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          |  SUSAN WEINERT BAND  
            Germany 
 
  11 / 23 / 2001 |  
          | Susan 
            WEINERT
 guitar
 Martin 
            WEINERT
 bass guitar
 Hardy 
            FISCHÖTTER
 drums
 CD 
            releases: 
               Mysterious Stories
 1992
   Crunch Time 1994
   The Bottom Line 1996
   Point Of View 1999
 
 Susan 
            & Martin Sinergy
 Release/d:  
            t.b.a.
 | "Susan Weinert has carved out her own 
            niche in the cluttered world of guitarists. International 
            recognition is at her doorstep."  (Mike Mainieri) Formed in 
            1985 and starting in Germany, the Susan Weinert Band soon moved on 
            to Scandinavia, France, Belgium, Holland, Poland ... and the list 
            keeps growing, with a brief foray into the United States. And as 
            they continued to perform in clubs and theatres, close to two 
            hundred times a year, the trio consisting of Susan Weinert (guitar), 
            Martin Weinert (bass) and Hardy Fischötter (drums) grew to a single 
            entity, with a single musical brain.  
            The 
            style and technique of the three individuals is now characterized by 
            the complete understanding each has for the other two, and by the 
            common musical language they have developed. Susan's compositions 
            are characterized by creative versatility, freshness, a sense of 
            humour, and a style drawing on jazz, rock, and funk. The first CD 
            release from the Susan Weinert Band was Mysterious Stories, recorded 
            after several years of constant touring, something which enabled the 
            band to dispense with overdubs and complicated studio fixes. It was 
            followed by Crunch Time, with "energy-laden power fusion that has 
            reached the international level as they set a new standard for the 
            otherwise moribund genre of fusion" [Frankfurter 
            Zeitung].
 In the mid-nineties, 
            Susan toured not only with her trio but also with other groups, 
            including the band of Chick Corea's bass player Jimmy Earl and Steps 
            Ahead. In addition, Susan and Martin Weinert are sought-after 
            teachers for clinics and work shops. The band's third release, The 
            Bottom Line, includes a very special addition to the trio. 
            Pianist/keyboardist Rachel Z (Weather Report, Gato Barbieri, Steps 
            Ahead) added a new dimension to the group, contributing much more 
            than a "special guest" appearance  in fact she co-produced the 
            CD with her friend Susan. AUDIO, Europe's leading magazine for Hi-fi 
            and Music, praised the clever arrangements on The Bottom Line. Jazz 
            thing wrote, that the band gets better and better with every album. 
            There is far more emphasis on both melody and atmosphere, and both 
            cause and effect for this is the fact that for the first time Susan 
            plays acoustic guitar. Also a first is the appearance of acoustic 
            bass in the hands of the dedicated electric bassist, Martin 
            Weinert.
 Both fans and critics 
            may welcome now Point Of View, the band's brand new release. Susan 
            has invited three exciting young musicians to the recordings: 
            Jean-Yves Jung on piano, the highly acclaimed vocalist Michael 
            Schiefel from Berlin and Pierre Bertrand on tenor sax. Along with 
            drummer Hardy Fischötter aka Terminator H and Martin Weinert, again 
            displaying his virtuosity on the double bass, they bring to life 
            Susan's new arrangement and her new sound. While her music is 
            designed to give everyone an opportunity for improvisation, all the 
            band members are adamant about not using this as a platform for mere 
            exhibitionism.
 And one thing comes 
            through clearly from the brilliant solos, the sensitive melodies, 
            the complex rhythmic jokes, and the solid grooves: this band takes 
            great pleasure in playing, and never make it feel like hard work. No 
            doubt, Point of View gives evidence once again: as a composer, as a 
            performer and as an arranger, Susan Weinert is world 
            class.
 |  
          | Susan 
            WEINERT
 guitar
 
 | Born  June 24, 1965
 Place of 
            birth Neunkirchen/Saar, Germany
 Worst 
            concert  In 1984, after her consumption of half a bottle of 
            beer, the guitar produced bizarre, distant wails which didn't have 
            much to do with the actual structure of the piece but provided for 
            great amusement among the audience and the band. Since then strict 
            abstinence.
 First concert (seen)  1983 
            Pat Metheny
 First concert (played)  
            1982, Schullandheim Berschweiler, as bassist in the school 
            band
 First record owned  1971, a 
            Christmas album by "Heintje"
 |  
          | Martin 
            WEINERT
 bass guitar
 
 | Born  August 31, 1961
 Place of 
            birth  Neunkirchen/Saar, Germany
 Worst 
            concert  In 1984 in Tholey/Saarland: In the bar Stammbaum, 
            the concert was stopped after someone threw an egg at the 
            double-bass
 First concert (seen)  
            Weather Report, in 1978
 First concert 
            (played)  Evangelisches Gemeidezentrum Heinitz, in 
            1976
 First record owned  Deep 
            Purple, Made in Japan
 |  
          | Hardy 
            FISCHÖTTER
 drums
 
