Joe Zawinul
Encyclopedia
Josef Erich Zawinul was an Austrian
-American
jazz
keyboardist
and composer
.
First coming to prominence with saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, Zawinul went on to play with trumpeter Miles Davis
, and to become one of the creators of jazz fusion
, an innovative musical genre
that combined jazz with elements of rock
and world music
. Later, Zawinul co-founded the groups Weather Report
and the world fusion music-oriented Zawinul Syndicate. Additionally, he made pioneering use of electric piano
and synthesizer
s. Zawinul was named "Best Electric Keyboardist" 28 times by the readers of Down Beat
magazine.
Several artists have honored Zawinul with songs, notably Brian Eno
's instrumental "Zawinul/Lava
", John McLaughlin
's instrumental "Jozy", Warren Cuccurullo
's "Hey Zawinul", Bob Baldwin
's "Joe Zawinul", Chucho Valdes
's "Zawinul's Mambo", Biréli Lagrène
's instrumental "Josef" and Toninho Horta
's instrumental "Balada para Zawinul". Zawinul's playing style is often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations —both bebop, ethnic and pop sounding— combined with sparse but rhythmic playing of big-band sounding chords or bass lines. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder
as well as pre-recorded sounds played (i.e. filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" ("using all the sounds the world generates").
, as a son of the worker Josef Zawinul, in Vienna
, Austria, where he went to school with the late former Austrian Federal President Thomas Klestil
. His grandmother was a Hungarian Sinti
("Gypsy"), and his grandfather was from southern Moravia
.
Classically trained at the Konservatorium Wien
, Zawinul played in various broadcasting and studio bands before emigrating to the U.S. in 1959 on a music scholarship at Berklee College of Music
in Boston.
He went on to play with trumpeter Maynard Ferguson
, where he first met Wayne Shorter
after having had an influence in hiring him. Shorter left soon thereafter to play in Art Blakey's group and Josef was apparently dismissed from the Ferguson band for wanting to have too much control over personnel decisions. Zawinul then toured and recorded with singer Dinah Washington
for two years.
, from the 1969 album of the same name
.
's studio band and helped create the sound of jazz fusion
. He played on the album In a Silent Way
, the title track of which he composed, and the landmark album Bitches Brew
, for which he contributed the twenty-minute track, "Pharaoh's Dance", which occupied the whole of side one.
Zawinul is known to have played live with Davis only once, on July 10, 1991, in Paris, along with Wayne Shorter
, shortly before Davis' death.
Zawinul, along with other Davis sidemen Chick Corea
and Herbie Hancock
, was one of the first to use electric piano
s and early synthesizers like the ARP 2600
in 1973's Sweetnighter
. He was among the first to use an electric piano, the Wurlitzer. He used the Fender-Rhodes thereafter, adding a wah-wah pedal and later the Mutron effect unit for a complex phased timbre. His creativity and attention to detail resulted in a very contemporary and modern sound. He also has played the kalimba on Weather Report
's Mysterious Traveller
and Mr. Gone.
with saxophonist and Davis alumnus Wayne Shorter
. Their first two years emphasized a relatively open, group improvisation format not dissimilar to what Miles Davis was doing in a more rock oriented format. However, Josef started making changes with their third album, Sweetnighter
, citing he was "tired of waiting for something to happen". Funk elements such as electric bass, wah-wah pedal, etc. started to be introduced in the band's sound. Music critics generally agree that their 4th album, Mysterious Traveller
, was their true breakthrough album, capturing the classic Weather Report "sound" for the first time. The musical forms were now through-composed similar to classical music, and the combination of jazz harmonies with 70's groove elements launched the band into its most successful period.
Their biggest commercial success came from his composition "Birdland", a 6-minute opus featured on Weather Report's 1977 album Heavy Weather
, which peaked at number 30 on the Billboard
pop albums chart. "Birdland" is one of the most recognizable jazz pieces of the 1970s, covered by many prominent artists from The Manhattan Transfer
and Quincy Jones
to Maynard Ferguson
, the Buddy Rich
Big Band, and Jefferson Starship
. Even Weather Report's version received significant mainstream radio airplay — unusual for them — and served to convert many new fans to music which they may never have heard otherwise. The song won him three Grammys
.
Weather Report was active until the mid 80s, with Zawinul and Shorter remaining the sole constant members through multiple personnel shifts. The group was notable for bringing to prominence pioneering fretless bass guitarist Jaco Pastorius
, but also other musicians, such as Alphonso Johnson
and Peter Erskine
. Shorter and Zawinul had already gone separate ways, after the recording of their "final" Sportin' Life
, when it was discovered that they had to do one more album in order to fulfill the CBS contract. This Is This!
therefore became their final album. Shorter participated despite being busy leading his own group, and Peter Erskine was also brought in again for this record, ending up playing on most compositions.
, called Stories of the Danube
, which was commissioned by the Brucknerhaus, Linz
. It was first performed as part of the Linzer Klangwolke
(a large-scale open-air broadcast event), for the opening of the 1993 Bruckner
Festival in Linz. In its seven movements, the symphony traces the course of the Danube
from Donaueschingen
through various countries ending at the Black Sea
. It was recorded in 1995 by the Czech State Philharmonic Orchestra, Brno
, conducted by Caspar Richter.
