scene such as Ricardo Villalobos, Timo Maas & Nightmares on Wax, and we could extend this list further, as Wolfgang Haffner is probably one of the best European drummers, adept at both finesse and strength with a unique musicality!
Nevertheless, Wolfgang Haffner continues to question himself: “I keep thinking about how to lead a band from the drums in a way that gives this instrument a central role, but one that is more focused on structuring the music rather than showcasing virtuosity,” says Wolfgang Haffner. This way of working, a guiding thread throughout his career, is a key factor in “Life Rhythm,” showing a beautiful humility for a musician present on over 400 albums, with this being his tenth solo effort. On Life Rhythm, I think this is the first time Wolfgang places his instrument at the center of the compositions, and we are delighted to find the extraordinary trombonist Niels Landgren on the first track of this album, which also lends its name to the album. However, I could be wrong, as after writing about dozens of albums, some details may escape me.
In 2022, during Wolfgang Haffner’s very first solo concert at Schloss Elmau in the Bavarian Alps, the process leading to this album began. He recalls, “It was an insane challenge. I had to make a decision: was I really going to play a drum solo… for an entire hour? Of course not! So, I added many percussion instruments that I could use melodically, live looped passages, worked with reverbs and delays – it was as if I were in a studio, but on stage.” This led Haffner to rethink his relationship with the drums, the instrument that has accompanied him throughout his life: while Haffner’s pieces generally originate from the piano, all the tracks on “Life Rhythm” have the drums as their source of inspiration. And frankly, the result is most exciting, often landing us in a form of jazz almost akin to funk, which feels incredibly refreshing, featuring on this album some of the best artists from Eastern Europe: Wolfgang Haffner on drums, Simon Oslender on piano & keyboards, Thomas Stieger on bass, sitar guitar (#07), Sebastian Studnitzky on trumpet, Arto Mäkelä on guitar, Nils Landgren on trombone (#01), Thomas Konstantinou on oud (#05), Shantel on additional production, electronics & mix (#05), Dominic Miller on acoustic guitar (#06), Bruno Müller on rhythm guitar (#06), Nicolas Fiszman on bass (#06), Bill Evans on soprano saxophone (#08). This album truly showcases the immense talent of this artist, as, like always, Wolfgang Haffner’s compositions are genuine treasures of inventiveness and rich melodies. This album is no exception and deserves your full attention, with arrangements that are pure wonders. If “Life Rhythm” is the rhythm of Wolfgang Haffner’s life, then we are happy to follow him and offer this album a place among our “Indispensables.”
Thierry De Clemensat
USA correspondent – Paris-Move and ABS magazine
Editor in chief Bayou Blue Radio, Bayou Blue News
PARIS-MOVE, July 23rd 2024
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Tracklisting:
01 Life Rhythm 4:14 feat. Nils Landgren
02 Balance 4:04
03 Joy of Life 5:10
04 Eternity 4:29
05 Desert Move 4:44 feat. Shantel & Thomas Konstantinou
06 Second Nature 4:08 feat. Dominic Miller
07 Open Land 3:58
08 Full Circle 4:10 feat. Bill Evans
09 Silence and Sound 4:01
10 Supernova 4:08
11 Home 4:08
All music composed, produced and arranged by Wolfgang Haffner
Recorded by Arne Schumann at JRS Studio Berlin, January 2024, mixed by Wolfgang Haffner (except #5 by Shantel), mastered by Marko Schneider at Skywalk Mastering
Cover art by Peter Krüll, used by kind permission of the artist
Photo by Antje Wiech