Marcus Schinkel Trio feat. Ernie Watts

In the organizer's words:

What a jack-of-all-trades: pianist and keyboardist Markus Schinkel does not plan to limit himself musically. The title of his current program is Crossover Music and lives up to its name - because the keyboard man's trio, together with the legendary American saxophonist Ernie Watts, transcends genre boundaries and shows that the dividing lines between jazz, pop, rock and classical music don't really make much sense. Music remains music.

The collaboration between Markus Schinkel and Ernie Watts began ten years ago, when the two gave a performance that was to become one of the highlights of the Bonn Jazz Festival.

Pieces by Bach and Beethoven form the basis for the musical explorations that the German and American trio undertake together. Together they move away from the mainstream, taking unexpected stylistic turns. It is fascinating how Schinkel's lyrical playing and Watts' elegantly blazing fire complement each other.

Markus Schinkel has already worked with renowned orchestras and accompanied such diverse artists as Peter Herbolzheimer, Markus Stockhausen, Charlie Mariano and Nessie Tausendschön. He has completely rethought Emerson, Lake & Palmer's version of Pictures at an Exhibition. Since 2017, he has also been a musical ambassador for various institutions, including the German Embassy and the Goethe-Institut.

Saxophonist Ernie Watts is recognizable from the very first note. The Grammy-winning saxophonist's playing has a singing quality and an immense amount of soul. Watts is one of the best documented musicians in post-war history: he can be heard on albums by the Rolling Stones, Frank Zappa, Charlie Haden's Liberation Music Orchestra, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney, Gladys Knight & The Pips, John Mayall and Donna Summer.

Line-up:

Ernie Watts (sax)

Marcus Schinkel (p, synths)

Fritz Roppel (b)

Wim de Vries (drums)