TRAUMTON Records Grunewaldstr. 9, D-13597 Berlin Tel. 030 – 331 93 50 , Fax 030 – 331 93 70 e-mail: [email protected]www.traumton.de Im Vertrieb von: INDIGO (D), Musikvertrieb AG (CH), HOANZL (AT), FINETUNES (digital) Veröffentlichung 26.10.2007 Carsten Daerr Trio Insomniac Wonderworld Traumton/INDIGO CD 904682 EAN/UPC: 705304450826 File under: Jazz/Piano Trio Carsten Daerr piano Oliver Potratz: bass Eric Schaefer: drums Guest: Uwe Steinmetz saxophone "... Berlin pianist Carsten Daerr's Trio transfixed the twentysomething audience with the energy of an indie rock band. Capable of creating the elegant and the profound, they settled for the latter. Showing new ways of thinking and feeling about things is the defining task of a true artist, and Daerr did it - whatever you wanted to call his music." Stuart Nicholson, Guardian Unlimited 4 2007 Carsten Daerr Trio – Insomniac Wonderworld Carsten Daerr Trio – Insomniac Wonderworld After his highly lauded debut PurpleCoolCarSleep (2003), followed up by what Rolling Stone Magazine heralded as "The most exciting piano trio album of the year 2005 ", Bantha Food (2005), we are now presented with Insomniac Wonderworld, the third album from Carsten Daerr's original trio of himself (piano, organ), Oliver Potratz (bass) and Eric Schaefer (drums). Saxophonist Uwe Steinmetz appears as a guest on two tracks. Insomniac Wonderworld – the title allows for a lot of associations: for example the world of sleepless creatures of the night, as portrayed in Jürgen Roland's 1959 film "Unser Wunderland bei Nacht" (" Wonderland by Night"). The director combines scenes from Hamburg's nightlife with the narration style of the American Film Noir here, so creating his own distinctive aesthetics. With the music of pianist Daerr (born in 1975) it's pretty much the same thing: For years he's been expanding the boundaries of his music by harmonizing the art of genuine American jazz with his German roots, finding his way to his own expression, his own individual language. The insomnia on Insomniac Wonderworld is not one of nervous restlessness however; for Carsten Daerr "insomniac" means much more a condition of heightened wakefulness in which amazement and wonder constantly pop into in the present. Carsten Daerr has retained the ability to marvel at things, and along with that
Im Vertrieb von: INDIGO (D), Musikvertrieb AG (CH), HOANZL (AT), FINETUNES (digital)
Veröffentlichung 26.10.2007
Carsten Daerr TrioInsomniac WonderworldTraumton/INDIGO CD 904682EAN/UPC: 705304450826File under: Jazz/Piano Trio
Carsten Daerr piano Oliver Potratz: bass Eric Schaefer: drumsGuest: Uwe Steinmetz saxophone
"... Berlin pianist Carsten Daerr's Trio transfixed the twentysomething audience with the energy of an indie rockband. Capable of creating the elegant and the profound, they settled for the latter. Showing new ways of thinkingand feeling about things is the defining task of a true artist, and Daerr did it - whatever you wanted to call hismusic."Stuart Nicholson, Guardian Unlimited 4 2007
Carsten Daerr Trio – Insomniac Wonderworld
Carsten Daerr Trio – Insomniac Wonderworld
After his highly lauded debut PurpleCoolCarSleep (2003), followed up by what Rolling Stone Magazine heraldedas "The most exciting piano trio album of the year 2005 ", Bantha Food (2005), we are now presented withInsomniac Wonderworld, the third album from Carsten Daerr's original trio of himself (piano, organ), OliverPotratz (bass) and Eric Schaefer (drums). Saxophonist Uwe Steinmetz appears as a guest on two tracks.
