English

JE:D is a newly established collective of musicians from Düsseldorf. The musicians of this creative think tank dedicate themselves to “Jazz made in Düsseldorf”.

Press release:

The JAZZensemble düsseldorf is a musical platform in exchange with other cities and twin cities. It comprises an extended network of musicians and artists from all over the world and is constantly communicating with other art genres such as classic, new music, dance, theatre and fine arts. Their performance always involves an exchange with the attending audience.

The jazzENSEMBLE düsseldorf is a collective of jazz musicians from Düsseldorf – everyone for himself a professional musician, teacher, composer and arranger. Almost all of the musicians have been honored with the city’s advancement award. Each musician is an experienced national and international player, and they are all related with each other in jazz and Düsseldorf.

The jazzensemble DÜSSELDORF is a creative think tank representing the city’s culture and reinventing its music. The topic is Düsseldorf, music is its language. The musical performance refers to Kraftwerk, Düsseldorf carnival, Heine and “Hosen”. The input is manifold and poses a fascinating challenge to the expert composers and experienced players. The musical freedom and flexibility of jazz is the framework of this project.

Reiner Witzel – Saxophone, Woodwind
Mathias Haus – Vibraphone
Sebastian Gahler – Piano
Philipp van Endert – Guitar
Nico Brandenburg – Bass
Peter Weiss – Drums

Reiner Witzel

SAXOPHONE, WOODWIND

Saxophone studies in Cologne and New York
Scholarship student of the Kultusministerium NRW (ministry of education and cultural affairs North Rhine-Westfalia) and recipient of the advancement award Düsseldorf
CD releases with David Sanborn, Vernon Reid and Lew Soloff and his own trio “Drei im roten Kreis” (three in a red circle)
Concerts and recordings including Marla Glen, Defunkt, Gil Evans Orchestra, Fela Kuti, HR-Bigband, Tom Gaebel, Alex Sipiagin, Vinx, Sasha, Fury in the Slaughterhouse, Xavier Naidoo, Udo Lindenberg, Harald Schmidt Show (Helmut Zerlett Band)
Concerts and tours around the world including North and South America, Africa and Japan
Compositions for television and theatre (including WDR, 1Festival, Musiktheater Köln)
Lecturer at the academies of music of Frankfurt and Düsseldorf
Consultant for Vandoren and P. Mauriat
Active photographer, working for the Rheinische Post (local newspaper) and Sonic, portraits of Lionel Richie, Roger Cicero and Branford Marsalis and others

Mathias Haus

VIBRAPHONE, PERCUSSION

Studies of classic percussion in Düsseldorf
Vibraphone studies in the class of Gary Burton in Boston, degree in composition and arrangement in the class of Hal Crook
Scholarship student of the Kultusministerium NRW (ministry of education and cultural affairs North Rhine-Westfalia)
Scholarship student of the minister of cultural affairs North Rhine-Westfalia
GVL foundation
Gema foundation
recipient of the advancement award Düsseldorf
John Dankworth Award
Gary Burton Award
Jazzpott 2002
Recordings with H A U S, Mathias Haus Projekt, Duo Haus /Sendetzki (piano player of the NDR Bigband), Duo Haus/Van Endert
Düsseldorf Percussion, Mallet Ensemble of the academy of music Cologne, Wuppertal department
Guest soloist for recordings and at concerts with Carla Bley, Steve Swallow, Jim Black, Donny McCaslin, Paul Kuhn, big bands NDR, WDR, SWR, HR (including Martial Solal, Sammy Nestico, Nina Hagen) Bobby Shew, Ken Wollesen, Luciana Souza, Klaus König and others. Assetec Festival Adelaide, Australia, Montreux Jazzfestival, Leverkusener Jazztage, Oleg Kagan Musikfest (patron Claudio Abbado), Schumannfest Düsseldorf, Jazzfestival Maastricht
Considerable compositions for WDR, Düsseldorfer Schauspielhaus (theatre), Bote & Bock), workshops (NMZ, fermate, sticks)
Since 2002 own composition series Heinersdorff Concerts
Teaching projects with the Symphony Orchestras of Düsseldorf and Bochum, the Philharmonie Cologne, European response projects
Since 1992 lecturer at the academy of music and dance Cologne
Since 1988 Clara Schumann music school Düsseldorf

