Joe Kučera

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Joe Kučera 2016

Joe Kučera , actually Josef Kučera (often without diacritical marks: Ku c era), (born July 8, 1943 in Prague ) is a Czech saxophonist and jazz flutist . He was artistic director of the Jazz Meeting Berlin jazz festival from 1997 to 2007 and has been the initiator and artistic director of the Europe Blues Train festival since 2009 . He has also been chairman of the Pro arte vivendi association since 2013

biography

He started playing the clarinet at the age of 17 , but soon switched to the saxophone, especially the soprano saxophone . In the band formations Framus Five around Michal Prokop and Pop Messengers around Karel Černoch , from 1967 to 1968 and from 1968 to 1969 he also played the baritone saxophone . His participation is not documented on the records from that time, probably due to his flight to the West in 1969, a year after the Prague Spring , from what was then communist Czechoslovakia .

In autumn 1969 he first went to Vienna, where he a. a. played with Sammy Vomáčka . From 1970 he accepted an engagement for the musical Hair , which was touring in Germany , for performances in Frankfurt am Main and in West Berlin. He stayed in West Berlin until he moved to England for four years in 1972, where he performed regularly with Jesse Ballard and recorded the album Control with Jackie Leven (then still under the pseudonym John St Field) . There were further musical contacts to Alexis Korner , whom he met in the London folk club Troubadour .

In 1976 he returned to West Berlin with Jesse Ballard's Paradise Island Band and was quickly accepted into the flourishing jazz, blues and folk scene there, where he also became known as The Sensational Saxophone Joe .

This was followed by the musical collaboration with Pete Wyoming Bender , which included a number of tours throughout Germany and Austria, as well as several appearances on television. He was also a co-founder of the music projects Triangel (together with Ron Randolf and Hans Hartmann ) and Balance (together with Ralph Billmann ).

After the fall of the Wall and the Velvet Revolution , he toured Czechoslovakia with Marta Kubišová from 1990 , with further concerts in Japan, Paris and Berlin.

In 2010, the biography Joe Kučera: Life in Balance was published in collaboration with Ulf G. Stuberger .

Discography (excerpt)

Co-founded music projects

Jesse Ballard (band)

  • Livin 'Like Fire [1977 LP]
Remastering: Paradise Island Band [1998 CD]
  • Return to Paradise [1998 CD]
  • Talkin 'to the Rain [2003 CD]
  • Constantly in View [2007 CD]
  • Cut It All Loose [2014 CD]

balance

  • Saxophone Joe & Friends [1986 LP]
  • Dilemma [1998 CD]
  • Memories / Looking Back [2016 double CD]

triangle

  • Live in the ON AIR Recording Studio Vol. 1 [1997 CD]

Ripe barley trio

  • Live at Oxident, Berlin [2007 CD]
  • Am I [2011 CD]

Earliest years

In Czechoslovakia

  • The Framus Five [1968 7 "-EP]
A1: In The Midnight Hour
A2: Ton Of Joy
B1: Mojo Mama
B2: Don't Set Me Free
as Josef Šimon Kučera
Republished on: Blues In Soul + 9x Bonus [1995 CD]

In England

  • John St. Field - Control [1975 LP]
Name Misspelled: Joe Kuccer
John St. Field is later known as Jackie Leven

