Volker Kriegel

Volker Kriegel
300x200px Volker Kriegel, NDR jazz workshop, 1972
Background information
Born	(1943-12-24)December 24, 1943 Darmstadt Germany
Died
Genres	Jazz rock, Jazz
Occupation(s)	Musician, songwriter, cartoonist, radio broadcaster, Music director, Author
Instruments	Vocals, guitar
Years active	1963 - 2003
Labels	Mood Records
Associated acts	Mild Maniac Orchestra, United Jazz and Rock Ensemble

Volker Kriegel (24 December 1943 – 15 June 2003) was a German jazz guitarist and composer born in Darmstadt, Germany, perhaps most noteworthy for his contributions to the European jazz rock genre and for his collaborations with the American vibraphonist Dave Pike. In 1975 he was a founding member of the United Jazz and Rock Ensemble.

File:19921123 volker kriegel ujre braunschweig.jpg

Volker Kriegel performing with United Jazz and Rock Ensemble, 1992

Biography

A self-taught guitarist, Kriegel began playing when he was fifteen and formed a trio three years later that won an award at a 1963 amateur jazz festival. In 1973 he founded Spectrum, a quartet that included Eberhard Weber, among others. In 1975 Kriegel spent a month teaching for the Goethe Institute, an organization he worked for at various points throughout his career. In 1976 Spectrum broke up, and Kriegel started another band called the Mild Maniac Orchestra which stayed together in to the 1980s.

In 1977 Kriegel became the partial owner of a label called Mood Records. He also performed as a sideman for various musicians, including Klaus Doldinger. In addition to music, Kriegel was also a cartoonist who appeared in several German newspapers, a radio broadcaster, and a director of films and author of books related to music.

Discography

As leader

• With a little help from my friends (1968, Liberty 83065) (u.a. mit Peter Trunk, Günter Lenz, Peter Baumeister, Claudio Szenkar)
• Spectrum (1971, MPS 15301, re-released 2003)
• Inside: Missing Link (1972, MPS 15362) (u. a. mit Albert Mangelsdorff, Alan Skidmore, Heinz Sauer, John Taylor, Eberhard Weber, John Marshall, Peter Baumeister, Cees See)
• Lift! (1973, MPS 15390) (u.a. mit Zbigniew Seifert, Stan Sulzmann, Eberhard Weber, John Taylor, John Marshall)
• Mild Maniac (1974, MPS 15403) (u.a. mit Rainer Brüninghaus, Eberhard Weber, Peter Giger, Joe Nay)
• Topical Harvest (1975, MPS 15471) (u.a. mit Albert Mangelsdorff, Rainer Brüninghaus, Peter Giger, Joe Nay)
• Octember Variations (1976, MPS 15495)
• Elastic Menu (1977, MPS 15517)
• Houseboat (1978, MPS 15535, mit Wolfgang Schlüter)
• Long Distance (1979, MPS 15549)
• Das Beste aus den Siebzigern (MPS 66893)
• Live in Bayern (1980, MPS 15.569)
• Journal (1981, mood 33.605)
• Schöne Aussichten (1983, mood 33.617)
• Palazzo Blue (1989, mood 33.608)
• Das Beste aus den Achtzigern (sampler of the previous 3, mood 6462)
• ZOOM (1999, Remastered, 2-CD-Set, MPS 559 909-2)

With United Jazz + Rock Ensemble

• Live im Schützenhaus (1977, mood 33.609)
• Teamwork (1978, mood 33.618)
• The Break Even Point (1979, mood 33.619)
• Live in Berlin (1981, mood 28.628)
• United Live Opus Sechs (1984, mood 33.621)
• Round Seven (1987, mood 33.606)
• na endlich! (1992, mood 6382)
• die neunte von United (1996, mood 6472)

As sideman

• Emil Mangelsdorff: Swinging Oil Drops (1966)
• Klaus Doldinger: Doldinger Goes On (1967)
• Kühn Brothers & The Mad Rockers (1969, MLP 15340)
• Don "Sugarcane" Harris: Keep on Driving (1970)
• Don "Sugarcane" Harris: Got the Blues (1972)
• Don "Sugarcane" Harris: New Violin Summit (1972)
• Don "Sugarcane" Harris: Keyzop (1975)
• Don "Sugarcane" Harris: Flashin' Time (1976)
• Dave Pike Set: Noisy Silence – Gentle Noise (1969, MPS 15215-ST)
• Dave Pike Set: Four Reasons (1969, MPS 15253)
• Dave PIke Set: Live at the Philharmonie (1969, MPS 15275)
• Dave Pike Set: Album (1971, MPS 15309)
• Dave Pike Set: Infra Red (1972, MPS 20739)
• New Dave Pike Set: Salomao (1973, MPS MB-21541)
• Jonny Teupen: Harpadelic (1969, MPS 15247)
• Klaus Doldinger's Passport: Doldinger Jubilee Concert (1974)
• Curt Cress Clan: CCC (1975)

Sources

• Carr, Ian; Fairweather, Digby; Priestley, Brian. Jazz: The Rough Guide, Penguin, 1995, ISBN 1-85828-137-7

External links

• Volker Kriegel at AllMusic
• Official Volker Kriegel homepage with biography, discography, bibliography and photo gallery