(Merkel cell carcinoma
) on September 11, 2007. He is buried in the Zentralfriedhof
Cemetery in Vienna.
With Cannonball Adderley
With Nat Adderley
With Miles Davis
With Weather Report
As contributor
Austrians
Austrians are a nation and ethnic group, consisting of the population of the Republic of Austria and its historical predecessor states who share a common Austrian culture and Austrian descent....
-American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
keyboardist
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
.
First coming to prominence with saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, Zawinul went on to play with trumpeter Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
, and to become one of the creators of jazz fusion
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
, an innovative musical genre
Music genre
A music genre is a categorical and typological construct that identifies musical sounds as belonging to a particular category and type of music that can be distinguished from other types of music...
that combined jazz with elements of rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
and world music
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
. Later, Zawinul co-founded the groups Weather Report
Weather Report
Weather Report was an American jazz-rock band of the 1970s and early 1980s. The band was co-led by the Austrian-born keyboard player Joe Zawinul and the American saxophonist Wayne Shorter...
and the world fusion music-oriented Zawinul Syndicate. Additionally, he made pioneering use of electric piano
Electric piano
An electric piano is an electric musical instrument.Electric pianos produce sounds mechanically and the sounds are turned into electrical signals by pickups. Unlike a synthesizer, the electric piano is not an electronic instrument, but electro-mechanical. The earliest electric pianos were invented...
and synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
s. Zawinul was named "Best Electric Keyboardist" 28 times by the readers of Down Beat
Down Beat
Down Beat is an American magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond" to indicate its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago, Illinois...
magazine.
Several artists have honored Zawinul with songs, notably Brian Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
's instrumental "Zawinul/Lava
Another Green World
Another Green World is the third studio album by British musician Brian Eno. Produced by Eno and Rhett Davies, it was originally released by Island Records in September 1975. As he had done with previous solo albums, Eno worked with several guest musicians including Phil Collins, John Cale and...
", John McLaughlin
John McLaughlin (musician)
John McLaughlin , also known as Mahavishnu John McLaughlin, is an English guitarist, bandleader and composer...
's instrumental "Jozy", Warren Cuccurullo
Warren Cuccurullo
Warren Bruce Cuccurullo in Brooklyn, New York is an American rock musician who worked with Frank Zappa, was a founding member of Missing Persons, and has been a long term member of Duran Duran. He also has some notoriety in the porn industry after making nude appearances in a magazine and...
's "Hey Zawinul", Bob Baldwin
Bob Baldwin
Robert Charles "Bob" Baldwin , Australian politician, has been a Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives from March 1996 to October 1998 and again since November 2001, representing theDivision of Paterson in New South Wales...
's "Joe Zawinul", Chucho Valdes
Chucho Valdés
Chucho Valdés is a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger. In 1972 he founded the group Irakere, one of Cuba's best-known Latin jazz bands. Together with pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Valdés is revered as one of Cuba's greatest jazz pianists...
's "Zawinul's Mambo", Biréli Lagrène
Biréli Lagrène
Biréli Lagrène is a French guitarist and bassist. He came to prominence in the 1980s for his Django Reinhardt-influenced style on the classical guitar, as well as for being a jazz fusion virtuoso on the electric guitar...
's instrumental "Josef" and Toninho Horta
Toninho Horta
Toninho Horta is a virtuoso electric and nylon-string guitar player; his music could be defined as Brazilian music.He has developed his own very personal style...
's instrumental "Balada para Zawinul". Zawinul's playing style is often dominated by quirky melodic improvisations —both bebop, ethnic and pop sounding— combined with sparse but rhythmic playing of big-band sounding chords or bass lines. In Weather Report, he often employed a vocoder
Vocoder
A vocoder is an analysis/synthesis system, mostly used for speech. In the encoder, the input is passed through a multiband filter, each band is passed through an envelope follower, and the control signals from the envelope followers are communicated to the decoder...
as well as pre-recorded sounds played (i.e. filtered and transposed) through a synthesizer, creating a very distinctive synthesis of jazz harmonics and "noise" ("using all the sounds the world generates").
Early life and career
Zawinul was born and grew up in LandstraßeLandstraße
Landstraße is the 3rd municipal District of Vienna, Austria] . It is near the center of Vienna and was established in the 19th century. Landstraße is a heavily populated urban area with many workers and residential homes. It has inhabitants in an area of 7.42 km². It has existed since...
, as a son of the worker Josef Zawinul, in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria, where he went to school with the late former Austrian Federal President Thomas Klestil
Thomas Klestil
Thomas Klestil was an Austrian diplomat and politician. He was elected the tenth President of Austria in 1992 and was re-elected to the position in 1998...
. His grandmother was a Hungarian Sinti
Sinti
Sinti or Sinta or Sinte is the name of a Romani or Gypsy population in Europe. Traditionally nomadic, today only a small percentage of the group remains unsettled...
("Gypsy"), and his grandfather was from southern Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
.
Classically trained at the Konservatorium Wien
Konservatorium Wien
The Konservatorium Wien Privatuniversität is a private music conservatory in Vienna, Austria established in 1938 as Musikschule der Stadt Wien.The school attained university status on June 15, 2005 as a private institution....
, Zawinul played in various broadcasting and studio bands before emigrating to the U.S. in 1959 on a music scholarship at Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...
in Boston.