Insomniac Wonderworld – the title allows for a lot of associations: for example the world of sleepless creaturesof the night, as portrayed in Jürgen Roland's 1959 film "Unser Wunderland bei Nacht" (" Wonderland by Night").The director combines scenes from Hamburg's nightlife with the narration style of the American Film Noir here,so creating his own distinctive aesthetics. With the music of pianist Daerr (born in 1975) it's pretty much thesame thing: For years he's been expanding the boundaries of his music by harmonizing the art of genuineAmerican jazz with his German roots, finding his way to his own expression, his own individual language.
The insomnia on Insomniac Wonderworld is not one of nervous restlessness however; for Carsten Daerr"insomniac" means much more a condition of heightened wakefulness in which amazement and wonderconstantly pop into in the present. Carsten Daerr has retained the ability to marvel at things, and along with that
Im Vertrieb von: INDIGO (D), Musikvertrieb AG (CH), HOANZL (AT), FINETUNES (digital)
has the rare talent of literally playing between the lines. The impressions from his Southeast Asian tour aren'tbuilt into his works in the form of folkloristic reminiscing, but as far-reaching directness and suspensefuldynamics. On songs like „Manila“, „Kuala Lumpur“, “Singapur“ and „Jakarta“, it becomes obvious that travelingis the album's central theme. Travel destinations serve Daerr as the starting point for five of the twelve tracks;the atmosphere, architecture and sound tapestries from these Asian metropolises are worked into hiscompositions.
Daerr plays with the open structures of jazz, leaves the trodden path and seeks new perspectives to describeplaces in Southeast Asia. The results of this cosmopolitan approach are such unique songs as the energy-laden„Manila“, the strangely impenetrable and mystically charged „Penang“, or „Singapur“, that starts like a sixty'sinstrumental, becomes increasingly complex, and suddenly ends up reminiscing of reggae and dub . CarstenDaerr, it seems, is stranger to no one and nothing in the world of music.More introspective compositions supply the contrast to these songs, above all the lyrical „Epilog (for my father)“and the piano-solo composition „Lucia“. These homages to people create a quasi antipole to the "travel songs".
A further caesura are the compositions drummer Eric Schaefer contributes to the album. In the wild and choppy„Negative FX“ he appears to be dealing with his relationship to hardcore in the 80's, and on the seemingly other-worldly track „Flatus Voci“, the trio uses sound samples of a church organ, among others. And finally, „R2D2Reloaded“ gives us a double recourse to the past: for one the song has the same name as the cuddly robot inthe Sci-Fi cult epic Star Wars, for another on Bantha Food there was already a composition with the title R2D2(Err-Zwo-De-Zwo). It's exactly this musical back reference that shows what quantum leaps the trio has made inthe last two years. And how these nmusicians, after the Bantha Food excursion, have arrived in the here andnow - distinctly more grounded.
After existing for ten years, Carsten Daerr and his trio have not only delivered the proverbial „difficult thirdalbum“ as one says in the world of music, but with Insomniac Wonderworld, have pushed open a door to a newsound universe. And leave the amazement to the listener.
Selected discography Carsten Daerr
Carsten Daerr Trio „Insomniac Wonderworld“ (Traumton, 2007)Carsten Daerr Trio „Bantha Food“ (Traumton, 2005)Carsten Daerr Trio „PurpleCoolCarSleep“ (Traumton, 2003)Tuomi „The Expense of Spirit“ (Traumton, 2007)Tuomi „Tightrope Walker“ (Traumton, 2005)Daerr & Erdmann “Berlin Calling” (ACT, 2007)Christopher Dell “The World We Knew” (ACT, 2007)
Im Vertrieb von: INDIGO (D), Musikvertrieb AG (CH), HOANZL (AT), FINETUNES (digital)
Bios
Carsten Daerr – pianoBorn in Berlin in 1975, Carsten was taking classical piano lessons from1982 to 1995. Further on he studied jazz-piano at the Hochschule der Kuenste (HdK) in Berlin with Kirk Nurock and Hubert Nuß and composition with o.a.James Knapp and Maria Schneider._Since 1998 he is involved in band projects of his own such as "TUOMI"(with Carlos Bica (double bass) and Kristiina Tuomi (vocals), Carsten Daerr Trio, „Berlin Calling (a.a. with DanielErdmann) und Christopher Dell. He has performed and/or recorded with a.o. Michael Schiefel, dem Till BrönnerQuintett, Christopher Dell, Christof Lauer, Nasheet Waits und Bunky Green.