Philipp van Endert

GUITAR

Graduate of Berklee College of Music (Boston/USA) with magna cum laude
More than 40 CD releases with jazz stars like Mike Stern, Danny Gottlieb, Kenny Wheeler, Karl Berger, Rick Margitza, Lajos Dudas a.o.
Numerous concerts and tours in America, Europe, including the Montreux Jazz Festival, The Hague Jazz, Jazz Sur Son/Toulouse, Ankara Jazzfestival and Leverkusener Jazztage
Nominated for Deutscher Schallplattenpreis 2006 (German Record Award), recipient of the Steven D. Holland Memorial Scholarship, the Berklee Guitar Department Achievement Award and recipient of the advancement award Düsseldorf (1996)
Lecturer for Jazz- and electric guitar at the Robert Schumann academy of music in Düsseldorf and at the academy of music in Osnabrück
Since 2001 manager of the record label JazzSick Records with more than 80 releases on the national and international market (www.jazzsick.com)
Since 2006 musical director of the jazz concert series “Blue in Green” and the corresponding festival “Neusser Jazz Sommer Nacht” (www.blueingreen-jazz.de)

Sebastian Gahler

PIANO

Studies of Jazz piano in Arnheim (NL) and Cologne
Berklee College of Music scholarship and recipient of the advancement award Düsseldorf
Numerous CD productions, including his own “Sebastian Gahler Trio”
Concerts and cooperations with Junges Schauspielhaus Düsseldorf (theatre), Wolfgang Engstfeld, Gerd Dudek, Tom Gaebel, Stefanie Heinzmann, Udo Lindenberg, Paul Heller, Henning Berg, Peter Fessler, Claudius Valk, Inga Lühning and others
Worldwide performances and tours with different projects
Organizer and initiator of various concert series in Düsseldorf for a lot of years

Nico Brandenburg

UPRIGHT AND ELECTRIC BASS

electric bass studies at the academy of music in Arnheim (NL)
Upright bass studies at the Folkwang University Essen
2nd chairman of the Jazz-Schmiede Düsseldorf e.V.
Mentor of music at the ideas contest „Düsseldorf ist ARTig“
Lecturer at the Robert Schumann academy of music in Düsseldorf
Concerts, tours and CD productions with artists of different cultures, including the WDR Big Band, the WDR radio orchestra, the symphonic orchestra of Düsseldorf, Lena Meyer Landrut (tour through Germany), Rafael Cortés (flamenco artist), the Düsseldorfer Schauspielhaus (theatre), Noshaafarin (persian singer), John Gibbons (backing singer for Yusuf Islam and others), Udo Lindenberg, Bob Mintzer, Axel Fischbacher, Domingo Patricio (flute player for Paco De Lucia), Joscho Stephan and others

Peter Weiss

DRUMS, PERCUSSION

Modern jazz drummer for more than 40 years
Played with Uli Beckerhoff, Peter O’Mara, Gunnar Plümer, Hugo Read, Zbigeniew Namyslowski, Gerd Dudek, Ed Kröger, Hendrik Soll, Benny Bailey, Jarek Smietana, Norma Winstone, Bob Degen, Matthias Nadolny, Al Grey, Michael Küttner, Achim Kaufmann, Reiner Winterschladen, Christof Lauer, Hal Singer, Andrew White, Tata Din Din, Glen Moore, Manfred Schoof, Charlie Mariano, Randy Brecker, Terumasa Hino, James Moody, Paul Imm, Piotr Wojtasik, Christopher Dell, Dieter Manderscheid, Matthias Schriefl, Wolfgang Schmidtke, Hans Reichel, Conny Bauer, Rhani Krija, Arkadi Shilklopper, Jõao Moreira, Pablo Held, Martin Sasse, Daniel Casimir, Wolfgang Engstfeld and others
recipient of the advancement award Düsseldorf (1981), member of the board of musical advisors and the advancement award jury Düsseldorf (1990-1995), juror for “Jugend jazzt” (Jazz award for young musicians) NRW, organizer of the concert series „Jazz im Hofgarten Düsseldorf“ since 1979, musical director of the JazzRally (1996-1999), „Five Continents“ Expo 2000 and the Jazz-Schmiede Düsseldorf
since its foundation in 1989 director oft he Jazzpool NRW
radio recordings and productions for nearly all German institutions and various television productions including a feature in “Aspekte” (television programme)