He went on to play with trumpeter Maynard Ferguson
Maynard Ferguson
Maynard Ferguson was a Canadian jazz musician and bandleader. He came to prominence playing in Stan Kenton's orchestra, before forming his own band in 1957...
, where he first met Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter is an American jazz saxophonist and composer.He is generally acknowledged to be jazz's greatest living composer, and many of his compositions have become standards...
after having had an influence in hiring him. Shorter left soon thereafter to play in Art Blakey's group and Josef was apparently dismissed from the Ferguson band for wanting to have too much control over personnel decisions. Zawinul then toured and recorded with singer Dinah Washington
Dinah Washington
Dinah Washington, born Ruth Lee Jones , was an American blues, R&B and jazz singer. She has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the '50s", and called "The Queen of the Blues"...
for two years.
With Cannonball Adderley
In 1961, Zawinul joined the Quintet led by saxophonist Cannonball Adderley. During his nine-year stint with Adderley, he wrote the hit song "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy." He also composed "Walk Tall" and "Country Preacher," the latter a tribute to U.S. Civil Rights Movement leader Jesse JacksonJesse Jackson
Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. is an African-American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988 and served as shadow senator for the District of Columbia from 1991 to 1997. He was the founder of both entities that merged to...
, from the 1969 album of the same name
Country Preacher
Country Preacher is a live album recorded by the Cannonball Adderley Quintet in 1969.Recorded at an unidentified church meeting of the Chicago chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference's Operation Breadbasket, the album spent two months in the Cash Box R&B charts in 1970.Described by...
.
With Miles Davis
In the late 1960s, Zawinul recorded with Miles DavisMiles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
's studio band and helped create the sound of jazz fusion
Jazz fusion
Jazz fusion is a musical fusion genre that developed from mixing funk and R&B rhythms and the amplification and electronic effects of rock, complex time signatures derived from non-Western music and extended, typically instrumental compositions with a jazz approach to lengthy group improvisations,...
. He played on the album In a Silent Way
In a Silent Way
In a Silent Way is a studio album by American jazz musician Miles Davis, released July 30, 1969 on Columbia Records. Produced by Teo Macero, the album was recorded in one session date on February 18, 1969 at CBS 30th Street Studio B in New York City. Incorporating elements of classical sonata form,...
, the title track of which he composed, and the landmark album Bitches Brew
Bitches Brew
Bitches Brew is a studio double album by jazz musician Miles Davis, released in April 1970 on Columbia Records. The album continued his experimentation with electric instruments previously featured on his critically acclaimed In a Silent Way album...
, for which he contributed the twenty-minute track, "Pharaoh's Dance", which occupied the whole of side one.
Zawinul is known to have played live with Davis only once, on July 10, 1991, in Paris, along with Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter is an American jazz saxophonist and composer.He is generally acknowledged to be jazz's greatest living composer, and many of his compositions have become standards...
, shortly before Davis' death.
Zawinul, along with other Davis sidemen Chick Corea
Chick Corea
Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, and composer.Many of his compositions are considered jazz standards. As a member of Miles Davis' band in the 1960s, he participated in the birth of the electric jazz fusion movement. In the 1970s he formed Return to Forever...
and Herbie Hancock
Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
, was one of the first to use electric piano
Electric piano
An electric piano is an electric musical instrument.Electric pianos produce sounds mechanically and the sounds are turned into electrical signals by pickups. Unlike a synthesizer, the electric piano is not an electronic instrument, but electro-mechanical. The earliest electric pianos were invented...
s and early synthesizers like the ARP 2600
ARP 2600
The ARP 2600 is a semi-modular analog subtractive audio synthesizer, designed by Alan R. Pearlman , and manufactured by his company, ARP Instruments, Inc...
in 1973's Sweetnighter
Sweetnighter
Sweetnighter is Weather Report's third studio album, released on Columbia Records in 1973. The group had recorded the songs in a five day stretch during February of the same year. It was to be the last album to feature founding member Miroslav Vitous as the primary bassist.-Track listing:#"Boogie...
. He was among the first to use an electric piano, the Wurlitzer. He used the Fender-Rhodes thereafter, adding a wah-wah pedal and later the Mutron effect unit for a complex phased timbre. His creativity and attention to detail resulted in a very contemporary and modern sound. He also has played the kalimba on Weather Report
Weather Report
Weather Report was an American jazz-rock band of the 1970s and early 1980s. The band was co-led by the Austrian-born keyboard player Joe Zawinul and the American saxophonist Wayne Shorter...
's Mysterious Traveller
Mysterious Traveller
Mysterious Traveller is the fourth release of Weather Report. This album marked the end of bassist Miroslav Vitous's tenure with the band. Vitous was replaced by Alphonso Johnson. Another addition to the line-up is drummer Ishmael Wilburn...
and Mr. Gone.
With Weather Report
In 1970, Zawinul co-founded Weather ReportWeather Report
Weather Report was an American jazz-rock band of the 1970s and early 1980s. The band was co-led by the Austrian-born keyboard player Joe Zawinul and the American saxophonist Wayne Shorter...
with saxophonist and Davis alumnus Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter is an American jazz saxophonist and composer.He is generally acknowledged to be jazz's greatest living composer, and many of his compositions have become standards...
