From ACT Archiv: Limited test pressing of the album by Jakob Manz: The Answer (2024)A rare collector's item: A test pressing is the very first sample disc of an album and is used for quality control before the final pressing. It does not always match the sound of the later release exactly, which makes each copy a distinctive collectible with its own history. Every test pressing is a limited edition: ideal for collectors and for anyone who appreciates jazz vinyl, rarities and exclusive editions.Our Vinyl Test Pressing Package includes: 1 Bio-Vinyl test pressing in its original white sleeve. A beautifully designed card, featuring hand-written key details about the release such as artist names, album title, production year, number of test pressings. Album booklet in PDF format. This sheet provides an in-depth look at the album and includes: The cover artwork, a text about the album, tracklist, full credits for production and performance, instrumentation details. Test Pressing Authentication Certificate This certificate confirms the authenticity of this test pressing, which was produced as part of the quality control process before the final vinyl pressing. Test pressings are made in limited quantities to ensure the highest audio fidelity and manufacturing standards. Each test pressing is carefully inspected and approved by our team before production proceeds. This document serves as verification of its authenticity and uniqueness. For official validation, this certificate bears the company stamp.Please note: A test pressing is a preliminary version of the vinyl record used to evaluate the quality of the pressing before full production. The audio quality may not be identical to the final version and may include some imperfections inherent to the test process. It holds historical significance as part of the production process.

Emma Rawicz - INKYRACD / Vinyl / Limited Purple Vinyl / digitalEmma Rawicz tenor, soprano saxophonesGareth Lockrane flute, alto flute, bass flute, piccolo David Preston guitar Scottie Thompson Rhodes, piano, Prophet Kevin Glasgow electric bassJamie Murray drums‘In jazz, there’s always more to learn,’ says saxophonist Emma Rawicz. Since the release of her ACT debut album Chroma in August 2023, she has emerged as one of the most acclaimed and in-demand European jazz musicians of her generation. For Emma Rawicz, jazz is above all a never-ending source of creative inspiration. ‘There's always something new to discover,’ she says. ‘While you practise, there are so many new things which can be developed.’ Emma Rawicz sets herself a gruelling work schedule. During the coronavirus pandemic, she started documenting her practice routines on Instagram, which has led to tens of thousands of people keeping track of her development ever since. She tours throughout Europe, playing in major concert halls, headlining at important festivals, while also constantly writing new music. She leads her own Emma Rawicz Jazz Orchestra, and recently became a BBC New Generation Artist – joining the uniquely prestigious scheme through which the BBC supports ‘some of the world’s most promising new talent’, across several genres of music. As The Guardian has written: ‘Emma Rawicz hit the ground running – and the warp speed of her evolution is showing no sign of slowing.’Emma Rawicz is never one to seek out the easy paths, and her desire to challenge audiences is also something fundamental. And yet...she always does it with a smile. Confrontation doesn’t interest her, but rather the discovery and the experience of new music which has never previously been heard, and which can transcend everyday clichés. The album Inkyra, recorded with the sextet Gareth Lockrane (flute), David Preston (guitar), Scottie Thompson (keys), Kevin Glasgow (electric bass) and Jamie Murray (drums), breaks boundaries in many ways. It is completely alive with energy, ideas, colours and rhythmic and harmonic complexity. Rawicz herself impresses here, with a tone that is as weighty as it is agile, deep musical intellect paired with great sensuality and a feel for subtle nuances, and gradations of textures. Rawicz and her band tried out the new music for the first time in a small, standing-only London venue – and in front of a very diverse audience. There is something of a statement here: the first trial of new music is not about seeing how it will fit under the players’ fingers, but rather whether an audience can “get it” and be carried along by it, about whether the people in the room are going to be moved emotionally by the music – and are also going to move physically with it.‘This album means a lot to me. It's something special,’ says Rawicz about Inkyra. ‘I've been playing with this band for more than three years. We've worked very intensively on this music. After the first concert last summer, we all invested a lot of time, practised and developed the programme further in workshops. So everyone has left their mark on it.‘ The influences on the music come from many sources – including some you might not immediately expect: ‘Some of the inspiration for the music comes from Joni Mitchell. That might sound strange at first, because the pieces don't sound like singer/songwriter music. Nevertheless, I immersed myself in her music before composing the programme. I am fascinated by her way of structuring melodies, her use of harmony, unusual tunings and unfamiliar chords that you don't hear in jazz. That influenced me on the piano and in turn shaped my work as a composer. The result is a unique identity. I also took inspiration from the lyrics, which appear in the titles of the pieces and have also inspired the fantasy name of the album.’ “The music of Inkyra sounds at least as colorful as Rawicz’s ACT debut Chroma (from the Greek for colour and a nod to Emma Rawicz’s unique perception of sound and color as a synesthete). ”The anthemic intro, for example, has its roots in the spiritual sound of the sixties. There are dense, towering textures that reach into prog rock, as in Moondrawn (dreaming), or references to Brazilian rhythmic roots, as in Marshmallow Tree. Some tracks - Anima Rising for example sound like, as if not just a sextet but an entire jazz orchestra is playing; other parts – such as Time, And Other Thieves – sound like a mixture of heavy indie beat and shimmering psychedelia, especially thanks to Gareth Lockrane's expansive and authoritative flute playing. The album somehow brings to mind the image of a spaceship, one in which Emma Rawicz – who currently lives in Berlin having spent several years in London – is definitely heading in new directions: ‘Sometimes it felt like we were leaving orbit, boundless in our improvisations. Like we could just take off and leave the rest behind. For me, it's like a cosmic journey. We don't know where we're going to land – only that when we do, it will be together.’CreditsAll music composed by Emma RawiczProduced by Emma Rawicz, co-produced by David PrestonRecorded at Livingston Studios, on the 7th, 8th and 9th of October 2024Recorded by Sonny Johns Mixed by Alex KillpartrickMastered by Klaus ScheuermannCover art by Yukimasa Ida, Flowers (2022) © Yukimasa Ida, courtesy of Mariane Ibrahim Gallery

Nils Kugelmann - Life ScoreCD / Vinyl / digitalNils Kugelmann double bassLuca Zambito pianoSebastian Wolfgruber drumsNils Kugelmann likes telling stories. That much is clear from the titles of his compositions...from the way he talks when he introduces them at concerts...and – naturally – from the music itself. ‘For me, making the connection between music and stories, feelings and situations is so important,’ says the bassist/ composer/ bandleader, now based in Berlin. ‘At concerts I consciously talk to the audience and go into the background of each piece in some detail. It’s something I enjoy. I can hardly imagine presenting music on stage without having this kind of communication.’ Above all, however, the music which Nils Kugelmann plays and composes has real urgency, strong energy and hypnotic power. As an artist he has broken through in a way that no other double bassist of the under-30 generation in Germany has done, in particular his way of making his instrument the central feature of his music. Immediately after completing his master's degree in 2022, Kugelmann launched his debut album ‘Stormy Beauty’ on ACT. German media called him a ‘bass berserker’ and a ‘mega-talent.’ Awards, sold-out concerts duly followed. Kugelmann has a core trio, but beyond that he is free to play in the contexts and styles he likes – first and foremost in a duo and quartet with pianist and composer Shuteen Erdenebaatar.There are so many dimensions to Kugelmann’s musical personality, something which the trio he leads with pianist Luca Zambito and drummer Sebastian Wolfgruber gives him the freedom to express. ‘Life Score’ is in many ways a further development and concentration of the qualities of the band and its leader. ‘Our first album was still from the Corona period. We hardly had a chance to play live and the studio recordings were the first real opportunity to try out the pieces,’ Kugelmann recalls. ‘With ”Life Score’ it's completely different. We have now played a lot of concerts and as a trio we have grown together and got closer. The pieces seem much more compact and concrete.’ ACT CEO and producer Andreas Brandis has played a significant role in this. The trio did try-outs of the new repertoire written by Nils Kugelmann over the course of several live concerts. This was followed by intensive, collective discussions about the selection of pieces, arrangements, sound and dynamics. This meant that the trio was able to go into the studio perfectly prepared and, together with their producer, concentrate on the finer details and find the ideal versions of the pieces for the album. Andreas Brandis says: ‘Nils Kugelmann is not only an incredible bassist, but above all a great songwriter. And precisely because his music is so concise and catchy, it was important to reduce the pieces to their essence.’ All the compositions on the album have a cinematic quality, they are like short films about the lives of their protagonists. These ‘life scores’ draw inspiration from experiences on tour, such as a visit to the Galapagos Islands, but also from moods inspired by balmy summer evenings, the scent of the night, or the incomparable experience of love. These stories are there compositions, in clear, present melodies, in the groovy, flowing rhythm of a homogenous-sounding trio and also in the naturalness of melodic music. Because Nils Kugelmann not only wants to tell stories. He also wants to be heard and understood – by a broad audience and also by listeners of his own generation. ‘Life Score’ is a complex and captivating blueprint, showing us a new kind of film-like Gen Z jazz.CreditsRecorded by Klaus Scheuermann, on September 24–25, 2024, at Soundfabrik in Berlin, Germany Mixed and mastered by Klaus ScheuermannCover art by Bernd Zimmer, “Cosmos”, 2003

