Bela B.' in the ensemble's name stands for Béla Bartók, whose music is the source of inspiration for the chamber music improvisation trio.
Affair Bela B. in the hall of the Kulturforum
'Bela B.' in the ensemble's name does not stand for the drummer of the Ärzte, but for Béla Bartók, whose music is the source of inspiration for the chamber music improvisation trio, which adapts and improvises some of the composer's themes in the flow of its own music. Also taking part are:
Theo Jörgensmann (alto clarinet), who belongs to the second generation of German and European free jazz and is equally at home in the atonal and tonal worlds. Theo can draw on the rich experience of over 50 years of playing in a wide variety of formations - from unaccompanied solo projects to
duos (e.g. with bass clarinettist Eckard Koltermann), his own quartet with vibraphonist Christopher Dell, to large formations with very different line-ups such as Willem van Manen's 'Contraband' in the Netherlands or Andrea Centazzo's 'Mitteleuropa Orchester' in Italy. He is therefore characterized by a good feeling for
the tonal possibilities of this special trio formation, and in addition
in particular a feeling for expressive melodies.
Ernst Deuker (contrabass clarinet). His connection to Bartók's music already developed in his musical beginnings as a rock bassist in the 1970s, where he adapted a Bulgarian dance from Bartók's 'Mikrokosmos' for the first time (even before the band Ideal, which he soon co-founded). Bartók's rhythms were formative for Deuker's 'rock' side, which is also partly reflected in the ensemble's arrangements.
Martina Weidner (viola), an improviser who is a lateral entrant to the project. She brings her profound knowledge of the classical modernist catalog of works for her instrument (e.g. Bartók's Concerto for Viola and Orchestra, or Shostakovich's Sonata for Viola and Piano, both written shortly before the composers' deaths) to the project, and thus probably also the closest proximity to Bartók's music. With
her experience in double-stopping (which she gained in various string trios, in which the viola usually has to play polyphonic parts), she forms the tonal backbone of the trio, lending it an incredible, almost orchestral depth in places.