. Their first two years emphasized a relatively open, group improvisation format not dissimilar to what Miles Davis was doing in a more rock oriented format. However, Josef started making changes with their third album, Sweetnighter
Sweetnighter
Sweetnighter is Weather Report's third studio album, released on Columbia Records in 1973. The group had recorded the songs in a five day stretch during February of the same year. It was to be the last album to feature founding member Miroslav Vitous as the primary bassist.-Track listing:#"Boogie...
, citing he was "tired of waiting for something to happen". Funk elements such as electric bass, wah-wah pedal, etc. started to be introduced in the band's sound. Music critics generally agree that their 4th album, Mysterious Traveller
Mysterious Traveller
Mysterious Traveller is the fourth release of Weather Report. This album marked the end of bassist Miroslav Vitous's tenure with the band. Vitous was replaced by Alphonso Johnson. Another addition to the line-up is drummer Ishmael Wilburn...
, was their true breakthrough album, capturing the classic Weather Report "sound" for the first time. The musical forms were now through-composed similar to classical music, and the combination of jazz harmonies with 70's groove elements launched the band into its most successful period.
Their biggest commercial success came from his composition "Birdland", a 6-minute opus featured on Weather Report's 1977 album Heavy Weather
Heavy Weather (album)
The album received positive reviews since its publication. American music journalist Richard Ginell gave the album the maximum rating, five stars out of five, and concluded his review for Allmusic by stating that, "[r]eleased just as the jazz-rock movement began to run out of steam, this landmark...
, which peaked at number 30 on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
pop albums chart. "Birdland" is one of the most recognizable jazz pieces of the 1970s, covered by many prominent artists from The Manhattan Transfer
The Manhattan Transfer
The Manhattan Transfer is an American vocal music group. There have been two manifestations of the group, with Tim Hauser being the only person to be part of both...
and Quincy Jones
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
to Maynard Ferguson
Maynard Ferguson
Maynard Ferguson was a Canadian jazz musician and bandleader. He came to prominence playing in Stan Kenton's orchestra, before forming his own band in 1957...
, the Buddy Rich
Buddy Rich
Bernard "Buddy" Rich was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. Rich was billed as "the world's greatest drummer" and was known for his virtuosic technique, power, groove, and speed.-Early life:...
Big Band, and Jefferson Starship
Jefferson Starship
Jefferson Starship is an American rock band formed in the early 1970s. The group is a spin-off from the iconic 1960s psychedelic/folk group Jefferson Airplane. The band has undergone several major changes in personnel and genres through the years while retaining the same Jefferson Starship name...
. Even Weather Report's version received significant mainstream radio airplay — unusual for them — and served to convert many new fans to music which they may never have heard otherwise. The song won him three Grammys
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
.
Weather Report was active until the mid 80s, with Zawinul and Shorter remaining the sole constant members through multiple personnel shifts. The group was notable for bringing to prominence pioneering fretless bass guitarist Jaco Pastorius
Jaco Pastorius
John Francis Anthony Pastorius III , known as Jaco Pastorius, was an American jazz musician and composer widely acknowledged as a virtuoso electric bass player....
, but also other musicians, such as Alphonso Johnson
Alphonso Johnson
Alphonso Johnson is an American jazz bassist who has been influential since the early 1970s.-Biography:Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Johnson started off as an upright bass player, but switched to the electric bass in his late teens. Beginning his career in the early 1970s, Johnson showed...
and Peter Erskine
Peter Erskine
Peter Erskine is an American jazz drummer and composer. He has enjoyed a long and successful career as a session drummer, recording and touring with many famous jazz and rock artists, including Steely Dan and Weather Report...
. Shorter and Zawinul had already gone separate ways, after the recording of their "final" Sportin' Life
Sportin' Life
Sportin' Life is the twelfth studio album by Weather Report, released in 1985. Although featuring many more vocal performances than any of their previous albums, words are rare and most vocals are chants from Bobby McFerrin or Carl Anderson...
, when it was discovered that they had to do one more album in order to fulfill the CBS contract. This Is This!
This is This!
This Is This! is the thirteenth and final studio album by Weather Report. The band thought that they had fulfilled their contract with Columbia Records with the release of the previous album Sportin' Life. This, however, was not the case and the band had to release one more record...
therefore became their final album. Shorter participated despite being busy leading his own group, and Peter Erskine was also brought in again for this record, ending up playing on most compositions.
Later career
Zawinul also wrote a symphonySymphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
, called Stories of the Danube
Stories of the Danube
Stories of the Danube is a symphony by Joe Zawinul, which was commissioned by the Brucknerhaus, Linz. It was first performed as part of the Linzer Klangwolke , for the opening of the 1993 Bruckner Festival in Linz, on September 12...
, which was commissioned by the Brucknerhaus, Linz
Linz
Linz is the third-largest city of Austria and capital of the state of Upper Austria . It is located in the north centre of Austria, approximately south of the Czech border, on both sides of the river Danube. The population of the city is , and that of the Greater Linz conurbation is about...
. It was first performed as part of the Linzer Klangwolke
Linzer Klangwolke
The Linzer Klangwolke is an open-air multimedia musical event held each year since 1979 in early September in the Linz Danube Park in the Austrian town of Linz. It is organized by the Austrian broadcasting company Österreichischer Rundfunk and the Brucknerhaus...