ALBUM NOTES BY MALAKOFF KOWALSKI On the day of a piano recording, everything begins with the tuning. The pianist’s preferences, the demands of the repertoire, and the piano technician’s approach must all be brought into harmony. Once the instrument is ready to be played, the adrenaline begins to kick in. We had scheduled a recording session for my album SONGS WITH WORDS. I had already recorded a few pieces with Igor Levit and Chilly Gonzales. Now, Johanna Summer arrived at my studio early in the morning. As she tried the piano after it had been tuned, I heard something entirely new to my ears: jazz! No one had ever played jazz on my upright piano before—a Krauss from the 1920s. The piano had been prepared with felt between the hammers and strings to create an unusually warm, muted sound—somewhere between a Fender Rhodes and a Celesta. Old-fashioned, yet distinctly modern. As I stood there, hoping Johanna would like the feel of the instrument, I realized her sound check was actually something entirely different: a fully formed solo voice demanding to be recorded. We talked, and decided to return a few weeks later and dedicate a full day to capturing whatever music came to Johanna’s mind on this particular piano. The nature of the instrument—especially with the felt—naturally lends itself to a lyrical, introspective expression; at the same time, passages that are overly fast or too loud are barely playable due to mechanical limitations. Johanna usually plays modern grand pianos without bounds, unleashing unbridled improvisations on classical repertoire. Placing her under certain restrictions seemed like an exciting prospect—for her as a pianist and for me as a producer. We expected two or three pieces to emerge, hoping they might eventually develop into a larger work. Finishing seven complete pieces from scratch on a single day felt almost unbelievable. By the very next morning, as we listened back, it was clear this music formed a cohesive cycle: it opens with two original improvisations. If one were to quietly claim that these pieces were composed rather than improvised, it would speak to a level of craftsmanship rarely encountered in contemporary music. GIANT STEPS, STELLA BY STARLIGHT, and I REMEMBER YOU form the heart of the album’s jazz standards. These interpretations—each recorded in multiple takes—achieve something extraordinary. To my knowledge, these pieces have never been approached this way, certainly not on a century-old, felt-prepared upright piano. The free-form introductions might faintly echo Mompou or Bartók—but unmistakably, within just a few notes, one recognizes Johanna Summer’s genuine touch. The standards are distilled to their most essential thematic elements, and Johanns’s brief solos dissolve as subtly as they emerge. Seemingly out of nowhere, TEARDROP by Massive Attack was an idea born in the moment, and one of those rare gifts you can’t plan for at a studio session. The final piece is Wagner’s elusive, dissonant ELEGY IN A FLAT MAJOR—likely a discarded theme from TRISTAN & ISOLDE, long considered one of his last surviving fragments. The whole experience took us by surprise. It felt like something that happened TO us, rather than something WE initiated. A process entirely out of time. A meeting of freedom and limitation, spontaneity and intention. Music that’s hard to name—and that is now titled: UPRIGHT. 

Emma Rawicz & Gwilym Simcock - Big VisitCD / Vinyl / digitalEmma Rawicz tenor & soprano saxophoneGwilym Simcock pianoThe duo setting can be like a breath of fresh air, particularly for musicians who normally deal with the complexity and intricacy of much larger ventures. Saxophonist Emma Rawicz, whose star has been rising all over Europe since she joined the ACT label last year, runs and directs her own big band. Pianist Gwilym Simcock, whose ACT album “Good Days At Schloss Elmau” was nominated for the Mercury Prize, and has toured the world with Pat Metheny, will at any one time be working on a whole array of orchestral composition commissions.So, when both these musicians approach this new duo project, they do so in an energised and enthusiastic spirit: “It’s a really joyful experience and a positive environment, says Simcock, who adds: “we just get on so well, her writing is so advanced, her attention to detail extraordinary.” Simcock says he not only appreciates Emma Rawicz’s technical mastery of the instrument, particularly her ease in the upper registers, there are musical consequences too: “With her, the ideas just flow from person to instrument, and that’s the ideal we all aspire to.”The respect is mutual. “I was already a fan,” remembers Emma Rawicz, “so playing in a duo really is a dream come true for me.” Despite coming from different musical generations, there are strong affinities in their musical pasts: Simcock and Rawicz even studied with some of the same teachers at the same institutions. “That means we have some very similar reference points in our musical make up,” says Rawicz. “Keith Jarrett, Jan Garbarek, Ralph Towner, as well as the whole folk-inflected lineage of British jazz lineage through John Taylor, Kenny Wheeler and Norma Winstone. All of that had a big impact.” And both concur that the act of bringing improvisation into the duo of a melody instrument and piano – a setting with classical music associations – reconnects them with the classical music which runs deep in both of their pasts.The original opportunity for the two to meet properly for the first time came at a concert in February 2023 at the Royal Academy of Music, a belated celebration of Simcock’s 40th birthday, for which he had been commissioned to write new music. Rawicz’s memories are of first being excited that she had been picked to play on such a special project, but then of being mesmerized by Gwilym’s astonishing directive energy and eye for detail. Later they talked, both liked the idea of a duo, which was also being actively encouraged by ACT boss Andreas Brandis. The duo brings out commitment, enjoyment and a sense of forward momentum for both of them. “It’s special when we meet,” says Simcock. “We have met up as often as possible, and the duo has evolved every time we got together,” Rawicz enthuses.The critics have loved their early performances. “Rawicz and Simcock excelled, both in the calmer pieces and their more energetic forays. Their communication and conversational interaction were superb,” wrote Polish writer Krzysztof Komorek of their first concert in London. For Deutschlandfunk Kultur, their Jazz Baltica appearance was an undoubted highlight of the 2024 festival.The album was recorded in the quietly idyllic surroundings of Curtis Schwarz’s studio in the West Sussex countryside in Southern England – and on the Steinway “D” which Simcock originally selected for the studio. The mood at the sessions was “relaxed, easy,” Simcock remembers. They had the freedom to work throughout long days and to take breaks when they wanted. The result is an album in which they have successfully achieved fascinating contrasts between moods of calm on the one hand, and “going for it big-time” on the other – an approach which they allude to in the album's title, “Big Visit”.The track titles on “Big Visit” often have a playful element. Gwilym Simcock’s “His Great Adventure”, the opening track, is written in dedication to the boldness of the pianist’s young son. Rawicz’s “The Drumbledrone” uses the Devonian word for a bumblebee; it reminds her of a time as a small child, before she had learned to distinguish Devonian – which her grandmother spoke – from standard English. Simcock’s “Optimum Friction” is a reference to the piano riff at the beginning having some “grindy” inner harmonies. There is a more wistful side too: “Shape of a new Sun” is a quote from the novel ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ by Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Stevie Wonder’s “Visions” has a clever rhythmic twist. The final track, the ballad “You’ve Changed”, Rawicz says, "brings back to me a particularly happy memory of having learnt the tune by ear as a student." What’s not to like? Emma Rawicz and Gwilym Simcock clearly both enjoy the duo setting. Critics and audiences are loving it. Their repertoire is growing all the time. They have started with a very strong album. It will be fascinating to watch this like-minded duo as it develops.Credits:Produced by Gwilym Simcock, Emma Rawicz Recorded in the U.K at Curtis Schwartz Studio by Curtis Schwartz on the 29th &30th July 2024 Edited and mixed by Gwilym Simcock Mastered by Curtis Schwartz The Art in Music: Cover art by Paul Quick (1936–2023), ACT Art Collection

