Actually, drummer Wolfgang Haffner didn’t want to tour with his new programme until the autumn of 2022. But now he’s already performing “Haffner plays Haffner” and exclusively in the Tafelhalle via live stream: on Sunday 24th and Monday the 25th of January, 2021, both at 8 pm.
The Nuremberg theatre and concert venue is more or less the “home base” of the gifted drummer. Consequently, and at short notice in January, it has the privilege of presenting one of his extremely rare, stream concerts in the programme. Haffner plays Haffner” will feature completely revised arrangements only of his own compositions. For this project, Haffner has brought two exceptional musicians into the band: Simon Oslender (keys) and Thomas Stieger (bass).
It has been known for a long time, not only in the jazz world, that the two-time ECHO Jazz Award winner is an excellent drummer and composer. He has left his mark in numerous prominent collaborations, both nationally and internationally, with a wide variety of artists and bands. He is one of the few German musicians who enjoy worldwide success. He has given 3500 concerts in 100 countries, from Japan to Brazil, South Africa to Australia, and the USA to Russia. His distinctive beats feature on 400 albums. The list of musicians with whom Haffner has toured and recorded seems endless: Al Jarreau, Chaka Khan, Pat Metheny, Gregory Porter, Jan Garbarek, Nils Landgren, Nils Petter Molvaer, Till Brönner, Esbjörn Svensson, Roy Ayers, Bugge Wesseltoft, The Brecker Brothers, Bill Evans, Bob James, Nightmares on Wax, Ivan Lins, Manhattan Transfer, Die Fantastischen Vier, Thomas Quasthoff, Albert Mangelsdorff, Konstantin Wecker, Klaus Doldinger, and Ricardo Villalobos.
Wolfgang Haffner is also a successful producer. Artists such as Max Mutzke and the Icelandic fusion band Mezzoforte have worked with him. He has also released 18 albums under his own name, including successful albums such as “Zooming”, “Shapes”, “Kind of Cool” and “Kind of Tango”.
Simon Oslender is considered a shooting star of the German jazz scene. His debut album “About Time” – with, among others, guest stars Randy Brecker and Bill Evans – immediately made it into the Top 10 of the German jazz charts. He is a member of Bill Evans & the Spykillers and has toured Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia in his still-young career. Thomas Stieger is one of Germany’s leading bass players. He toured Southeast Asia for the first time in 2019 with Wolfgang Haffner’s band. Stieger has been providing the foundation in Sarah Connor’s band for years, but beyond that, the Berliner-by-choice is also a sought-after session musician.
Streaming tickets for Sunday, the 24th of January, are available from the webshop at www.tafelhalle.de for 15€ or 25€ (Support Ticket, with Support the Artists). For the repeat performance on Monday, the 25th of January, the tickets are 10€ or 15€ (Support Ticket).