(a large-scale open-air broadcast event), for the opening of the 1993 Bruckner
Anton Bruckner
Anton Bruckner was an Austrian composer known for his symphonies, masses, and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-German Romanticism because of their rich harmonic language, complex polyphony, and considerable length...
Festival in Linz. In its seven movements, the symphony traces the course of the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
from Donaueschingen
Donaueschingen
Donaueschingen is a German town in the Black Forest in the southwest of the federal state of Baden-Württemberg in the Schwarzwald-Baar Kreis. It stands near the confluence of the two sources of the river Danube ....
through various countries ending at the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
. It was recorded in 1995 by the Czech State Philharmonic Orchestra, Brno
Brno Philharmonic Orchestra
Brno Philharmonic Orchestra is an orchestra based in Brno, the Czech Republic. Its predecessor was the Czech Symphony Orchestra, dating from the 1870's. The current Brno Philharmonic was formed in 1956 with the merger of the Radio Orchestra and the Brno Region Symphony Orchestra, with Břetislav...
, conducted by Caspar Richter.
Death
Zawinul was hospitalized in his native Vienna on August 7, 2007, after concluding a five-week European tour. He died from a rare form of skin cancerSkin cancer
Skin neoplasms are skin growths with differing causes and varying degrees of malignancy. The three most common malignant skin cancers are basal cell cancer, squamous cell cancer, and melanoma, each of which is named after the type of skin cell from which it arises...
(Merkel cell carcinoma
Merkel cell cancer
Merkel cell carcinoma Merkel cell carcinoma Merkel cell carcinoma (also known as a "Cutaneous apudoma," "Primary neuroendocrine carcinoma of the skin," "Primary small cell carcinoma of the skin," and "Trabecular carcinoma of the skin"...
) on September 11, 2007. He is buried in the Zentralfriedhof
Zentralfriedhof
The Zentralfriedhof is one of the largest cemeteries in the world, largest by number of interred in Europe and most famous cemetery among Vienna's nearly 50 cemeteries.-Name and location:...
Cemetery in Vienna.
Discography
As leader
- To You with Love (Strand, 1959)
- Money In The Pocket (Atlantic, 1966)
- The Rise and Fall of the Third StreamThe Rise and Fall of the Third StreamThe Rise and Fall of the Third Stream is an album by Austrian jazz keyboardist and composer Joe Zawinul, released in 1968. The title refers to the Third stream genre of music, melding classical and jazz.- Track listing :...
(Vortex, 1968) - ZawinulZawinul (album)-Track listing:# "Doctor Honoris Causa" – 13:48# "In a Silent Way" – 4:51# "His Last Journey" – 4:36# "Double Image" – 10:32# "Arrival in New York" – 2:01*Recorded Recorded at Atlantic Recording Studios, New York, N.Y-Personnel:...
(Atlantic, 1971) - Di•a•lectsDi•a•lectsDi•a•lects is an album by Austrian jazz keyboardist and composer Joe Zawinul, released in 1986. On the original liner it appears:The Compositions on this CD are my impressions of the many peoples and places I have visited; their moods, songs, laughter, dances; the sights and sounds of the daily...
(Columbia, 1986) - The Immigrants (Columbia, 1988)
- Black Water (Columbia, 1989)
- Lost Tribes (Columbia, 1992)
- My People (ESC-Records, 1996)
- Stories of the DanubeStories of the DanubeStories of the Danube is a symphony by Joe Zawinul, which was commissioned by the Brucknerhaus, Linz. It was first performed as part of the Linzer Klangwolke , for the opening of the 1993 Bruckner Festival in Linz, on September 12...
(Polygram, 1996) - World Tour (ESC, 1997)
- Mauthausen - Vom großen Sterben hören (ESC-Records, 2000) [3]
- Faces & PlacesFaces & PlacesFaces & Places is a jazz album by Joe Zawinul, released in 2002 on ESC Records.- Track listing :# "The Search" # "All About Simon" # "Introduction to Tower of Silence" # "Tower of Silence"...
(ESC-Records, 2002) - Joe Zawinul & The Zawinul Syndicate – Vienna Nights – Live at Joe Zawinul's Birdland (BirdJAM 2005)
- Brown Street (2006)
- Music for Two Pianos with Friedrich GuldaFriedrich GuldaFriedrich Gulda was an Austrian pianist and composer who worked in both the classical and jazz fields.Born in Vienna as the son of a teacher, Gulda began learning to play the piano from Felix Pazofsky at the Wiener Volkskonservatorium, aged 7...
: BrahmsJohannes BrahmsJohannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
' Variations on a Theme by Haydn—WDRWestdeutscher RundfunkWestdeutscher Rundfunk is a German public-broadcasting institution based in the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia with its main office in Cologne. WDR is a constituent member of the consortium of German public-broadcasting institutions, ARD...
Big Band Köln (Capriccio, 2006) - 7575 (album)75 is a live album by Austrian-American jazz musician Joe Zawinul and his band the Zawinul Syndicate. It was recorded in 2007 at two of bandleader Joe Zawinul's final performances in Switzerland and Hungary. The album was produced by Joachim Becker and originally released in 2008 by JVC Compact...