Jakob Manz & Johanna Summer - CameoCD / Vinyl / digital Johanna Summer piano Jakob Manz alto saxophone & recorder The duo of pianist Johanna Summer and saxophonist Jakob Manz is a stroke of luck for the young German jazz scene: the pair are two of its stand-out figures, each blessed with supreme virtuosity, indomitable boldness, broad musical horizons, and an unmistakable individual signature. Their thorough grounding in jazz can be clearly discerned, but at the same time one can hear how they broaden the idiom, welcoming in all kinds of other influences. For Johanna Summer, classical music is particularly prevalent. She regularly performs in major classical music venues, playing free improvisations on everything from Bach to Ligeti, both solo and in a duo with Igor Levit. Jakob Manz’s musical heritage and leanings are very different: his combination of the melodic and rhythmic power of pop with the sensitivity of jazz is totally compelling. He has deep admiration for pop-jazz crossover artists such as Dave Sanborn and Marcus Miller, and through his recent work with German pop star Sarah Connor, the art of projecting his lively sound into huge venues has now become second nature. Jazz, pop, classical, improvisation, composition...on their second album together, ‘Cameo’, Johanna Summer and Jakob Manz have made the choice to deploy this vast palette of colours in the smallest and most intimate format in which musical interaction can happen, the duo. The repertoire and concept of the new album, produced by Andreas Brandis, mark a step change from their debut together ‘The Gallery Concerts I’. Johanna Summer explains: ‘This time we wanted to write and/or select pieces that not everyone can play, but which suit Jakob and me particularly well. On the first duo album, we played standards and classics, very spontaneously and live. This time, we have tailored the pieces to suit each other.’ The range of original compositions reflects that of their protagonists, from the heartfelt opener ‘The Opposite’ to the rousing ‘The Turmoil’ (with Jakob Manz's virtuoso performance on the recorder) and the soul-drenched ballad ‘The Endless Dream’.In addition to the eight original compositions, there are also three unusual and particularly characterful arrangements: ‘Im Schönsten Wiesengrunde’(in the loveliest meadow) is a folk song from Jakob Manz’s home region of Swabia, a melody which has been in the air around him ever since early childhood. ‘Mahler Neu(n)’ (Mahler new/nine) is based on the 4th movement of Mahler's 9th symphony – a very familiar piece for Johanna Summer. ‘It almost has the feel of a pop song’, she says. The same can be said of Herbert Grönemeyer's ‘Flugzeuge im Bauch’ (aeroplanes in the belly), although interpreting this piece has been quite some challenge. As Jakob Manz recalls: ‘Transferring Grönemeyer's completely uniquely expressive singing to an instrument turned out to be extremely demanding. The song has more of the sense of words being spoken than a classic melody; I tried to extract the essence of the song.’ Manz and Summer have found clever ways to gently and carefully manoeuvre themselves around the original, very edgy theme. The result is that the pair succeed where all too many jazz arrangements of pop songs come to grief: this one adds another dimension and takes the song to a new level. There is true alchemy in what these musicians do, not least because they are both so keen to seek out and discover new music. There is magic in their way of listening and reacting, complete enchantment in how the two protagonists – so different and yet so aligned – complement and surprise each other again and again. ‘Whenever Johanna improvises, something happens that you’re not expecting. When she takes a solo, it often seems as if it's been composed, but in fact it’s different each time, it’s just emerged in the moment. There are very few musicians who have mastered that. It challenges me again and again.’ And Johanna Summer responds: ‘I'm impressed by how endlessly musical Jakob is. Everything he plays is coherent and strong; his playing has a clarity that is very human, musical and relatable. Even when he plays something very complex, it is never an end in itself, but always integrated into something that makes perfect sense and is very clear. It is a clarity that is very human, musical and comprehensible. And I am impressed by how Jakob can deliver to the point and draw out everything from within, regardless of external circumstances. He is always 100% there.’ How and why does the duo of Johanna Summer and Jakob Manz function so well? Rather than trying to investigate the two musicians’ individual backstories or influences, one might just as well admit that their appeal is something which can only be felt rather than explained. For some magical reason, a lot of what happens in the music of Johanna Summer and Jakob Manz finds them in complete accord with each other, even though nothing they play is foreseeable until a split second beforehand.. Jakob Manz says: ‘When I play in a duo with Johanna, many of the habits I have developed in playing with other musicians simply don't work any more. Something new can happen at any moment, so you always have to stay incredibly alert. It's very inspiring!’ This album is a testament to the great alertness and sensitivity of both musicians. The listener cannot fail to notice the particular effervescence and immediacy of their musical dialogue. One can only marvel at how such freedom and such clarity co-exist, at the way in which these two very disparate characters interact with each other with such gentleness and self-assurance. The music they co-create is colourful, lively, and deeply felt. A stroke of luck, indeed, maybe even a miracle.Credits: Music composed by Johanna Summer & Jakob Manz, except #4 (traditional), #7 (Herbert Grönemeyer) and #9 (Gustav Mahler) Produced by Andreas Brandis Recorded by Emanuel Uch from July 31 to August 1 at the ACT Gallery in Berlin, Germany Mixed and mastered by Emanuel Uch

Anna Gréta - Star of SpringCD / Vinyl / digital Anna Gréta piano, vocals, backing vocals & all keyboards Einar Scheving drums and percussion Skúli Sverrisson electric bass Þorleifur Gaukur Davíðsson guitar & pedal steel Birgir Steinn Theodórsson double bass Magnús Trygvason Eliassen drums Sigurður Flosason bass clarinet Albert Finnbogason synthesizer Anna Gréta goes gentle...into her second album on ACT, “Star of Spring”. The Reykjavik-born pianist, singer and a songwriter, who has lived in Stockholm since 2014, has her own way of approaching the art of quiet, artful, deeply personal songs, often drawing inspiration from the beauty and power of Iceland’s natural landscape. Her 2021 ACT debut "Nightjar in the Northern Sky" was named after a bird, and this follow-up album lands gracefully on a flower, the “glory of the snow”, also known as the "star of spring", which symbolises the ending of winter and the arrival of spring. But look closer, and there are always other levels of meaning. Her "Nightjar”, the rare bird she once saw in front of the northern sky, was a metaphor for the search for the things which are special and essential. In fact, almost all of Anna Gréta's lyrics have more than one significance, and her storytelling has now taken a leap forward on "Star of Spring". She says of the little flower on the title track: "I wasn't just inspired by the way it takes over the meadows in spring and turns them from green to blue, but also by the fact that it blooms because it is compelled to do so. It cannot do anything else."Anna Gréta's starting point to creating music was and is the piano. She first studied classical music, then switched to jazz. She only started singing later, when she was writing the songs for Nightjar and wanted to express herself in words. Anna Gréta's debut as a singer, pianist and songwriter earned her international acclaim: Downbeat Magazine called it „an album with the metamophoric diversity of a year’s seasons and a voice like the everchanging colours of the Northern lights“, France Musique “a remarkably immersive experience” and Jazzwise “starkly beautiful”. On "Star Of Spring" Anna Gréta has further developed her individual style. Her vocal lines can resemble piano motifs, often doubling them and resonating with an impressively quiet vibrato, sometimes quirkily reminiscent of Björk, at other times with the brooding ease of Norah Jones. The album also bears a very distinctive production style. For each of the songs, Anna Gréta has created her own little world of choirs, rhythmic textures and various smartly used keyboard instruments. The album ranges from the hymnal and elegiac - in "She Moves" or in the title track - to the playful and cheerful "Space Time" or the extremely pared-down melancholic ballad "Denouement". And even if the general mood of the music exudes above all warmth and comfort, Anna Gréta also deals with serious topics, such as the forced birth control of women in Greenland during the 60s and 70s in the song "The Body Remembers". There is a directness of expression and emotionality, even sensuousness about the new album, and that is not least because Anna Gréta’s band has developed and become a properly played-in unit with the experience to take this album’s more complex arrangements in its stride. The sheen and brightness of her piano playing is contrasted with a deeper voice, that of her father Sigurður Flosason's bass clarinet, on three tracks. "This album is more playful and experimental," she says. "A lot of things were easier for me than on the first album. And while I was still completely focussed on my own world then, now I was even more conscious and aware of what was going on around me." The result is music that is rooted in jazz, but at the same time goes far beyond it in a very subtle and deeply touching way.Credits:Produced by Anna Gréta