Participation in German productions

Artist / project title Publishing year supporting documents Remarks
John Vaughan Somewhere In Europe 1976 LP
Pannach & Kunert Pannach & Kunert 1979 LP
Pete Wyoming Bender Life's too short 1978 LP Name Misspelled: Joe Kuzcera
Werner Lämmerhirt White spots 1978 LP listed as "Saxophone Joe"
Jasmine Bonnin No fear 1979 LP
Nino Hiemann No identity 1980 LP
Fences (LP) / Ralph Billmann (CD) Cockchafer 1981 LP; 2003 CD u. a. with Christof Griese and Eddie Hayes
Jasmine Bonnin At home 1981 LP not as a musician, but as the composer of the title track
Lydie Auvray premiere 1981 LP
Icarus Solaris 1982 LP Name Misspelled: Jo Kucera
Pete Wyoming Bender As if it were nothing 1982 LP
Werner Lämmerhirt Crossroads 1982 LP listed as "Josef 'Joe' Kucera"
Pete Wyoming Bender When feelings die ... 1983 LP
Hans Hartmann Swindia 1984 LP
Lydie Auvray ensemble 1985 LP
Pete Wyoming Bender Pretty helpless 1985 LP
Pete Wyoming Bender 1986 1986 LP
Paul Esslinger & Ensemble Journey to Mandalonia 1987 LP
Pete Wyoming Bender Man is going on 1988 LP with Tony Sheridan
Gino Merendino Ginos La Boheme 1991 LP Name Misspelled: Jo Cucera
Ralph Billmann Flying 1991 MC; 2001 CD u. a. with Earl Bostic and Eddie Hayes
Ron Randolf A matter of time 1994 CD
David & Roselyn Dirty Old Men 1997 CD
Gino Merendino La donna dello spazio 1997 CD Name Misspelled: Jo Cucera
Grajeda & Williams Staytrue Street 2003 CD as Josef Simon Kucera; Saxophone recorded in Los Angeles
Jamestown Ferry When the bluebird sings ... 2007 CD
John Vaughan Rhapsody From Sixth Avenue 2008 CD
Simone Ripe Barley Simone Ripe Barley 2008 CD
Carlos Mieres Wall Blues 2018 CD
Manfred Maurenbrecher Home abroad 2020 CD
Ralph Schüller Thank you. Too bad. 2020 Thursday CD

Participation in Czech productions

Artist / project title Publishing year supporting documents Remarks
Marta Kubišová Někdy si zpívám 1991 CD u. a. with Luboš Andršt
Jan Hrubý & Kukulín Burning Rose 1994 CD
Oswald Schneider Dudytojz plant 2002 CD
Martin Kratochvíl No jazz 2014 MP3 u. a. with Miroslav Vitouš
Martin Kratochvíl Himalayan Echoes II. 2015 CD u. a. with Miroslav Vitouš
Oswald Schneider Wald Schneid 2017 CD / LP / MP3
Martin Kratochvíl Siločáry 2018 CD / LP

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ ISBN 978-3-86858-407-3
  2. ↑ DNB 1127662937
  3. ↑ a b simonereifegerste.de
  4. ↑ farm5.static.flickr.com
  5. ↑ michalprokop.cz
  6. ↑ recordcollector.org
  7. ↑ home.xnet.it
  8. ↑ home.xnet.it
  9. ↑ paleochora-kreta.de
  10. ↑ a b c d e f pete-wyoming-bender.de ( Memento from May 31, 2010 in the Internet Archive )
  11. ↑ Werner Lämmerhirt - White Spots at Discogs (English)
  12. ↑ Nino * - No Identity at Discogs (English)
  13. ↑ DNB 353750646
  14. ↑ a b oha-records.com ( Memento from April 5, 2005 in the Internet Archive )
  15. ↑ billmannart.com
  16. ↑ Ikarus (3) - Solaris at Discogs (English)
  17. ↑ DNB 351284338
  18. ↑ werner-laemmerhirt.de ( Memento from October 23, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  19. ↑ DNB 351681825
  20. ↑ Hans Hartmann - Swindia bei Discogs (English)
  21. ↑ DNB 352234695
  22. ↑ a b ginosmusic.com ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.ginosmusic.com
  23. ↑ billmannart.com
  24. ↑ DNB 356052745
  25. ↑ oha-records.com ( Memento from August 28, 2005 in the Internet Archive )
  26. ↑ bluebird-shop.com
  27. ↑ folkworld.de
  28. ↑ bluebird-shop.com
  29. ↑ carlosmieres.de
  30. ↑ lubosandrst.cz
  31. ↑ semafor.wdr.cz
  32. ↑ Miroslav Vitous, Martin Kratochvíl, Tony Ackerman, Josef Kucera * - No Jazz at Discogs (English)
  33. ↑ studiobudikov.cz
  34. ↑ oswaldschneider.bandcamp.com
  35. ↑ proglas.cz
personal data
SURNAME Kučera, Joe
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kucera, Joe (German); Kučera, Josef (real name, Czech); Kucera, Josef (real name, German)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Czech saxophonist and jazz flutist
DATE OF BIRTH July 8, 1943
PLACE OF BIRTH Prague , Czechoslovakia