(BirdJAM, 2008)
As sideman
With Dinah WashingtonDinah Washington
Dinah Washington, born Ruth Lee Jones , was an American blues, R&B and jazz singer. She has been cited as "the most popular black female recording artist of the '50s", and called "The Queen of the Blues"...
- What a Diff'rence a Day Makes!What a Diff'rence a Day Makes!What a Diff'rence a Day Makes! is a 1959 album by Dinah Washington, arranged by Belford Hendricks, featuring her hit single of the same name.The title track won Washington the Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Recording at the Grammy Awards of 1960....
(Mercury, 1960) - Dinah Washington & Brook Benton – Two of Us (Mercury, 1960)
With Cannonball Adderley
- Nancy Wilson/Cannonball Adderley (Capitol, 1961)
- The Cannonball Adderley Sextet in New YorkThe Cannonball Adderley Sextet in New YorkThe Cannonball Adderley Sextet in New York is a live album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded at the Village Vanguard and released on the Riverside label featuring performances by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Yusef Lateef, Joe Zawinul, Sam Jones and Louis Hayes.The Allmusic review by...
(Riverside, 1962) - Cannonball in Europe!Cannonball in Europe!Cannonball in Europe! is a live album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded at the Comblain-la-Tour in Belgium and released on the Capitol label featuring performances by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Yusef Lateef, Joe Zawinul, Sam Jones and Louis Hayes...
(Riverside, 1962) - Jazz Workshop RevisitedJazz Workshop RevisitedJazz Workshop Revisited is a live album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded at the Jazz Workshop in San Francisco and released on the Riverside label featuring performances by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Yusef Lateef, Joe Zawinul, Sam Jones and Louis Hayes...
(Riverside, 1963) - Autumn Leaves (Riverside [Japan], 1963)
- Nippon SoulNippon SoulNippon Soul is a live album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded at the Sankei Hall in Tokyo during his 1963 Japanese tour and released on the Riverside label featuring performances by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Yusef Lateef, Joe Zawinul, Sam Jones and Louis Hayes...
(Riverside, 1963) - Cannonball Adderley Live!Cannonball Adderley Live!Cannonball Adderley Live! is a live album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded at Shelly's Mann Hole and released on the Capitol label featuring performances by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Charles Lloyd, Joe Zawinul, Sam Jones and Louis Hayes...
(Capitol, 1964) - Live Session!Live Session!-Track listing:# Cannonball Adderley's Introduction - 0:28# "Big City" - 3:19# "Next Time I See You" - 3:53# "I'm Always Drunk in San Francisco" - 3:20# "Ten Years of Tears" - 2:48...
(Capitol, 1964) - Cannonball Adderley's Fiddler on the RoofCannonball Adderley's Fiddler on the RoofCannonball Adderley's Fiddler on the Roof is an album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley released on the Capitol label featuring performances of material from the Broadway musical Fiddler on the Roof by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Charles Lloyd, Joe Zawinul, Sam Jones and Louis Hayes...
(Capitol, 1964) - DominationDomination (Cannonball Adderley album)Domination is an album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley released on the Capitol label featuring performances of by Adderley with an orchestra conducted by Oliver Nelson. The CD release added the bonus track "Experience in E" composed by Joe Zawinul and originally released on the 1970 album...
(Capitol, 1965) - Money in the PocketMoney in the PocketMoney in the Pocket is a live album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded at The Club in Chicago in 1966, but not released on the Capitol label until 2005, featuring performances by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Joe Zawinul, Herbie Lewis and Roy McCurdy...
(Capitol, 1966) - Great Love ThemesGreat Love ThemesGreat Love Themes is an album recorded in April, 1966 by jazz saxophonist Julian Edwin "Cannonball" Adderley. It was released on the Capitol label featuring performances of Broadway show tunes by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Joe Zawinul, Herbie Lewis and Roy McCurdy...
(Capitol, 1966) - Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at 'The Club'Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at 'The Club'Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! Live at 'The Club' is a 1966 album by jazz musician Julian "Cannonball" Adderley. Though the original liner notes state that it was recorded at the Club DeLisa in Chicago, it was actually recorded at Capitol's Hollywood studio with an invited audience and an open bar...
(Capitol, 1966) - Cannonball in JapanCannonball in JapanCannonball in Japan is a live recording by the Cannonball Adderley Quintet at the Sankei Hall in Tokyo, Japan.- Track listing :#"Work Song" – 4:30#"Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" – 5:20...
(Capitol, 1966) - Radio NightsRadio NightsRadio Nights is an album released in 1991 featuring previously unreleased live radio broadcasts by the Cannonball Adderley Quartet, Quintet and Sextet from New York City's Half Note Club jazz club. They were recorded by Alan Grant and broadcast live on radio in the last week of 1967 and the first...
(Night, 1967-8) - 74 Miles Away74 Miles Away74 Miles Away is a live album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded in Hollywood, California in 1967 featuring performances by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Joe Zawinul, Victor Gaskin and Roy McCurdy. The Allmusic review by Richard S...
(Capitol, 1967) - Why Am I Treated So Bad!Why Am I Treated So Bad!Why Am I Treated So Bad! is a live album by the Cannonball Adderley Quintet, recorded at the Capitol studios in Los Angeles in 1967.The song "I'm on My Way", was written by his nephew Nat Adderley, Jr., who at the time was an 11-year-old living in Teaneck, New Jersey.- Track listing :#...