Mikael Máni - Guitar PoetryCD / Vinyl / digital Mikael Máni Ásmundsson guitar "I love the music of Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan," says Icelandic guitarist Mikael Máni. "I think that's the main reason why I often write songs for the guitar that could just as easily be sung." Those words bring us to the core of what "Guitar Poetry", Máni’s debut release on ACT, is all about. This album introduces an instrumentalist who brings passion and expertise not just to his refined and subtle compositions but also to his vivid and fluent improvisation, and who combines all this with a highly skilled singer-songwriter’s clarity and directness. His multilayered music functions well, and on many levels. Mikáel Mani calls it a mixture of jazz, rock and impressionism. Yet he never loses the idea of being both accessible and sophisticated. He doesn’t just stimulate listeners intellectually, he also knows how to cut straight through to the emotions.From the very first song of "Guitar Poetry", "She'll Arrive Between 10 & 11", Mani gives a pointer to the expressive range which listeners can expect throughout the album. The guitarist makes a strong initial impression with the warmth of his acoustic sound: fine, brilliant, spacious. From this, a simple folkloristic melody emerges, a few sparse harmonies - a musical idyll. And then, in the middle of the song, everything turns into noise, becomes gloomy, threatening, almost despairing... and finally finds reconciliation by returning to the calm of the original theme. Mikael Máni’s mastery of presenting contrasts and of springing musical surprises is exceptional for one so young. And he is also a guitarist with his very own signature style, one which does not lend itself to categorisation within the usual spectrum of the instrument in jazz. His jazz leanings are more evident in his approach to playing than in any obvious affiliation with the genre or the canon. In fact, folk-derived techniques such as finger-picking, or echoes of the blues, Americana and Nordic songs and a unique, cinematic quality are more in evidence. But perhaps most importantly, whereas Máni plays purely instrumentally, his music - always and unmistakably - sings. Here is an artist for whom the shallowness of competitive virtuosity or instrumental vanity are completely alien. Mikael Máni lets his music flow and creates intensity, sometimes through calm and relaxation, sometimes through energy and small outbursts that can explode briefly from any tonality into noise, only to either find their way back or discover completely new ways out. And sometimes you imagine that there must surely be two or more guitarists playing, such is his skill in creating parallel layers of sound. But, with the exception of two numbers recorded in multi-track, it is always and only Mikael solo: he has the talent to play harmonies, melodies and fragments that then live on and grow in the listener's mind as essential parts of the fascinating tapestry which he weaves. The concept of storytelling in music may have been desperately over-worked and become a cliché, but that, quite simply, is what Máni does: all the songs on "Guitar Poetry" tell stories, open up spaces and land-scapes, draw pictures. And they are the reflection of a guitarist who is as unconventional as he is musically approachable, an extroverted introvert whose whole way of being is to assert the primacy of expression and emotion.Credits:Produced by  Mikael Máni Ásmundsson Cover art "untitled" von Guðjón Ketilsson

The Jakob Manz Project - The AnswerCD / Vinyl /digital Jakob Manz alto saxophone & recorder Hannes Stollsteimer piano &keyboards Frieder Klein electric bass Paul Albrecht drums Karl-F. Degenhardt percussionGuests Lionel Loueke vocals & guitar on 2 Matthias Schriefl alphorn & trumpet on 5 Alexandra Stollsteimer violin on 6 “Groove jazz, that’s what we grew up with,” says alto saxophonist Jakob Manz. “Marcus Miller, David Sanborn and the Brecker Brothers - they’re all in our DNA. But for The Jakob Manz Project’s second album, we also wanted new inspirations which would push us further”. The main catalyst for this was a performance at the Papjazz Festival in Haiti. The band were deeply affected by the country and its music, as well as a first encounter with pianist Meddy Gerville from La Réunion. So, whereas we can hear Jakob Manz’s breathtaking virtuosity again on “The Answer”, it is always something he puts to the service of the music. Grooves and melodies are to be heard here which are clearly influenced by the more soulful and poppier sides of American jazz. But there are also new colours derived from a serious immersion and engagement with music from beyond the western world.Manz conquers these newly expanded sonic horizons with his band consisting of Hannes Stollsteimer (piano), Frieder Klein (bass) and Paul Albrecht (drums), plus additional percussion from Karl-F. Degenhardt. The guests on the album are from the most diverse directions: Lionel Loueke contributes a fascinating West African touch with vocals and guitar, Alexandra Stollsteimer contributes the sound of classical violin and Matthias Schriefl is on trumpet and alphorn – this last instrument certainly a very raresighting in a band playing groove jazz. As ever, jazz provides musicians all over the world with a vocabulary to express, share and communicate what moves and influences them, and to allow audiences to appreciate it. In its own life-affirming way, jazz definitely has “The Answer”. Credits: Produced by the artists Cover art "California Suite No.7, 2004" by Mimmo Paladino

The ACT debut of the young British saxophonist features a prominently staffed quintet with pianist Ivo Neame, bassist Connor Chaplin, guitarist Ant Law, and drummer Asaf Sirkis, all solid figures in the UK scene. "Chroma," Greek for "color," showcases the entire spectrum of an artist who has long outgrown the status of a newcomer.   In addition, Jazzwise Magazine states: "Emma Rawicz is already the real deal!"high-quality download powered by Qobuz

Nils Kugelmann - Stormy BeautyCD / Vinyl / digitalNils Kugelmann bass Luca Zambito piano Sebastian Wolfgruber drums Berlin might well be considered widely as the creative hub of the German jazz scene, but in the deep south of the country there is another city where talented and promising musicians are finding new pathways in jazz. Among these, for example, are the Jazzrausch Bigband, vocalist Alma Naidu and guitarist Philipp Schiepek. They all hail from Munich. Bassist Nils Kugel-mann, born in 1996, is another new talent from the Bavarian capital. His ACT debut "Stormy Beauty" makes it clear why, al-ready at a young age, he is considered among the top German bass-players.As the album title implies, Nils Kugelmann's music concerns itself with some of the most important things which music can express: beauty, excitement and passion. There can be very few emerging musicians able to portray these emotions and states quite so convincingly, captivatingly and creatively as Kugelmann. He is an artist of quality and genuine promise, as suc-cesses such as the European Burghausen Young Jazz Prize 2023 at the Burghausen Jazz Week and the BMW Young Artist Jazz Award 2022 attest. Kugelmann has also recently won the renowned European Burghausen Young Jazz Prize 2023 at the Burghausen Jazz Week. His trio played pieces from the "Stormy Beauty" project, and part of the prize was to share the same programme with guitar legend and festival headliner Lee Ritenour, at the festival’s opening night gala concert. Kugelmann's music is persuasive and powerful, not least be-cause he is so much more than ‘just’ a bass player. He is a true all-rounder, a universal musician and composer. From an early age he tried out singing, clarinet, piano or synthesizer, and then mainly the bass. Even as a teenager, Kugelmann was both composing and improvising, hovering between academic music and pop, between acoustic and electronic music. He began his formal studies in music combining classical clarinet and composition, and wrote pieces for orchestra and even musicals which received performances in Munich. The focal point of this eclectic mix, however, was studying the bass with Henning Sieverts at the Munich Musikhochschule, and those studies have already given him a strong identity: he has been a first-call bass-player for several years, someone who gets the call whenever Munich colleagues are putting together a rhythm section. Indeed, his services have been called upon by luminaries like Benny Golson, Johannes Enders and Trio Elf. And yet this does not prevent Kugelmann from following other projects such as his duo with drummer Sebastian Wolfgruber...where he plays the piano, or the Lightville Duo alongside his partner, the equally talented pianist/composer Shuteen Erdenebaatar, originally from Mongolia.. in which he plays a very unusual instrument, the contra alto clarinet.It is, however, in his trio with Luca Zambito on piano and Sebastian Wolfgruber on drums that Kugelmann has found his true calling. "Stormy Beauty" demonstrates that with admi-rable clarity. All of the tracks here are written by him; his signa-ture as composer is unmistakable. Whether he is evoking a eu-phoric mood of departure in "Unexpected Love" and "About the Moment of Beginning", or tracing the path to finding one's own voice in the exuberant improvisations and crashing rhythms of "Finding Your Place, or showing a reverence and enthusiasm for nature in the hymn-like "Symphony for the Rain" and "Wild Leaves Falling", or intoning the powerful love song "Song for a Golden Blossom", there is no mistaking Kugelmann's outstanding qualities and unfailing instincts, his way of finding melodies and motifs which stick in the mind. His instrumental virtuosity frees up the double bass and even turns it into the dominant melodic instrument in a piano trio. Kugelmann gives every single note a sense of definitiveness and a feeling of expressiveness, even at the fastest tempo. And, above all, we hear a perfect account of the high art of equal interplay: Kugelmann has Luca Zambito and Sebastian Wolfgruber alongside him, both of whom are quite exceptional young musicians. "Stormy Beauty" is a strong debut, full of power and passion. Here is a young artist who has something new to give to jazz, and also the confidence to follow his own path. Credits: Recorded by Manfred Mildenberger, April 2022 Mixed by Florian Oestreicher at Realistic Sound Studio Mastered by Christoph Stickel