 | Born  April 12, 1961
 Place of 
            birth  Leonberg
 Worst 
            concert  In Lübben/Spreewald. The only reaction from the 
            audience, which had until that point totally ignored the concert, 
            was to ask the organizers to end the concert immediately. When the 
            organizers didn't give into their demands, the audience pulled the 
            plug on the guitar during a solo.
 First concert 
            (seen)  1974, YES
 First concert 
            (played)  Around 1967, piano recital; Around 1969, 
            drummer-hippie party
 First record 
            owned  Single: "Down on the Corner" by Creedence Clearwater 
            Revival ; LP: "Tommy" by The Who
 |  
          | all 
            data & photos from
 
 | www.susanweinert.com
 
 |  
          | Susan and Martin 
            Weinert have been performing together for more than 15 years as The 
            Susan Weinert Band, a trio featuring Susan Weinert on guitars, 
            Martin Weinert on bass and (the congenial) Hardy Fischötter on 
            drums. Over the years Susan has also been invited to perform as a 
            soloist with several musicians on the US jazz scene. She's appeared 
            with Mike Mainieri's legendary band Steps Ahead, Jimmy Earl (bassist 
            with Chick Corea) and Michael Ruff (keyboardist with Chaka Khan). 
            However, until now it's The Susan Weinert Band that's been Susan's 
            and Martin's primary focus, establishing itself on the international 
            Jazz scene and becoming a regular on the European Club and festival 
            circuit. The four worldwide CD releases "Mysterious Stories" (1992), 
            "Crunch Time" (1994), "The Bottom Line" (1996) and "Point Of View" 
            (1999) all released by intuition / schott music) are the fruit of 
            this cooperation. 
  | On the last Band album "Point Of View", 
            a clear turn to acoustic music was already noticeable. Susan and 
            Martin Weinert now continue this development on their new duo CD 
            "synergy", with Susan on classical guitar and Martin on double bass. 
            Susan Weinert: "When we went to the studio I brought an entire 
            armada of guitars and all kinds of electronic gadgets. We began the 
            recording with the classical guitar and the double bass and felt so 
            comfortable with the sound that we decided to record the entire CD 
            this way. If someone would have told me before I probably would have 
            called him crazy." This new direction proved to be a stroke of luck; 
            the transparent sound lets the compositions shine in a whole new 
            light. While the band's CDs are characterized by a very dense and 
            groove oriented sound, on "synergy" Susan and Martin's acoustic 
            concepts give the tracks a fascinating lightness and beauty. Every 
            note expresses the common ground these two musicians, developed in 
            over 1500 concerts. Martin Weinert: "Susan and I have already played 
            so much different music together and still or maybe because of that 
            it is still a fascinating feeling to stand together on stage and to 
            improvise. Improvisations means for us to detach ourselves from old 
            and well-established things, really to let go and to create room or 
            new things." The roots of Susan and Martin Weinert's 
            music lie in traditional jazz, with influences such as Charlie 
            Parker, Miles Davis, Wes Montgomery and Sonny Rollins. However, the 
            Weinerts did not get stuck imitating old jazz pieces. The influence 
            of David Lieberman and Richie Beirach (who taught Susan the crafts 
            in the eighties) can be heard, as well as those of John Abercrombie 
            (with his sound cascades), virtuoso Allan Horldworth and Scott 
            Henderson (with his merciless power). The work of these musicians 
            make up what Susan considers her most important influences. In 1990, 
            Susan began composing her own songs, developing a distinctive 
            originality, in many ways similar to what she achieved as an 
            instrumentalist. Susan prefers the polished and sometimes abstract 
            harmonies that have always inspired her to new high altitude flights 
            on the fingerboard. Putting her formidable technique to use, she is 
            able to give her playing a quality of cheerful lightness. Susan 
            Weinert: " I don't consider practicing with my instrument as a bad 
            thing. I always put the realization of my compositional ideas in the 
            foreground. I never liked it if I did not have the right vocabulary 
            over a harmony to phrase a conclusive musical expression in the form 
            of a melody line. It always drove me to practice longer, to be more 
            persistent, and to explore new possibilities of technical transfer 
            (in other words, to learn the craft)." Over the foundation of 
            Martin's base lines (sometimes powerfully swinging, sometimes 
            elegant), Susan constructs her melody lines in an almost 
            minimalistic style. With several thousand hours of playing together 
            behind them, the two speak their own language. Susan Weinert: 
            "Martin is very important to my musical development. He understands 
            my ideas. He feels what I want and what is beneficial for each 
            individual composition. His playing inspires me and drive me on. 
            Over all these years, I've never felt of boredom or constricted by 
            habit. On the contrary, our cooperation gets more and more 
            prolific."
 |  
          |   .
 
  | In co-operation 
            with Goethe Institut
 and
 Stability Pact for Southeastern 
            Europe
 |  
          |  |  |