(Capitol, 1967) - Accent on AfricaAccent on AfricaAccent on Africa is an album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded in 1968 for the Capitol label featuring performances by Adderley with Nat Adderley and unidentified percussion section, vocalists, and big band. The Allmusic review by Richard S...
(Capitol, 1968) - Country PreacherCountry PreacherCountry Preacher is a live album recorded by the Cannonball Adderley Quintet in 1969.Recorded at an unidentified church meeting of the Chicago chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference's Operation Breadbasket, the album spent two months in the Cash Box R&B charts in 1970.Described by...
(Capitol, 1969) - In Person (Capitol, 1970)
- The Cannonball Adderley Quintet & OrchestraThe Cannonball Adderley Quintet & OrchestraThe Cannonball Adderley Quintet & Orchestra is an album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded in Los Angeles, California in 1970 featuring performances by Adderley's Quintet featuring Nat Adderley, Joe Zawinul, Walter Booker and Roy McCurdy with an unidentified orchestra conducted by...
(Capitol, 1970) - The Price You Got to Pay to Be FreeThe Price You Got to Pay to Be FreeThe Price You Got to Pay to Be Free is a live album by jazz saxophonist Cannonball Adderley recorded in Los Angeles, California in 1970 featuring performances by Adderley with Nat Adderley, Joe Zawinul, Walter Booker and Roy McCurdy with guest appearances by Nat Adderley, Jr. and Bob West. The...
(Capitol, 1970)
With Nat Adderley
Nat Adderley
Nathaniel Adderley was an American jazz cornet and trumpet player who played in the hard bop and soul jazz genres. He was the brother of saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley....
- Naturally!Naturally!-Track listing:# "Naturally" - 5:05# "Seventh Son" [aka "Lateef Minor Seventh"] - 6:51# "Love Letters" - 4:16# "This Man's Dream" - 5:29...
(Jazzland, 1961) - AutobiographyAutobiography (Nat Adderley album)Autobiography was the ninth album by jazz cornetist Nat Adderley. It was released in 1964 as a vinyl record, his first after moving to Atlantic Records...
(AtlanticAtlantic RecordsAtlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
, 1964) - Live at Memory LaneLive at Memory Lane-Track listing:# "On My Journey Now" - 4:49# "Fun" - 6:40# "In the Good Old Summertime" - 9:49# "Lavender Woman" - 8:16# "Painted Desert" - 8:48# "Theme" - 4:49...
(Atlantic, 1966) - The ScavengerThe Scavenger-Track listing:# "The Scavenger" - 8:07# "Bittersweet" - 4:45# "But Not For Me" - 5:53# "Sweet Emma" - 4:47# "Rise, Sally, Rise" - 5:19# "Unilateral" - 5:58# "Melnat" - 3:00...
(MilestoneMilestone RecordsMilestone Records is a United States based jazz record label, founded in 1966 by Orrin Keepnews and Dick Katz in New York City. The company was incorporated into Fantasy Records in 1972, since then it has been used for reissues as well as for new recordings....
, 1968) - You, BabyYou, Baby-Track listing:# "You Baby" - 2:46# "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" - 3:20# "Electric Eel" - 4:58# "Early Chanson" [aka "Joe's Blues #1"] - 2:25# "Denise" -Track listing:# "You Baby" (Ivy Hunter, Jack Goga, Jeffrey Bowen) - 2:46# "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" (Jim Webb) - 3:20# "Electric Eel" -...
(CTICTI RecordsCTI Records was a jazz record label founded in 1967 by producer/A&R manager Creed Taylor. Initially, CTI was a subsidiary of A&M Records, but the label went independent in 1970...
, 1968) - Calling Out LoudCalling Out Loud-Track listing:# "Biafra" - 6:32# "Haifa" - 4:57# "St. M" - 3:37# "Grey Moss" - 3:43# "Nobody Knows" - 5:53# "Comin' Out the Shadows" - 5:09# "Ivan's Holiday" - 3:14...
(CTI, 1968)
With Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
- In a Silent WayIn a Silent WayIn a Silent Way is a studio album by American jazz musician Miles Davis, released July 30, 1969 on Columbia Records. Produced by Teo Macero, the album was recorded in one session date on February 18, 1969 at CBS 30th Street Studio B in New York City. Incorporating elements of classical sonata form,...
(Columbia, 1969) - Big Fun (Columbia, 1969)
- Bitches BrewBitches BrewBitches Brew is a studio double album by jazz musician Miles Davis, released in April 1970 on Columbia Records. The album continued his experimentation with electric instruments previously featured on his critically acclaimed In a Silent Way album...
(Columbia, 1970) - Live-Evil (Columbia, 1971)
- Circle in the RoundCircle in the RoundCircle in the Round is an album by jazz musician Miles Davis. It collects outtakes from a variety of sessions.Despite its lack of unity, Circle in the Round was an essential release in that, apart from 1950s recordings with Davis's quintet and sextet, it documented key moments in his career, until...
(Columbia, 1979)
With Weather Report
Weather Report
Weather Report was an American jazz-rock band of the 1970s and early 1980s. The band was co-led by the Austrian-born keyboard player Joe Zawinul and the American saxophonist Wayne Shorter...
