Heiri Känzig

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Heiri Känzig at the Unterfahrt jazz club (Munich 2011)

Heiri Känzig (born April 1, 1957 in New York City ) is a Swiss double bass player and "musical world traveler".

Live and act

Känzig studied in Graz , Vienna and Zurich and is now one of the most prominent double bass players in Europe. At the age of 21 he accompanied the trumpeter Art Farmer and recorded his first record with him. His engagement in the legendary Vienna Art Orchestra , of which he has been a member since 1978, earned him international recognition . In 1980 he moved to Munich and worked there with many well-known musicians such as Ack van Rooyen , Leszek Zadlo , Heinz Sauer and Wolfgang Dauner . He also played in the group "Timeless" with Harry Sokal , Uli Scherer and Joris Dudli . In 1985 he founded the Trio Depart with Harry Sokal and Fredy Studer , which caused a sensation throughout Europe until 1994 and to which he still belongs after its comeback in 2006 (now with Jojo Mayer on drums).

In the early 1990s, Heiri Känzig founded his own band with Art Lande , Kenny Wheeler and François Laiszeau. In 1991, Denis Badault appointed Känzig to the Orchester National de Jazz as the first non-Frenchman . This was followed by his own projects with musicians such as Lauren Newton , Charlie Mariano and Paul McCandless . He then became a bass player in the Thierry Lang Trio, with whom he recorded his first albums for Blue Note Records . The bass player received a lot of attention with his project Tien Shan Switzerland Express , which brought together different cultures from Central Asia, Mongolia and Switzerland. The report on the project (“Obertöne auf der Hochalm”) won the 2003 World Music Award from DW / EBU and WDR 3. He also played with Daniel Humair , Franco Ambrosetti , George Gruntz , Yves Robert , Pierre Favre , Andreas Vollenweider , Felix Huber , Dave Doran and the Alpine Experience .

Känzig, professor at the Lucerne University of Music since 2002 , is in demand both nationally and internationally as a soloist and sideman due to his highly individual tone. He tours regularly with musicians like Billy Cobham , Daniel Humair , Didier Lockwood , Lauren Newton , Ralph Towner , Kenny Wheeler and many others all over the world. His imaginative, virtuoso, powerful and energetic and at the same time always melodic playing can be heard on more than 130 albums and has earned him some enthusiastic reviews. The critic Peter Rüedi said of Känzig that he was "the most conspicuous among a noticeably large number of good Swiss double bass players" and added: "Känzig organizes his bulky bass de profundis to singing flights, it is sometimes profound, sometimes jubilant and often both at the same time Overcoming gravity stop. " His last CD "Buenos Aires" with Michael Zisman ( bandoneon ), Matthieu Michel ( flugelhorn ), Urs Bollhalder ( piano ) and Lionel Friedli ( drums ) was released in 2009 as leader of a quintet named after him .

Since 2013 he has also played in the Chico Freeman Fourtet with the Chicago saxophonist Chico Freeman , the Italian pianist Antonio Faraò and the drummer Michael Baker. In a duo with Freeman, he released the album Arrival ( Intakt Records ) in 2015 .

Honourings and prices

In 1999 and 2001 he was named "Bass Player of the Year" by Jazz and More magazine . In 2002, the Agency for Development Aid and Cooperation SDC appointed Känzig as artistic director of the crossover project "Thien Shan Switzerland Express" as part of the UN Year of the Mountains. In 2005 he received a composition commission from the government council of the Canton of Zurich. The French jazz magazine named the CD reloaded by Depart as CD of the year 2006 . In 2019 he and his niece Anna Känzig received the first Franco Ambrosetti Award, endowed with CHF 10,000, at the Festival da Jazz St. Moritz .

literature

swell

  1. ↑ This is the headline of an article by Matthias Daum dedicated to Känzig in the "Zürichsee Zeitung rechtses Ufer", published on November 24, 2005 on the occasion of the award of the 25,000 Swiss franc commission to the Zurich government council.
  2. ↑ Peter Rüedi , "Depart has restarted: a flourish for a trio between all chairs and branches", Die Weltwoche, October 19, 2006
  3. ^ Switzerland: Franco Ambrosetti Award

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Känzig, Heiri
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss jazz musician
DATE OF BIRTH April 1, 1957
PLACE OF BIRTH New York City