Chronicles of Jazz are imaginative stories in which giants of composition from classical music and jazz come together to play a jazz session.

Vibraphonist Oli Bott’s trio with bassist Arnulf Ballhorn and drummer Kay Lübke pushes the boundaries of different genres by mixing Maurice Ravel’s Boléro with Duke Ellington’s Caravan, Johann Sebastian Bach’s Allemande from the Violin Sonata in D minor with Metallica’s Nothing Else Matters or Erik Satie’s Première Gnossienne with Milt Jackson’s Bags’ Groove.

In a jazz jam, the musicians let the compositions merge into one another and combine them into one piece, demonstrating an abundance of spontaneity and joy in playing. Oli Bott and his trio tell stories that also contain autobiographical elements. He grew up with classical music, learned percussion and listened to rock music as a teenager and later began his training in jazz. At Berklee College of Music, he studied with Gary Burton, the great lyricist among jazz vibraphonists. However, Oli Bott has not become a conventional jazz musician. He consistently plays his own music, which feels its way into completely different musical languages, eras and cultures while Bott, like a sculptor, carves out impressive moods on his metal plates.

You can buy the album here.

Tracklist

1. BOLERO – Joseph-Maurice Ravel 06:49
2. CARAVAN – Duke Ellington 04:54
3. EQUINOX – John Coltrane 03:58
4. IN DER HALLE DES BERGKOENIGS – Edvard Grieg 02:24
5. MR. P.C. – John Coltrane 02:09
6. SONATA IV ALLEMANDE -Johann Sebastian Bach 04:03
7. NOTHING ELSE MATTERS – Metallica 04:41
8. PREMIERE GNOSSIENNE – Erik Satie 02:36
9. BAG’S GROOVE – Milt Jackson 02:03
10. BYE BYE BLACKBIRD – Ray Henderson & PRIMAVERA – Antonino Vivaldi 05:58
11. HABANERA – Georges Bizet 04:54
12. BEI MIR BIST DU SCHOEN – Sholom Secunda 01:11
13. INGE’S LIED – Oli Bott 03:51
14. WIEGENLIED – Johannes Brahms 03:08

Total playtime: 52:41

Line Up:
Oli Bott – Vibraphone
Arnulf Ballhorn – Bass
Kay Lübke – Drums