Jakob Manz - Groove ConnectionCD / Vinyl / digital Jakob Manz alto saxophone & flute Roberto Di Gioia keyboards Karin Hammar trombone Bruno Müller guitar Tim Lefebvre electric bass Per Lindvall drums Guests: Paolo Fresu trumpet (on 01) Nguyên Lê guitar (on 04) Mark Harrington spoken words (on 01) "Jakob Manz will always surprise you," says pianist /keyboardist Roberto Di Gioia, who produced the young saxophonist´s new album alongside Siggi Loch. "It is widely known that Jakob can play the saxophone unbelievably well, and also that he can take it in just about every conceivable direction in modern jazz. What is less appreciated is how authentic he sounds when he plays soul, funk and rhythm'n'blues. And just when you think you've heard everything from him, he will play you a blues solo so deep and soulful, it’s incredible." The release of Manz’s jazz-rock debut "Natural Energy" in 2020 gave a good pointer to his potential. That album was followed by headline appearances at important festivals: the Leverkusener Jazztage, Jazz Baltica, and also in the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart where he was a guest soloist at the "70 Years of the SWR Big Band" concert, and then at the ACT30 anniversary concerts in the Berlin Philharmonie. 2022 saw the release of the exquisitely crafted acoustic duo album "The Gallery Concerts I" with pianist Johanna Summer.This showed a different side of Jakob Manz, as an improviser of great depth and sensitivity. Whereas Jakob Manz's debut album gave us a cross-section of his musical spectrum in all its breadth, "Groove Connection" offers a close-up of what are probably his greatest strengths: the ability to enthral and delight an audience with soulful melody, his incisive soloing and his infallible sense of rhythm. This very rare combination of qualities was the starting point for producers Roberto Di Gioia and Siggi Loch, to which they added a top international top line-up...so the sparks could really fly. Loch comments: "Jakob Manz is an unbelievable talent. For me he stands in the tradition of great saxophonists such as Lou Donaldson, David Sanborn (his hero) and also Klaus Doldinger and his band “Passport”. All of these are musicians who found their characteristic sound on a foundation of jazz, which they combined with soul and blues, and became successful worldwide with it." The bar was deliberately set high for "Groove Connection", and right from the start. It should be an album of international standard, with musicians like Jakob Manz who penetrate the vocabulary of soul, jazz and rhythm'n'blues deeply and make them their own. Roberto Di Gioia, on keys and also a songwriter, was a shoo-in from the beginning – partly because of his history with Klaus Doldingers Passport and his current groove-jazz band "Web Web", and also because of his pop and soul sensibility as a producer of German Motown artist Joy Denalane and hugely popular rapper / singer Max Herre. First choice to underpin the band from the bass was American Tim Lefebvre, another hero of Jakob Manz’s, an authority on his instrument and collaborator with artists as diverse as David Bowie, Wayne Krantz, Tedeschi Trucks Band and Michael Wollny. A stylish groove comes from the drums, and from the Swede Per Lindvall in particular. His range of credits includes membership of the first Nils Landgren Funk Unit, and also having been drummer for ABBA. Bruno Müller, one of the most sought-after German session guitarists, adds flavoursome funk. The Swedish trombonist Karin Hammar creates a gentler counterpart to Manz's brilliant alto saxophone. There are also guest appearances from guitarist Nguyên Lê, trumpeter Paolo Fresu and speaker Mark Harrington.As soon as the members of Groove Connection met in the studio, everything clicked instantly. Roberto Di Gioia remembers: "We had everything perfectly prepared, including top-level bass equipment for Tim...who arrives, plugs his €500 no-label touring bass into the amp, starts to play a bit, then Per Lindvall joins in and immediately there’s something happening. That's when I had to shout into the control room that they should start recording immediately." The vibe of those first few minutes continues over the duration of the recording. Everything just flows, everyone seems to grasp subconsciously exactly what the music really needs, which notes to play - and which ones not to. In the end, one or two takes are sufficient for most of the tracks on the album. The fact that it all succeeds so seemingly effortlessly, and that the result sounds so light and unencumbered, but at the same time so rousing, is proof of the fabulous quality of all those involved in the recording. Everyone is at the top of his or her game, and, even more importantly, everyone has deeply internalised the vocabulary and the feeling of this music, there is real communication going on, and a lot of joy in the room. And that joy is audible to listeners from the very first bar - with a mixture of originals and groove-jazz versions of Adele, Billie Eilish, Whitney Houston, Lionel Richie...and many more. There are very few young jazz musicians who master their instrument with such complete and daunting virtuosity as Jakob Manz, and yet his playing always sounds so unpretentious, clear, soulful and at the service of the tune - all at the same time. His success in doing this is due on the one hand to his talent and the determination with which he works on his musical expression. On the other hand, it is also due to his will to inspire and touch the emotions of the audience with his music. He says it is important to him that he should play his particular instrument, the alto saxophone, in a way that fills the room, but at the same time reaches each individual listener with directness and immediacy. And there is no doubt: he succeeds in this with flying colours, whether it's in a club, a large concert hall, a festival stage... or indeed wherever the listener might hear his new album. Credits: Recorded by Arne Schumann at Soundfabrik Berlin, 20. - 22.11.2022 Mixed by Arne Schumann Mastered by Klaus Scheuermann Produced by Roberto Di Gioia & Siggi Loch

Vincent Meissner Trio - WilleCD / Vinyl / digital Vincent Meissner piano Josef Zeimetz bass Henri Reichmann drums "A new hope in German jazz" was German broadcaster mdr kultur’s verdict on Vincent Meissner's debut album "Bewegtes Feld" (2021). Deutschlandfunk went further, predicting that his band “will take off like a rocket." Downbeat (US) wrote of an "excitement” running through the album, which was produced by Meissner’s mentor Michael Wollny. The pianist was only twenty at the time, and already garlanded with prizes. Praise and an armful of awards are what they are...but at that point, because of Covid, Meissner’s young acoustic piano trio with bassist Josef Zeimetz and drummer Henri Reichmann had scarcely had any chances to perform live, to explore the richness of their bandleader’s compositions, or indeed to let this material develop properly. Things have now definitely moved on, and the wait may even have increased the fun they can now have. You hear that on the new album: the trio has become much more closely integrated, their joy in playing is palpable. Immediately after the first recording, they tried out new pieces, tested out ideas and just went on as if following a natural continuation of what they’d done before. However, when you’re around 20, life does have a way of moving on: Josef is now studying in Basel, Henri has moved to Leipzig to continue his studies at the city’s Hochschule, where Vincent's main piano teacher is now former WDR Big Band legend Frank Chastenier. Vincent calls his two mentors Wollny and Chastenier "a great combination". The trio has developed its interplay, and the way it approaches the pieces is much freer now. Through leaving space for more open sections and extending them, the sound and the concept have changed. The trio can access far more emotional experiences. They evidently love the more complex forms in which they now play, these structures and allow ideas to develop as they are shared around the musicians. This has resulted in a compact band sound. They can either allow things to run on and keep a certain flexibility, or they can condense and work with stricter song forms. Energy and strength are there, but there is also contemplation and the chance to leave pauses to reflect. Everything is possible now. There is variation, vivacity and a close connection between the players, and those combined strengths come to fore particularly when the trio puts it focus on conveying the melody in a song. The album is called "Wille" (will). It has a bubbling energy and flow but also a strong sense of cohesion. What we hear is authentic and original, and it is also communicated in a way which is always flexible, fresh and agile. These three musicians know with certainty that they are capable of achieving a lot together. They are remarkably at ease with each other, and that leads to a feeling of serenity. The aim is to play catchy music, but to transcend the banal. Vincent defines the ‘will’ expressed in the title as the "development of mental ideas that one transfers into reality through into action", or as a "conscious decision to make an action.” There is a simple will to play and to find expressiveness, to portray oneself through one’s artistic work. And it is this particular imperative that gives the recording both its urgency and its persuasiveness. “Wille” is also defined by an affinity with pop music, and that choice brings with it a large body of material to draw on, and has led directly to the decision to record new cover versions. The way the three of them take on the raunchy "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" by George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam, made famous by Whitney Houston certainly packs a surprise. They find a special subtlety in both the Beatles song "In My Life" and in the catchy tune "Young Folks" by Peter Bjorn and John. In "Things" they take Louis Cole at his word. The lyrics state that “Things may not work out how you thought / Maybe it is good, maybe it is bad / Either way the only truth we have is / Things may not work out how you thought”. And that rings completely true: there is nothing about these adaptations which is either contrived or inauthentic, and they also sit very well alongside Meissner’s own compositions. His purpose in recording the covers was anything but commercially driven; it was because the band's individual sound comes across so clearly as a result of engaging so thoroughly with the material sourced from others. This focus and engagement is part of something bigger: what the Vincent Meissner Trio is able to do above all is to convince with its fundamental honesty and authenticity. Yes, the trio is being pro-active in determining how it wants to present its art, and also its members as individuals. "It's nice to have people listening to us," says Vincent Meissner, with the live experiences of the last few months very much in mind. He understands his pieces as a framework to be filled, as a space to be walked through as a group together. It is all about conveying impressions of the present beyond words, about evoking emotional experiences which go beyond the tangible moment in a way that is completely natural. "Wille" is an important step forward for the Vincent Meissner Trio, and it already will make listeners want more. This band is well on its way. Credits: Produced by Andreas Brandis

