Erich Bachträgl 1944-2011 RIP

[HolgerFreimutSchrick]

The Austrian drummer and composer Erich Bachträgl, who has worked with Art Farmer, Benny Bailey and Max Greger, died today. see under

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Bachtr%C3%A4gl

RIP Erich!

[king ubu]

Know him from the great Erich Kleinschuster Sextet - r.i.p.

November strikes hard this year... the final curtain seems to fall on the golden era of jazz.

[mikeweil]

Yes, November strikes hard this year .....

R.I.P. - one of the best European drummers of his generation.

[Gheorghe]

I remember him well, saw him quite often in the late 70´s when I used to be a regular at a famous Jazz Club in Vienna. Heard him many times with Art Farmer, and of course with the great trombonist Erich Kleinschuster, with the exiting piano player Fritz Pauer etc.

I´ll never forget the evening in late summer 1978, when Art Farmer was on the bill, Erich Kleinschuster was on drums and.....in walked....: Max Roach!!!

He had just arrived because he played the next day at "Kongresshaus". I didn´t realize first, that it´s Max Roach, until somebody announced him and that Erich Bachtraegl would play a solo, a kind of drum composition dedicated to the Master Max Roach. Max was pleased, he got a standing ovation and we all hoped he would sit in, but didn´t ...for contractual reasons I guess.

Anyway I saw and heard him the next day and needless to say all the musicians from the day before attended the concert. Max even announced from the stage, that the great Art Farmer is in the audience, and a great drum colleage Eric from Austria also, if I remember right.

That was a great time, I loved it....

[clifford_thornton]

Oh, too bad. Those Kleinschuster records he's on are quite fine indeed.