- Weather Report (Columbia, 1971)
- I Sing the Body ElectricI Sing the Body Electric (album)I Sing the Body Electric is the second album released by Weather Report from 1972. The album includes two new members of the band: percussionist Dom Um Romão and drummer Eric Gravatt. The last three tracks were recorded live in concert in Tokyo, Japan on January 13, 1972...
(Columbia, 1972) - Live in TokyoLive in Tokyo (Weather Report album)Live in Tokyo is Weather Report's first live album released. It was recorded on January 13, 1972. It was one of five sold out concerts played in Japan during January 1972...
(Columbia, 1972) - SweetnighterSweetnighterSweetnighter is Weather Report's third studio album, released on Columbia Records in 1973. The group had recorded the songs in a five day stretch during February of the same year. It was to be the last album to feature founding member Miroslav Vitous as the primary bassist.-Track listing:#"Boogie...
(Columbia, 1973) - Mysterious TravellerMysterious TravellerMysterious Traveller is the fourth release of Weather Report. This album marked the end of bassist Miroslav Vitous's tenure with the band. Vitous was replaced by Alphonso Johnson. Another addition to the line-up is drummer Ishmael Wilburn...
(1974) - Tale Spinnin'Tale Spinnin'Tale Spinnin' is Weather Report's fifth album, featuring the addition of Leon "Ndugu" Chancellor on the drums. Ndugu was recruited after Zawinul heard him play with Carlos Santana and liked what he heard. Weather Report was recording next door to Ndugu in the studio. He was asked to join them...
(1975) - Black MarketBlack Market (album)Black Market is an instrumental jazz fusion album released by Weather Report in 1976. This album was produced by Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter. It was recorded in December 1975 and released in April 1976 through Columbia Records...
(1976) - Heavy WeatherHeavy Weather (album)The album received positive reviews since its publication. American music journalist Richard Ginell gave the album the maximum rating, five stars out of five, and concluded his review for Allmusic by stating that, "[r]eleased just as the jazz-rock movement began to run out of steam, this landmark...
(1977) - Mr. GoneMr. Gone (album)Mr. Gone is Weather Report's eighth studio album, and is perhaps best known for receiving a "one-star" rating by Down Beat magazine.According to Down Beat magazine, "Zawinul, Shorter, et al. have made the controversial music a commercial product; unfortunately .....
(1978) - 8:308:308:30 is an album by the jazz fusion group Weather Report. It was recorded live except for tracks 10-13, which were studio recorded. Among other titles, it features a live version of the group's signature piece "Birdland". The album won a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Fusion Performance.-History:The...
(1979) - Night PassageNight Passage (Weather Report album)-Personnel:*Josef Zawinul – Keyboards*Wayne Shorter – Saxophones*Jaco Pastorius – Bass*Peter Erskine – Drums*Robert Thomas Jr. – Hand drums...
(1980) - Weather Report (1982)
- ProcessionProcession (album)Procession is the tenth studio album from Weather Report. It is the first album to feature the newest lineup of Weather Report. Victor Bailey replaced Jaco Pastorius as the bassist and Omar Hakim replaced Peter Erskine as the drummer. José Rossy was also added to the line up as percussionist...
(1983) - Domino TheoryDomino Theory (album)Domino Theory is the eleventh studio album by Weather Report. It is the second album to feature the Hakim-Bailey-Rossy rhythm section.-Track listing:All tracks composed by Joe Zawinul, except where indicated.#Can It Be Done – 4:02...
(1984) - Sportin' LifeSportin' LifeSportin' Life is the twelfth studio album by Weather Report, released in 1985. Although featuring many more vocal performances than any of their previous albums, words are rare and most vocals are chants from Bobby McFerrin or Carl Anderson...
(1985) - This Is This!This is This!This Is This! is the thirteenth and final studio album by Weather Report. The band thought that they had fulfilled their contract with Columbia Records with the release of the previous album Sportin' Life. This, however, was not the case and the band had to release one more record...
(1986) - Live and UnreleasedLive and Unreleased (album)Live and Unreleased is a compilation of live recordings of Weather Report. The tracks are taken from live performances that took place from November 25, 1975 to June 3, 1983...
(2002) - Forecast: TomorrowForecast: TomorrowForecast: Tomorrow is a 3-CD/1-DVD career-spanning compilation of recordings of Weather Report. The 37 tracks are presented chronologically, beginning with three tracks pre–Weather Report, from ensemble duties with Miles Davis , Cannonball Adderley , and from a Shorter solo album...
(2006)
As contributor
- AmenAmen (Salif Keita album)Amen is the third studio album from Malian artist Salif Keita. It was released in 1991 by Mango and produced by Joe Zawinul.-Track listing:#"Yele n Na"#"Waraya"#"Tono"#"Kuma" - Speak#"Nyanafi" - Nostalgia#"Karifa"#"N B'I Fe" - I love you...
by Salif KeitaSalif KeitaSalif Keïta is an internationally recognized afro-pop singer-songwriter from Mali. He is unique not only because of his reputation as the Golden Voice of Africa, but because he has albinism and is a direct descendant of the founder of the Mali Empire, Sundiata Keita...
(Mango, 1991) - Crazy Saints by Trilok Gurtu (1993)