Johanna Summer - ResonanzenCD / Vinyl / digital Johanna Summer piano In early 2020, listeners and the media were delighted, amazed, and taken completely by surprise by pianist Johanna Summer’s debut album “Schumann Kaleidoskop” (Schumann Kaleidoscope). Her improvisational approach to Robert Schumann's “Kinderszenen” also caught the admiration of colleagues from a wide range of musical backgrounds. Star classical pianist Igor Levit’s comments on the album were clear yet heartfelt: “Johanna Summer is an outstanding jazz pianist. She is so centred and at ease with herself, she handles material so confidently and freely...and yet she finds her own right note every time.” Piano poet Malakoff Kowalski found the album simply “scandalously good” and was “enraptured and amazed by an artist who fearlessly follows the music”. And jazz icon Joachim Kühn stated: “Johanna Summer's music is full of fantasy and without category. Coming from European classical music, with a wonderful touch, she creates something perfect and complete. Something her own”. With “Resonanzen” (Resonances) Johanna Summer has extended her extraordinary art and deepened the way she retells the music of classical composers through improvisation. The album spans a wide range, starting with Bach, Schubert, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Grieg and Ravel and ending with Mompou, Ligeti and Scriabin. Johanna Summer's deep insights into the two worlds of composition and improvisation are the result of the particular path along which she has developed as a musician. In her childhood and youth, she solely studied classical music. Jazz and improvisation came relatively late, but when they did, it was with a powerful focus. Her classical grounding remained in place, and yet there were many things that she needed to re-learn for “Schumann Kaleidoskop” and for “Resonanzen”. As she says: “It was very important that I should master the original pieces first. That was particularly demanding for “Resonanzen”, because each of these very contrasting compositions makes very different demands on me as a player. At the same time, improvisation is also an art which you have to keep practising and developing, so that the music can attain its own natural flow. To do justice to both of these sides, and to find a balance between them, these really are lifelong tasks for me.” The challenge which Johanna Summer sets herself with her improvisational approach, using such diverse and demanding works as her sources, is also proven by the fact that “Resonanzen” was recorded twice, in very different settings, so that the music could flow as naturally and coherently as it does on the album. Johanna Summer remembers: “For the first session I had prepared everything meticulously and went into the studio with the attitude of a real perfectionist...and also with the objective that the new album absolutely had to be better than the previous one. I could hear this way of approaching the music very clearly in the results. In the process of playing, I had already prejudged too much, thought too much and I ended up stopping again and again because I thought it had to be more perfect somehow. That made the spaces so tight for me that I had to constantly squeeze through them.” These first results didn't have the inspiration or the flow which they should have. So a second studio session took place in an atmosphere which was much more like a concert: the programme was played through twice without any interruptions, cuts or analysis, in front of a small audience. “That made all the difference,” she recalls. “The feeling of playing for an audience did something to me. I was finally able to play with freedom because I knew I couldn't stop or do any patching anyway. I could simply allow things to happen and take their course.” Johanna Summer, it would seem, is never content to take the easy option, something demonstrated by the fact she chose the demanding form of a solo piano recital for her debut album, and has now gone on to develop it further in “Resonanzen”. For a young artist to set herself the objective of moving confidently within two musical disciplines, each of which is a challenge in itself – and to make such a success of it – is a remarkable achievement. And even more so because the listener doesn’t hear even the slightest hint of any of the struggle and effort involved in “Resonanzen”. Johanna Summer's playing is so serene, flowing and soulful. There is so much here which is going to amaze and delight. And every time the listeners might feel, that they know what’s next and where the music is headed, there’s another surprise coming up. Credits: Produced by Andreas Brandis & Emanuel Uch

Jakob Manz & Johanna Summer - The Gallery Concerts ICD / digital Jakob Manz alto saxophone & recorder (on 5) Johanna Summer piano The Art in Music – Siggi Loch has had the clear objective to foster creative interaction between jazz and visual art ever since he founded ACT in 1992. As a producer who is also an art collector, he loves to bring not only topflight musicians together around him, but visual artists as well. Works by Philip Taaffe, Gerhard Richter, Martin Noël, Martin Assig and many more don’t just adorn album covers, they are also on display at the ACT Gallery in Berlin. And it is there, in the gallery, before a small and select audience, that private musical evenings known as the Gallery Concerts take place. The works of art provide an inspiring visual backdrop for artists to try out new things. The house concerts are special, up close and personal; these extraordinary musical experiences are now being made available for a wider public to enjoy. On 27 October 2021 Jakob Manz and Johanna Summer were performing... Manz and Summer are two of the most outstanding talents to emerge from the young German jazz scene in recent years. As a duo, their dialogue is intimate, open and scintil-lating. The saxophonist (b. 2001) has shown above all through his band the Jakob Manz Project that he is a passionate exponent of contemporary jazz-rock, playing “amazingly sophisticated, powerful, soulful-funky music with groove” (Jazzthing). In partnership with Johanna Summer (b. 1995), he also shows his mastery of the quiet and the lyrical. German jazz icon Joachim Kühn admires his young pianist colleague, and is full of praise for her “music, so full of fantasy and beyond category”. With Summer, nothing is ever done for the sake of surface effect; it is all about the storytelling, and her fully-formed instincts for dramaturgy, dynamics and harmony. From the very first note, it is evident how perfectly matched Manz and Summer are. A magic and freedom emerge in the way they play together.  Inspired by the spirit of discovery, they have the courage to surrender to the moment and be totally spontaneous, fresh and carefree in their musicmaking. Any flaws just become part of the charm. Manz and Summer's “Gallery Concert” is a musical prologue: one can still only guess where and how this artistic relationship, still in its early stages, might develop.Credits: Live in concert at ACT Art Collection Gallery Berlin, 27.10.2021 Recorded, mixed and mastered by Klaus Scheuermann Curated by Siggi Loch Cover art "Das Sterben der Blätter" by Manfred Bockelmann / ACT Art Collection

Anna Gréta - Nightjar in the Northern SkyCD / Vinyl / digital Anna Gréta piano, keyboards, vocals, backing vocals Skúli Sverrisson bass Einar Scheving drums Hilmar Jensson guitar Sigurður Flosason saxophone Johan Tengholm double bass Ragnheiður Gröndal backing vocals Nightjar in the Northern Sky. An iconic, almost familiar image that instantly sets up a scenery, a temperature, a state of mind. Why? Probably because it has such a strong effect describing a place of longing that many people are only too happy to imagine themselves in. The album of the same name by pianist and singer Anna Gréta creates such a setting, implying vast spaces, diffused Nordic light and comforting intimacy. Her music is shaped by these familiar yet surreal Nordic sounds, which her native Iceland has instilled in her since birth. Growing up near the capital of Reykjavík, her father (who also guests on the album) is a jazz saxophonist – so it’s evident that music surrounded her throughout her childhood. The first formative influence that Anna Gréta remembers was The Beatles’ Let It Be: “This song, its simplicity and power, and the harmony between voice and piano, touch me to this day”. But jazz, also, was a constant companion throughout her youth - among many others, the music of Bill Evans opened up a whole musical world. Indeed, her talent for the piano came to light early on, as did her affinity with jazz; and, as a youngster, she played her first steady jazz gig in Reykjavik. In 2014, Anna Gréta eventually moved to Stockholm - where she still lives today - to study music at the Royal College of Music.  Anna Gréta quickly caused a stir in Sweden. She began to work with the country’s prominent jazz musicians such as Joakim Milder, Magnus Lindgren, or the Norrbotten Big Band, receiving numerous prizes, including the ‘Monica Zetterlund Scholarship’, a nomination for ‘Jazzkatten’ from Swedish Radio, the Icelandic Music Award as ‘Newcomer of the Year’ and the ‘Jazzclub Fasching Society Award’. She made prominent live appearances such as at the Nobel Prize in 2020 and a concert at Stockholm Concert Hall. In 2019, Brighter, her first album as co-leader with Swedish guitarist Max Schultz, was released. Hearing Anna Gréta at the piano, one witnesses an astonishingly mature artist, with profound technique, a deep understanding of style and harmony and a vast range of expression. So as a pianist she has already made a real name for herself. But her songwriting affinity for vocal expression was calling for something else: “I always had the greatest respect for female singer-instrumentalists, like the wonderful Norah Jones. But at the same time, I didn’t want to be forced into this stereotype, that a woman in a jazz band automatically needed to be the singer. So it was important for me to dive deeper into the piano to grow as a musician as a whole, until I could finally introduce my own voice when it felt right, rather than meeting any kind of expectation.” Eventually, over a period of two years, and partly influenced by the isolation of the global pandemic, the twelve compositions of Nightjar in the Northern Sky emerged – with Anna Gréta now as both pianist and vocalist. Together with pop-experienced producer Albert Finnbogason, she chose the perfect, hand-picked line-up and sound for each of her refined, harmonious compositions. And, although created within a cohesive framework, she draws elements from a diverse range of musical styles – especially blending elements of jazz, pop, classical and folk. The recording’s title sets the tone for the imagery created by Anna Gréta’s songs – a metaphor for Scandinavian expanses, tranquillity and the close connection to nature. As she says, “Nature is just so much bigger than most of the other things that otherwise seem so significant to us. And it is, in its infinite facets, perhaps the greatest inspiration for my music. A place where the noise falls silent and you can feel and hear yourself again. Recently, I have been introduced to birdwatching – something that I reflect on in the title track. When you observe nature carefully, you can experience something unique – a little like searching for love. The nightjar is a bird that is rarely seen flying across the sky in Sweden and has been seen in Iceland less than five times. I feel that everyone is looking for something unique in their lives; and nature can offer that to those who are open to it.” And so, with each of the tracks on this album, she creates self-contained worlds that are part of a bigger picture, light-footed, relaxed, reduced, concentrated. And a remarkably multilayered, immersive and beautiful experience.