Oliver Potratz – doublebassborn in Hamburg in 1973, Oliver studied classical music at the Hochschule der Kuenste (HdK) in Berlin with Prof.Michael Wolf and Prof. Rainer Zepperitz (Berlin Philharmonics), as well as Jazz with Siggi Busch, David Friedmanand Jerry Granelli from1995 - 1999._Oliver is member of the Weltorchester (world orchestra) since 1997, touringand concerts with various ensembles lead him to Spain, France, Lettland, Estonia, Finnland, Denmark, Japan,Taiwan, Korea, Philippines, Israel, South Afrika, Roumania, Poland, Russia and Switzerland._He has performedand/or recorded with a.o. Peter Fulda, John Schröder, Hayden Chisholm, Mircea Tiberian, Tomasz Stanko,Bobby McFerrin, Gitte Haenning, Christof Lauer, Christopher Dell, Kalle Kalima
Eric Schaefer - SchlagzeugBorn in Berlin in 1976, Eric studied New Music with Christoph Caskl, Jazz with David Friedman, Jerry Granelliand Steve Davis as well as composition with James Knapp and Maria Schneider. He has performed and/orrecorded with a.o.mit [em Johnny La Marama, Demotage, Nickendes Perlgras , Arne Jansen Trio, Das RosaRauschen, Herb Robertson , Gebhard Ullmann, Christof Lauer, Christopher Dell, Ulrike Haage u.v.a.
Presse CD Bantha Food:
" ... Berlin pianist Carsten Daerr's Trio transfixed the twentysomething audience with the energy of an indie rockband. Capable of creating the elegant and the profound, they settled for the latter. Showing new ways ofthinking and feeling about things is the defining task of a true artist, and Daerr did it - whatever you wanted tocall his music."
Stuart Nicholson, Guardian Unlimited, April 30, 2007"2005’s most exciting record of a piano-trio with 16 subtile, temerarious miniatures fraught with spirit ofadventure comes from Berlin.The way Carsten Daerr, with Oliver Poratz on bass and a brilliant sound-explorer called Eric Schaefer on drumsfree new classical music from everything top-heavy and at the same time free jazz from patterns that werestraining it for centuries, is something Bill Evans would never have dreamed of.Rolling Stone, Klaus von Seckendporff, 1/2006
„The classical piano-trio is in the center of attention in the jazz scene again, although it has always been presentin the jazz medial background of Keith Jarrett. The german pianist Carsten Daerr with Oliver Poratz, bass, andEric Schaefer, drums has found „his trio“.On their second cd for the Berlin label Traumton, the musicians try to explore the sound capacities of theirinstruments. Plucking of strings, cluster and then again bubbling passages, descending to a dynamic unisonoperformance. Carsten Daerr surprises over again with new turnarounds, impressions and expressions in quickinterplays between equal partners. The search for the unknown stands in the center, stillstand and outbreak ofthe compositions develop in an unexpected but coherent way: dynamic and calm as two equally strong poles,that reward the listener with a slightly different kind of „family-music“.Jazzzeit (THO), 11/2005
„Rastaman’s FrustrationThey still exist, the demure things. And jazz-musicians who make them : The Carsten Daerr trio from Berlindefies the temptation of smoochy standards and loungy gallantry-goods and instead plays compositions withoutdefined „changes“ and chord progressions. „Bantha Food“ (Traumton Records) connects the sound-exploration
Im Vertrieb von: INDIGO (D), Musikvertrieb AG (CH), HOANZL (AT), FINETUNES (digital)
of modern experimental music and the powerful, full of relish play with different elements: Postbop-Powerplay,Reggae-Beats and impressionistic piano-improvisations fall in place to miniatures, which carry beautiful nameslike „Rastaman Frustration (negativ)“ and sound as if they were inspired by „Star Wars“ – adventures in thewidths of the sound-cosmos.“Lufthansa exclusive 11/2005
