Tracks
1.Conspiracy 2.Elegy 3.December Song 4.Awakening 5.Relentless 6.Trailblazers 7.Renegade 8.Impostor Syndrome 9.Who Knows Intro 10.Who Knows
Interpreters
Tobias Hoffmann – director
Patrick Dunst – alto sax, soprano sax, flute
Andy Schofield – alto sax, flute, clarinet
Robert Unterköfler – tenor sax, soprano sax, clarinet
Martin Harms – tenor sax, clarinet
Jonas Brinckmann – baritone sax, bass clarinet
Trumpets and Flugelhorns: Dominic Pessl, Bernhard Nolf, Felix Meyer, Simon Plötzeneder, Jakob Helling.
Trombones: Kasperi Sarikoski, Daniel Holzleitner
Robert Bachner – trombone, euphonium
Johannes Oppel – bass trombone, tuba
Vilkka Wahl – guitar
Philipp Nykrin – piano, synthesizer
Ivar Roban Krizic – double bass, electric bass
Reinhold Schmölzer – drums, electronics
Record label: Mons Records
Recorded at the end of August 2021 in Studio 2 of the ORF Radiokulturhaus in Vienna, Austria.
Publication date: September 9, 2022
Tobías Hoffmann is a saxophonist, composer and arranger born in Göppingen, Germany. Already at school he discovered his passion for the saxophone and music in general. Higher education then took him to the University of Music, Drama and Media in Hanover; from there he went to the Netherlands where, in 2013, he obtained a Bachelor of Arts (BA). In 2015 he graduated with a Master of Arts (MA) with distinction, at the Musik- und Kunstuniversität Wien.
In 2019 he released “Retrospective” with Tobias Hoffmann Nonet, which received first prize in the Band category at the international online Made in New York Jazz Competition 2019 by a top jury that included judges Lenny White, Randy Brecker and Mike Stern.
Hoffmann was not sure if it was the right time to record a new album with the Pandemic widespread in Europe. As he says: “I really wasn’t sure if it would be the right time to bring a big jazz ensemble into the studio and record an album of challenging big band instrumental music in that time period. But there was a soft voice that told me it was worth doing.”
And so it was, he gathered the orchestra and recorded this “Conspìracy” with the Tobias Hoffmann Jazz Orchestra. An album with 10 songs all composed by Hoffmann, which show his talent as a composer and arranger.
The album opens with the album’s title track, “Conspiracy.” According to Hoffman himself, this has been, to date, one of his most challenging compositions for the listener and for the musicians themselves, and it is inspired by the crazy conspiracy theories that emerged during the pandemic. “I realized how dangerous they can be, not only to the people who believe in them, but to our society in general,” says Hoffman. A very strong beginning from the entire orchestra gives way to Underkofler’s tenor solo, which provides some calm, to give way again to the entire orchestra. This song, “Conspiracy”, received third prize in the “Bill Conti Big Band Contest 2021” organized by the American Society of Music Arrangers and Composers (ASMAC).
The mood changes completely and the winds, without the intervention of the rhythm section, are the protagonist. Grandiloquent theme typical of an intrigue film at its most climactic moment.
In “December Song” it is Schofield who solos on the alto sax. According to Hoffman: ““When writing this composition, I began with the figure of the piano at the beginning of the piece, which immediately reminded me of some of Mendoza’s compositions. So I tried to loosely capture the feeling and flow of his music.” Relaxed piece with a nice swing that invites you to dance.
“Awakening” has a somewhat intriguing and somber beginning. Hoffman wrote this song at a time when he was experiencing a change in his life. Helling does a nice solo on the flugelhorn accompanied by Nykrin’s piano notes. Little by little, a moderate optimism is taking over the topic but the tension is evident.
The next track, “Relentless”, is a twelve-tone composition, a technique created by Austrian composer Arnold Schoenberg. “The composition is a mixture of different sections that contrast with each other. “It was an interesting process learning as a songwriter how long to stick to self-imposed rules and limitations and when to let go of them and follow your inner voice,” says Hoffman. This composition was awarded first prize in the “Original Composition – Large Ensemble” category at the “45th Annual Downbeat Student Music Awards” 2022. It is a powerful composition, with character. This time the soloist is Dunst with the alto.
Hoffmann rarely uses more than one soloist on a song and “Trailblazers” is one of those cases, Brickmann on baritone and Sarikoski on trombone. The sound is sometimes bluesy, which is deliberate. Hoffman dedicates this composition to all the artists of the big band era who have influenced him. It is a very jazzy waltz where the trombones especially shine.
“Renegade” represents a change in style compared to what has been heard so far. Composition inspired by the American jazz composer Darcy James Argue and his ensemble “Secret Society”. Plötzeneder performs a nice trumpet solo. Hoffman says, “I wrote this composition in a period when I was struggling to find my place in life, so I tried to capture the feeling of uncertainty in the composition.”
“Impostor Syndrome” is another interesting and vibrant piece, where there are three soloists Harms on tenor sax, Bachner on euphonium and Nykrin on piano. Impostor syndrome is a psychological phenomenon in which the sufferer has insecurity related to work achievements. You believe you don’t deserve the job you do and it makes you feel like you’re tricking your coworkers into thinking you’re good at what you do and you have the perception of yourself as if you’re a fraud. It goes without saying that none of the musicians in the orchestra have any reason to feel this syndrome.
The album ends with “Who Knows”, divided into two parts: an introduction (more than four minutes) and the main theme. Holzleitner’s trombone introduces the rest of the trombones, resulting in a calm theme. Hoffman says, “I really love the sound of the trombone. Unfortunately, trombones sometimes live a low-key life in a Big Band. So I wanted to give them the space to fully shine as a section.”
The second part, the main theme, is radically different and presents us with a rock sound with Wahl on electric guitar.
The ten tracks on the album are skillfully composed, with rich variations in style and textures that provoke different emotional states in the listener.
La Habitación del Jazz