Vincent Meissner Trio - Bewegtes FeldCD / digital Vincent Meissner piano Josef Zeimetz bass Henri Reichmann drums It is hard to believe it as one listens to this album: pianist Vincent Meissner is just twenty years old. The drummer in the trio, incidentally, is even younger. Recognition for this major talent has started to grow, however, and the prizes are rolling in. Meißner has so far won six: the Bechstein Piano Competition, the Concert Prize of the Jazzo-pen Stuttgart, the Förderpreis of the German Jazz Union, the Jazzhaus Competition Freiburg and the Central German Jazz Prize. And he is also already showing quite some capacity to make smart decisions and follow them through. When he was chosen as to represent Saxony in the prestigious “Jugend jazzt” event in 2019, he opted to take a new approach to presenting his music. Rather than building pieces out of fragments or sketches, as he had done until then, he created a suite of connected pieces. This mature quality, the desire to present a coherent programme is also a hallmark of his debut album "Bewegtes Feld". For the past year and a half, Vincent has been studying at the Leipzig Hochschule, where Michael Wollny is among his teachers. So, when Wollny heard that Meissner had been offered the opportunity to make a recording at Bauer Studios in Ludwigsburg, he offered to be involved. As Wollny explains: "I saw several good things coming together here. A highly talented young pianist and composer with his own genuine 'working band' ...being given the opportunity to record the material they were creating...under perfect conditions in a top studio. Since I was familiar with the development of his compositions and ideas from supervising his studies anyway, it seemed only logical to take a role in the recording and to go into the studio with the trio as producer." Vincent grew up in a small village near Dresden. Essentially, the story starts with what he found lurking on the shelves of a chainstore in the nearby university town of Freiberg. The young Vincent – at that point he was not playing the piano yet – found a selection of jazz CDs. Most of the stock was from the two renowned German labels which are both identified by having three letters in their names. Here was music to discover, to make his own, to become increasingly deeply involved with – to the point where what started as a passion became a life-goal. At sixteen, he went off to Dresden to the Landesgymnasium für Musik. It was there that he met drummer Henri Reichmann, and their friendship flourished: both of them were finding music to animate and inspire them. And so they listened, they practised, they sparked off each other, fanning the flames of their enthusiasm by continuing to make new discoveries: Oscar Peterson, Dave Brubeck and Bud Powell were followed by Paul Bley, Monk, Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer. And there were German musicians too: Pablo Held, Joachim Kühn and Michael Wollny. Making the journey brings its own rewards. Vincent has remained a seeker and discoverer, immersing himself in the piano music of our time. All of this shines through on his CD, which already brings this early phase of his career full circle. And how! You don't hear slavish imitati-on here, this is an astonishingly balanced statement of intent from a highly original talent. He is fully aware of the foundations that his predecessors have left him, and is able to use them as the jumping-off point into his own expressive world. Since forming his piano trio with double bassist Josef Zeimetz at the beginning of 2020, they have – to put it mildly – not had the best of circumstances to deal with. In fact, Corona has meant that they have only performed one live gig. "We are a 100% studio band," says Vincent ironically, with a big smile. The three players are based in Leipzig, Dresden and Amsterdam, but they were able to get together for intensive weeks of rehearsal together. And the result of that work is worth listening to – here is a y-oung trio who are clearly ready to bring their freshly created music out of the studio and rehearsal room and onto the stages of clubs. Vincent and his fellow musicians are concerned above all to be honest and authentic in what they do. Indeed, that is something they see as far more important than being revolutionary firebrands. These are musicians with a clear sense of form and structure, sometimes finding the humorous and the euphoric, at others the melancholy and the poetry of ballads. At any event, each of them has many different sides to him as a musician, and together they find surprises and all kinds of fascinating and manyhued timbres as they develop Vincent's compositions through playing them. They experiment with complex shapes and rhythms, and yet we hear their joy in playing together. There is also a remarkable sense for melodies that are unusual and memorable. Vincent loves metaphors, and uses one to describe the way they discover as they play: "When we play, each time it is as if we’re walking across an orchard. finding different fruit to pick." That idea captures the spirit of the CD title "Bewegtes Feld". The field also perhaps being a demarcated area within which Vincent, Henri and Josef can move. There is exploration going on here, and connections and reconnections to be found as they shake up the material and put it back together in different permutations. There is always a big pic-ture, but the listener is also drawn in to uncover the detail, to follow the music’s many twists and turns. This is spontaneous music, and yet there is nothing random about it. Ideas are developed, refined and deepened. Vincent Meißner describes this with another image:"My compositions are as if we had a shelf in the room, and everyone puts things onto it." That might sound like a long process, but they always do get very quickly to the point. And that is the raison d’etre of these three musicians who have come together to form a trio of equals. Another metaphor: "We are like a young wine which is now maturing. It's only the second year after the grapes have been harvested!" Robust...refined...subtle...sparkling! This is Young, even very young, German Jazz at its best and most life-affirming. Credits: Recorded by Johannes Kellig at Bauer Studios Ludwigsburg, January 15 -17, 2021, except 01, 02, 04 & 15 recorded by Nico Raschke at Hansahaus Studios Bonn, February 17 -19, 2020 Mixed by Johannes Kellig Mastered by Klaus Scheuermann Produced by Michael Wollny

Johanna Summer - Schumann KaleidoskopCD / Vinyl / digitalJohanna Summer pianoThe Süddeutsche Zeitung hailed Johanna Summer's performance at the Young Munich Jazz Prize in 2018 as "a small sensation": for just under an hour, the pianist, born in Plauen in Saxony in 1995 and now living in Berlin, had encompassed a whole gamut from enjoying the harmonic and rhythmic freedom of jazz to savouring the kind of refinement and discipline that her training as a classical pianist gives her. In a packed Unterfahrt club in Munich, the audience had been rapt and totally quiet as it listened: smiles during the more rousing passages, and then a collective holding of the breath during moments of suspense. The Süddeutsche’s had critic marvelled at her "amazing gift to make well-known melodies sound so convincingly her own, they develop a real sense of creative urgency.” The fact that Summer won the prize itself almost became incidental; far more significant was the fact that this competition heralded the arrival of one of the most interesting new pianists in European jazz. "I always wanted to learn the piano. And not just any piano, but a grand piano. Big instrument. Really suits me!" Johanna Summer remembers. And: "I loved to play very much, but as a child I was really lazy about practising. There were several times when I just wanted to give up because there were so many other things that were interesting me. I would have really loved to become a footballer..." The first steps on her path as musician were to a music school, then a jazz ensemble, and these were followed by her entering the German nationwide competitions ‘Jugend musiziert’ (youth plays music) and Jugend jazzt (youth plays jazz). So the piano and jazz both did take hold after all. "By the time I was sixteen, playing the piano was clearly the thing I was able to do the best, and it was also the thing that captivated me the most," she now reflects. Thereafter followed studies at the Musikhochschule (music academy) in Dresden and a two-year stint with the German national youth jazz orchestra "BuJazzO", an ensemble in which the top young players in Germany congregate. While studying in Dresden Johanna Summer discovered an enthusiasm for free extemporisation. She was drawn to exploring the expressive possibilities of duos and trios, but when it came to playing solo piano she did something highly individual: she would take a variety of pieces from the jazz and classical repertoires and do improvisations on them which extended the narratives of the original pieces. An important source of inspiration for her has been one of the professors in Dresden, and a major figure in East German jazz, the drummer and educator Günter "Baby" Sommer."In the beginning, it was really difficult for me, coming more from pop and classical music," says Summer. "Then you sit in front of this man who is one of the greats knowing that you have never tried to do anything like this before. But that was exactly the reason why I wanted to give it a go. I found it very exciting and then I quickly started to perform like this in public, because I think it's important to just do things; I find it exciting to be compelled to deal with musically challenging situations." Whereas Summer’s first attempts at extended solo piano improvisation had used jazz standards as their points of departure, her debut album "Schumann Kaleidoskop" investigates a repertoire much closer to her own roots in Saxony. Schumann's cycles of piano pieces "Kinderszenen" (scenes from childhood) and "Album für die Jugend" (album for the young) had been familiar to her since childhood, not just as player and listener, but also – because Schumann was from nearby Zwickau – as works that originate in her region of Germany. From an early age she was enchanted by both the melodic and the pictorial aspects of these short pieces, she had loved how "Ritter vom Steckenpferd" (knight of the hobbyhorse), "Von fremden Ländern und Menschen" (of foreign lands and peoples) or "Mai, lieber Mai" (May, sweet May), convert a childlike view of the world into music. And yet, to make her own adaptations of seven of the pieces was a far from a simple task: "I worked for a long time on recasting them, trying out all of the pieces in all keys and in a lot of different time signatures, creating several miniature interpretations and finally arrived at this selection, which I shaped into a cohesive sequence with a single arc." The depth of her involvement with the original Schumann pieces comes across strongly on the album. As does her impressive and complex personality as a jazz musician with a very wide range of expression: romantic passages and an instinct for melody, but also powerful grooves and exciting innovations. Despite there being such variety and depth, the listener never has the impression that Summer just wants to fire off as many ideas as she possibly can, or inded that her aim in this debut album is to present herself as a virtuoso. Quite the contrary. Everything she does is imbued with a deep sense of how to tell stories through music, a mature and clear vision of dramaturgy, dynamics, tension and atmosphere. A sentence written by Schumann seems to predict exactly the kind of new life that Johanna Summer has breathed into these pieces: "How infinite is the realm of forms, with everything that can be used and worked on for centuries to come." Credits: Variations on Robert Schumann by Johanna Summer Recorded by Stefan Deistler at LOFT Cologne, October 21 & 22, 2019 Recording supervisor, mixed and mastered by Emanuel Uch Produced by the artist 

