Jazzpreis der Stadt Köln - Preisträgerkonzert von Felix Hauptmann

Preisträger des Horst und Gretl Will-Stipendiums für Jazz/Improvisierte Musik im Jahr 2022

Horst and Gretl Will are both jazz fans and began awarding the scholarship through their foundation in 1998 - embedded in the awarding of a total of five sponsorship scholarships by the city of Cologne. This year's winner of the Horst and Gretl Will scholarship is jazz pianist and composer Felix Hauptmann.

From the Horst and Gretl Will Scholarship jury's statement on their decision for the award winner Felix Hauptmann "As one of the current rediscoverers of the analog synthesizer, Felix Hauptmann works on expansions of the sound spectrum of improvised music. As a pianist he is a clairaudient sideman, as a soloist and composer he works emphatically and creatively to find and invent his own ways. His compositional handwriting is characterized by an astonishing familiarity with compositional styles of contemporary serious music, whereby he does not appear here as an imitator and influencer, but rather reveals independent, lively approaches to current compositional styles. Last but not least, his organizational work in the Cologne scene makes him an important figure in the regional music scene."

Felix Hauptmann presents an excerpt of his musical work First he presents his skills solo on the piano.

Felix Hauptmann will play an improvised solo piano set in the first part of the concert, based on his already released solo albums. His playing is characterized by his individual melodic and harmonic language: he weaves rhythmic motifs and abstract, dense melodies into songs and soundscapes.

In the second part of the concert it gets more crowded on stage. As a member of the sextet "La Campagne" Felix Hauptmann then creates the second part of his program.

La Campagne has been working on and with the compositions and concepts of saxophonist Fabian Dudek for several years. The unusual compositional language meets here with an excellent ensemble that fills the complex structures and melodies with life and improvisation. Dudek's music creates multi-layered sonic worlds and is based on an energetic, rhythmic pulse.