SEBASTIAN STERT & JEF NEVE
One of the highlights of this year is the collaboration with the Belgian pianist Jef Neve. Ever since I heard his duo album with José James, I always wanted to play together with this pianist. The wish has come true! We recorded a few songs, following two of my compositions.
Maastricht in the rain
I loves you Porgy
I will remember to all black musicians who have shaped jazz history and still had to take the back door and were humiliated and also all those artists who had and have to hide and cannot sing for the ones they love.
March for Freedom
voc: Sebastian Stert, p: Jef Neve, b: Helen Swoboda, ts: Andrew Saragossi, git: Benjamin Schneider
BIG BAND and Kurt Weill
Kurt Weill is one of my favorite composers. As a child I was able to sing along to many of his songs and the lyrics of Brecht, even if I didn’t understand them, they magically attracted me from an early age. Weill’s versatility in composing is also characteristic, and he did completely different things in the USA than he did during the Weimar times. 2010 I created a Revue with Weill Songs and the letters to his wife Lotte Lenya and now I’m working a Big Band Project with Weill Songs.
ZIMMER BEI NACHT
Mein Debütalbum“Zimmer bei Nacht“, erschien am 06. Januar 2017 bei Duo-phon Records.
„Wenn ein Album mit Knef-Songs, dann dieses!“ Deutschland Radio Kultur
„Eine sehr, sehr, schöne Neuinterpretation“ Welt am Sonntag
Zu den wenigen deutschen Jazzstandards der 60er Jahre gehören für mich die Songs von Hildegard Knef. Sie bilden die Grundlage meines Debüt-Albums Zimmer bei Nacht.Die Songauswahl erzählt in meiner Phantasie von einer einsamen Winterreise in einem Zimmer mitten in der nächtlichen Großstadt. Dort ringt lethargische Tatenlosigkeit mit dem ehrgeizigen Kampf, der die Sehnsucht nach Freiheit, Liebe und Glück stillen will. Die Arrangements schrieb der Pianist Wolfgang Köhler. Musikalisch wir er unterstützt von Lars Gühlcke am Kontrabass, Felix Astor an den Drums, Gregoire Peters am Saxophon und Bill Petry an der Trompete.
BAX bei i-tunes und bei Spotify
Presselinks: Tagesspiegel Badische Zeitung Interview Deutschlandradio Kultur
AQUARIUS
We live in the age of Aquarius, an era of change.
South of the Pegasus he soars in the sky. Neptune, surrounded by legends and myths, is only an image in the sky and naturally reigns on the sea, seducing us with its mysterious harp sounds.
He is said to be able to ignite storms, but also saves people from drowning …
We, the jazz-duo AQUARIUS: Benjamin Schneider (guitar) and Sebastian Stert (vocals), often swim between the worlds of Berlin and Maastricht.
On our travels we dream of flying to the moon and discovering sunken treasures in the deep ocean. What does it sound like there at the places of longing, far from home? We want to take you on our musical journey as we rediscover the wonderful classics of Jazz and also some of our own compositions along the way.