Jörg Kuhfuß:
Trumpet, Vocals, Bass Saxophone
- 1974-1975 Jörg Kuhfuß learns to play the trumpet
during a one-year visit to Oklahoma in the USA as an exchange student.
- 1976 Participation in various brass and dance ensembles
in Germany.
- 1983 His ever-stronger interest in jazz music leads to the
founding of "Papa Tom's Jazz Ltd."
With this band Jörg discovered his talent as a vocalist, which he
developed in the styles of the 20's and 30's.
- 1989 His professional career began in the summer of this
year with his entry into the band of the English trumpet player "Rod
Mason and his Hot Five." Here he mainly played the sousaphone and bass
saxophone. He also made occasional use of his actual main instrument, the trumpet.
- 1990 Jörg founds the Oklahoma Washboard
Stompers. As the bandleader, he plays trumpet and bass sax and
takes on the role of lead singer and entertainer.
- 1991 Jörg and the "Oklahomas" mark their first successes
in West German jazz clubs after intensive rehearsal work.
- 1989 - 1995 Jörg takes part with Rod Mason in international
festivals such as the Edinburg Festival, Brecon (Wales, GB), Breda (NL), North
Sea Festival (NL).
Here he had the further opportunity to accompany famous jazz interpreters such
as Chris Barber, Acker Bilk, Monty Sunshine, Beryl Bryden, Angela
Brown and Bill Ramsey. Jörg recorded three CD's with "Rod Mason's
Hot Five" together with, among others, the fantastic blues and jazz vocalist
Angela Brown.
- 1995 In May of this year Jörg left Rod Mason's band in
order to devote himself predominantly to the Oklahoma Washboard Stompers and to
do justice to the increased demand for his band.
Besides his role as leader of OWS, Jörg has been a requested sousaphonist
and trumpet player with many well-known jazz bands.
Jörg Kuhfuß and the Oklahoma Washboard Stompers:
Jörg Kuhfuß takes on an independent role in the jazz scene. His style
is original and reminiscent of old recordings of African-American music from the years
1919 to 1925. Jörg grew up with the music of shellac records and still collects
a considerable range of them. Thus nothing was more natural to him than to found
a band which would correspond to his listening preferences. He often makes compromises
so as not to limit the musical freedom of his musicians in improvisation and
arrangement. The originality of his band isn't only limited to the well-known
and often interpreted composers and interpreters of the 20's and 30's; Kuhfuß
has rather generally occupied himself with the historical and folklorical musical
inheritance which is almost always listed under the category of jazz music, but really
in its own time was rather considered to be local folk and entertainment music.
Pieces like "When Erastus Plays His Old Kazoo" (Coslow and Fain, 1927; performed
by J. Dodds) should be included here. When Jörg begins to sing, the eyes
and ears of the public open up. Never before has a German successfully transmitted
the vocal forms of jazz or blues of the 20's - which is a way of life all its own -
into the auditorium. Let yourself be surprised!
Attending a concert of the Oklahoma Washboard Stompers is like a trip in time
whose impression never fades away. This group cultivates just the right style
of hot jazz. The classical lineup consists of trumpet, clarinet, and
trombone carrying the melody backed up by guitar, tuba, and the distinctive
washboard in the rhythm section. They create a fresh, living music, entirely
in the spirit of exemplary great musicians such as Louis Armstrong, King Oliver,
and Jelly Roll Morton. When this band starts to really "cook" on stage, there's
no holding back. Simply good!
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