His classical performances include appearances with Heinz Holliger and Peter Eötvös at the Salzburger Festspiele and Schleswig Holstein Music Festival, and regular classical solo performances across Europe and South America. He combines the sophisticated bowing technique of the classical orchestra with the spontaneity of the jazz ensemble. Michael Arbenz also works as a composer and arranger and teaches in the Jazz Department at the University of Lucerne.ĭouble bass player Thomas Lähns is a highly distinguished performer of both classical music and jazz. He has performed widely with the acclaimed VEIN trio, and has collaborated with international stars including Greg Osby, Glenn Ferris, Dave Liebman, Marc Johnson, Wolfgang Puschnig, and Andy Sheppard. His jazz influences are very eclectic and include major jazz pianists across the history of the music, as well as colours and ideas from classical music. Originals are balanced with adaptations of both the classical and jazz traditions, such as the acclaimed albums „VEIN Plays Ravel“ (2017), “Symphonic Bop (2019) and “Our Roots” (2021).Ī classically-trained pianist and self-taught jazz performer, Michael Arbenz brings the passionate curiosity of his self-directed investigations in jazz to the rigour of his classical performance practice.Īfter studying classical piano in Basel, Michael Arbenz’s international classical career has included collaborations with Pierre Boulez, Heinz Holliger, Jürg Wyttenbach and the Swiss new music ensemble Contrechamps.ĭiscovering a love of jazz as a child, his self-guided exploration of both the techniques of improvisation and the history of jazz was fresh and personal, and his approach to improvisation is multilayered rather than linear, using the piano as an orchestra. VEIN’s music is composed by all three members of the trio. The group has released an album nearly every year since its formation and gained recognition for long-term collaborations with star veteran soloists including trombonist Glenn Ferris and saxophonists Greg Osby, Dave Liebman and Andy Sheppard. All three players are classically trained, and musical leadership is equally shared, creating a fluid, cosmopolitan sound. “One of Europe’s most exciting ensembles”, according to John Fordham, of The Guardian, over the past decade the Basel-based VEIN Trio has established an enviable reputation among jazz audiences for both stylistic diversity and technical accomplishment, blending the complexity of European classical chamber music with the thrills and energy of jazz improvisation at its most sophisticated. Ultimately, something unexpected is always around the corner. It deals with the lifeblood of both the jazz tradition (performing standard repertoire) and the classical one (interpreting compositions), showcasing why VEIN is one of the most stylistically diverse and adaptable ensembles on the scene.
VEIN OF STARS BAND SERIES
With “OUR ROOTS”, the trio adds another album to a series inspired by classical music which includes ‘The Chamber Music Effect’ (2016), ‘VEIN plays RAVEL’ (2018) and ‘SYMPHONIC BOP’ (2019).
Michael Arbenz underlines the quotes from classical music with unexpected chords while Florian Arbenz puts them in a context with groove and rhythm. Perhaps the role of Thomas Lähns on bass sums it up best with orchestral-standard sight-reading and ability to play with the bow, he gives VEIN an unusual degree of balance and musical equality. The thread that pulls them all together? These pieces have all had a lasting impact on their personal musical journeys. Whilst the influence of European chamber music has always been evident, their new album Our Roots (25th March) revisits their extensive classical experience in much more detail, giving a range of symphonic pieces their trademark jazz overhaul.Ī reimagining of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony or a Mozart’s aria from The Magic Flute, sit alongside pieces which use Stravinsky’s “ Firebird ”, Mussorgsky’s “ Pictures at an Exhibition ” and Hans Werner Henze’s double bass concerto as a starting point. Across more than a decade of touring and recording, Swiss jazz trio VEIN has established a reputation for both stylistic diversity and technical virtuosity.
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