Jakob Manz - Natural EnergyCD / digital Jakob Manz alto saxophone & recorder (on 6) Hannes Stollsteimer piano Frieder Klein bass Paul Albrecht drums The audience at the Biberach Jazz Prize a couple of years ago witnessed a miracle. Here was an alto saxophonist who instantly evoked memories of some of the very greats of the instrument: a player with the melodic invention of a Johnny Hodges, the big sound of an Eric Dolphy, the urgency of a Cannonball Adderley, the funkiness of a David Sanborn, plus his own definite touch of individuality. But here’s the surprise: this was no hardened journeyman, Jakob Manz was a mere sixteen years old. And, as was to be expected, this young musician from Dettingen near Stuttgart with his quartet The Jakob Manz Project not only won the audience award, he was also named the overall winner of the competition by a jury chaired by eminent bassist Dieter Ilg. Six months later, Jakob Manz achieved distinction again with a win at the Leverkusener Jazztage’s future.sounds competition.In the years before he won these two prizes, Manz had garnered support from some prominent people and organisations: while still at school he was accepted into the German Federal Jazz Orchestra (BuJazzo) where there was already quite a buzz about him. He attended the Stuttgart Musikhochschule (music academy) as a junior student and caught the attention of some shrewd professors such as Christian Weidner ("Jakob throws himself into the music with every sinew"), Klaus Graf ("He has extraordinary musicality, has a great blues feeling and an amazing understanding of harmony") and above all Wolfgang Schmid, one of Germany’s most influential jazz electric bassists, and a long-standing member of Klaus Doldinger’s Passport, who invited Manz to do gigs with him. In the meantime Manz has also played alongside Randy Brecker, Ack van Rooyen and most recently Wolfgang Dauner. In what seems a natural progression, Jakob Manz's debut album "Natural Energy" is a "Young German Jazz" release. This latest development sees Manz following in the lineage of Michael Wollny, Roman and Julian Wasserfuhr and Matthias Schriefl. All of these established artists released their first albums as part of ACT’s series representing the younger generation of German jazz musicians. "Natural Energy", then, is the first tangible evidence of a quite exceptional talent. Jakob Manz did have the advantage of being well nurtured from an early stage. He grew up as the son of an opera singer and a music teacher. He learned to play the drums at the age of five, the recorder at eight, and soon afterwards the saxophone. "It was through playing the recorder that I discovered my passion for jazz," he says. "What I started to feel was a freedom that could make me very strong in the moment, not thinking forwards, not thinking back, just concentrating on what I'm doing.” Before long Manz was winning awards from both "Jugend musiziert" and "Jugend jazzt". Like most young musicians today, he has a spirit of curiosity and a completely open mind to all kinds of music: "For me, good music is not defined by its style, it depends on the quality of a piece." As an example, the phenomenal feeling he has for playing mainstream jazz can be seen in a stunning flugelhorn-alto sax duet feature with Ack van Rooyen and the SWR Big Band which is available on YouTube.He is comfortable in that context – to say the least! – but jazz with groove and soul is his genuine passion. And he had the good fortune to find some kindred spirits early on, people just as talented as he is, and more or less of the same generation: Hannes Stollsteimer on piano, Frieder Klein on bass and Paul Albrecht on drums are the musicians who inspire and lift him in the Jakob Manz Project. The assuredness of this group is jaw-dropping. With astonishing power, finesse and creativity, strong instincts for melody, rhythm and catchy hooks, these four youngsters set about their work on "Natural Energy" in the spirit of the Brecker Brothers or the Crusaders. The listener picks up hints of Marcus Miller, Christian Scott and even Bill Evans, and yet they play exclusively their own compositions. In the opener "Endless Space”, the way the tempo is set by a driven by bass and drum-driven groove and the whirling solos is irresistible, as are the funk feel and the earworm-ish motifs of "Eyes Of Crystals". "Paul's Vision" has a rock drive about it, and the Latin rhythms of "Eyes Up" are a delight. The wonderfully expressive ballads on the album are impressive too: in "Soft Like Peanut Butter" and "Engaged", the saxophone truly takes wing. And there is a coalescence of the gentle and the energetic in the anthemic closing section of "How High Is The Sky". "Natural Energy" reveals not just dazzling virtuosity but also burning conviction and compositional maturity. It is safe to predict that we will be hearing a lot more from Jakob Manz. Credits: Recorded at Hansahaus Studios Bonn, August 12 - 15, 2019 Recording-, mixing- & mastering engineer: Nico Raschke. Produced by the artists Cover art by Mimmo Paladino, by kind permission of the artist

Limited testpressing of the album by Mikael Máni.A rare collector's item: A test pressing is the very first sample disc of an album and is used for quality control before the final pressing. It does not always match the sound of the later release exactly, which makes each copy a distinctive collectible with its own history. Every test pressing is a limited edition: ideal for collectors and for anyone who appreciates jazz vinyl, rarities and exclusive editions.Our Vinyl Test Pressing Package includes: 1 Bio-Vinyl test pressing in its original white sleeve. A beautifully designed card, featuring hand-written key details about the release such as artist names, album title, production year, number of test pressings. Album booklet in PDF format. This sheet provides an in-depth look at the album and includes: The cover artwork, a text about the album, tracklist, full credits for production and performance, instrumentation details. Test Pressing Authentication Certificate This certificate confirms the authenticity of this test pressing, which was produced as part of the quality control process before the final vinyl pressing. Test pressings are made in limited quantities to ensure the highest audio fidelity and manufacturing standards. Each test pressing is carefully inspected and approved by our team before production proceeds. This document serves as verification of its authenticity and uniqueness. For official validation, this certificate bears the company stamp.Please note: A test pressing is a preliminary version of the vinyl record used to evaluate the quality of the pressing before full production. The audio quality may not be identical to the final version and may include some imperfections inherent to the test process. It holds historical significance as part of the production process.

Limited test pressing of the album by Anna Gréta: Star of Spring (2024)A rare collector's item: A test pressing is the very first sample disc of an album and is used for quality control before the final pressing. It does not always match the sound of the later release exactly, which makes each copy a distinctive collectible with its own history. Every test pressing is a limited edition: ideal for collectors and for anyone who appreciates jazz vinyl, rarities and exclusive editions. Our Vinyl Test Pressing Package includes: 1 Bio-Vinyl test pressing in its original white sleeve. A beautifully designed card, featuring hand-written key details about the release such as artist names, album title, production year, number of test pressings. Album booklet in PDF format. This sheet provides an in-depth look at the album and includes: The cover artwork, a text about the album, tracklist, full credits for production and performance, instrumentation details. Test Pressing Authentication Certificate This certificate confirms the authenticity of this test pressing, which was produced as part of the quality control process before the final vinyl pressing. Test pressings are made in limited quantities to ensure the highest audio fidelity and manufacturing standards. Each test pressing is carefully inspected and approved by our team before production proceeds. This document serves as verification of its authenticity and uniqueness. For official validation, this certificate bears the company stamp.Please note: A test pressing is a preliminary version of the vinyl record used to evaluate the quality of the pressing before full production. The audio quality may not be identical to the final version and may include some imperfections inherent to the test process. It holds historical significance as part of the production process.