Wolfgang Dauner (1935-2020)

[clifford_thornton]

Sad news. He was a really interesting character.

https://www.tagesspiegel.de/kultur/praegende-figur-des-deutschen-jazz-pianist-wolfgang-dauner-ist-tot/25422042.html

[sidewinder]

Really sorry to hear that, I will spin some of his fine music on the Mood label and a bit of UJRE. R.I.P.

[ghost of miles]

Very sorry to hear this as well.  I actually got to see him in a church at the Stuttgart Jazz Festival in 2018--a very impressive performance, especially given that he must have already been battling health issues at that point.  

Edited January 11, 2020 by ghost of miles

[soulpope]

R.I.P ....

[JSngry]

1 hour ago, clifford_thornton said:

He was a really interesting character.

Yes, this.

RIP

[Hardbopjazz]

RIP.

[GA Russell]

RIP.  I had one of his albums called Rischkas (sic) Soul which I enjoyed.

[mikeweil]

R.I.P. 

He was among the first ten jazz musicians I saw live - his trio with Eberhard Weber and Fred Braceful subbed for the Bulgarian Jazz Quartet to open for the Herbie Mann Quintet in Frankfurt - must have been 1970. He was a true original, perhaps the most original of all German jazz pianists, totally unprejudiced. He could hang with the best of them on any scene. Owned one of the first three synths in Europe. 

Wolfram Knauer, the Darmstadt Jazz Institute's director, will present his new book on the German jazz scene later this month at the local public library. I'm sure he will adress this on the occasion. 

[felser]

What's the best place to start listening to Dauner?  Always meant to, never really got around to it in earnest.

[HutchFan]

Sorry to hear this.

R.I.P.

[Balladeer]

Very open-minded, pioneering musician unafraid of musical borders. From his recordings for legendary south German MPS label ("Knirsch" with Coryell and Hiseman)  up to the United Jazz and Rock Ensemble Wolfgang Dauner  made jazz more attractive for young people in Germany. 
 RIP.

[sidewinder]

His early work on the SABA label was particularly excellent. Recorded in HGBS’s lounge, I recall.

[mikeweil]

His trio made one of the first ten ECM LPs, "Output". Far out and fun. And never on CD. Eicher would not release music of that type any more.

 

6 hours ago, sidewinder said:

His early work on the SABA label was particularly excellent. Recorded in HGBS’s lounge, I recall.

The latter has long been on my want list.

Edited January 12, 2020 by mikeweil

[mikeweil]

16 hours ago, felser said:

What's the best place to start listening to Dauner?  Always meant to, never really got around to it in earnest.

No idea - so many musical styles. Perhaps a solo piano album?

 

https://www.discogs.com/Wolfgang-Dauner-Solo-Piano/release/3316155

[Rooster_Ties]

17 hours ago, felser said:

What's the best place to start listening to Dauner?  Always meant to, never really got around to it in earnest.

I don't have much, but I really love his debut leader-date (an unconventional piano trio album), from 1964 -- called Dream Talk.

https://www.discogs.com/Wolfgang-Dauner-Trio-Dream-Talk/master/232003

 

All originals, save for a mighty tasty version of "Bird Talk" by Ornette.  Here are three tracks from the album...

You can hear the entire album from this YouTube playlist, followed by a couple stand-out tracks embedded below...

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nMFKPSTvSn0FOU6KoWzbN_aHN3rRlgWPk

 

 

And here's the Ornette tune.

 

[sidewinder]

Not to forget either his fantastic leadership and work with the United Jazz and Rock Ensemble (UJRE). That was a pioneering international group put together originally for a German youth TV show and put out many good recordings on his MOOD label which were fairly recently remastered and issued in Germany on CD.

I do miss the days when you could order Dauner’s MOOD label catalogue from zweitausendeins..

[mikeweil]

The best days of Zweitausendeins are a thing of the past. They changed ownership a few years ago and gradually downsized, even gave up some of their outlets like the one in Frankfurt where I used to drop by regularly. 

I for one never quite liked the United Jazz and Rock Ensemble - too "German" in its approach, starting with the name. What practically always lacked with German jazz musicians was the "black" feeling of R & B as opposed to the rock music most people over here knew much better, which is an understandable thing but leads to the less relaxed (in my ears) feel of rock. I never liked Hiseman's drumming. Great players, but in part a decidedly more commercial approach to pay the rent, as Mangelsdorff once confessed. 

I biought three Dauner solo piano CDs since the day of his passing, and they are all great, showing his wide range of interests, playing Ravel on the second and talking about the challenge and the differences of jazz and classical approaches in the notes. I can recommend all three. He was one of Europe's greatest jazz pianists.

I just noticed one of the more obscure items in Dauner's career - recording jingles for the Stollwerck chocolate manufacturers:

 

Edited February 1, 2020 by mikeweil

[sidewinder]

Those old Zweitausendeins stores in Germany were great. Racks full of jazz - picked up quite a lot of Coltrane on Impulse and Euro-Riverside boxed vinyl sets there for very good prices, for the time. Even though the DM was strong !

Their last mail-order hurrah was when they sold those Euro-Mosaics for about 30 Euros a shot. Fortunately, I took advantage.