„An undogmatic relationship to free performance unifies and honours Germany’s young piano-trio-(Avant)Garde.Jens Thomas and Michael Wollny don’t play free-jazz, but they play with free-jazz. And also Berlin pianistCarsten Daerr’s Trio makes, after the success of their vaunted debut „PurpleCoolCarSleep“, with the secondalbum clear, what concertgoers already appreciate for quite a time: We’re not affixed on music that could be putinto chord-changes for the „Real Book“. But we don’t want to do completely without tempting grooves, changesand melodies because of that.Refusing to pay the admission price for the world of free-jazz that way, the enjoyably unagitated rebels comerefreshingly near to a new invention of the piano-trio in the area of conflict of jazz and new classical music. ...They experiment with sounds, structures- and amazing results: the new classical elements are improvisatorilyanimated instead of being congealed top-heavily.Eric Schaefer’s drums can sound ten cubic centimetres small and in the next moment they strike out to a mightyattac. Also Oliver Poratz doesn’t have to struggle himself out of the classical role of setter of the fundament. Theoften conjured equality, here it comes for the same part radically as naturally. Even though this trio takes the riskof stroppy liberation-attemps, their music remains – even without the funny explanations in the booklet –comprehensible. When it finds its listeners. But for those who are, contrast-bath of cross-grain and the mosttender chamber-music-whispers turns out to be an adventure full of relish: 16 miniatures that attest to maximumingenuity.“Jazz cd of the monthRondo, Klaus von Seckendorff, 22.10.2005
„Currently, the upstarter concerning jazz piano who is mostly paied regard to, is Carsten Daerr. The congenialtrio with Oliver Poratz on bass and Eric Schaefer on drums sovereignly navigates through 16 new compositions.Nothing here sounds as if it was already discovered or already ticked off, no, lame compromises are consciouslyavoided.“ CBjazzthing, 9/2005
Star Wars and Feldmann – Carsten Daerr Trio (Feature)Jazzthetik, 10/2005
Thanks to his skills concerning his technique of playing, Carsten Daerr, hoping for a wider audience, could alsoposition himself as a neo-romantic tarred with the same brush as Bred Mehldau. But the berlin pianistconsequently remains with a more extensive approach to the current events in music. Daerr’s pieces arecomplex sound-spaces in the tradition of the experimental modernity, which, with Eric Schaefer (drums) andOliver Poratz (bass), interlace to communicative motive-networks: Jazz to listen to with a lot to thrive on!“Stereoplay 11/2005, Ralf Dombrowski
„The piano trio, in jazz at the latest since Beill Evans a very own, fascinating instrumentation, that over againcreated great moments, is to a big part in discussion again because of the success of the Esbjörn Svenson Trio.And of course every new piano-trio is to be compared with EST. You can absolutely do so, if you’re driving at areal comparison, so to say the determination of differences and similarities. The trio of Carsten Daerr is, like theSwedes, a very extensive ensemble. They come to the point as well as they wallow, but admittedly that’s whatthey do more rarely. For Daerr, Oliver Poratz (bass) and Eric Schaefer (drums) are too much interested inexploring new ways, without condescending too far to avantgarde fields. Daerr’s way of playing clearly showsthe preoccupation with the classics of new music, which he combines with modern jazz stylistics, withoutchumming up to a pop-audience. With the second album „Bantha Food“, the Carsten Daerr trio establishes itselfas one of the most interesting formations of Germany’s jazz-scene.“
"New notes are needed on the market and the berlin pianist delivers them in droves. His one-hour-marchthrough the black and white instances pleases even the one who has no love for a whiff of intellectual sound-spectra. The cause for that might be the subliminal harmony, resonating in each song, that isn’t instantlycomprehensible after the first superficial listening, but leaves obvious traces in the subconsciousnes."sound-and-image.de
