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CD
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BB 068CD
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Bureau B reissues Momenti Felici by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1987 on the Virgin label Venture. Since the early '80s, Roedelius had more or less dispensed with electronics, focusing increasingly on the grand piano. He also collaborated with various combinations of musicians to create a new kind of music, vastly different from Cluster and Harmonia aesthetics. For Roedelius, it was not only a period of reorientation in musical terms, but also geographically: Austria was now his home. "Tu Felix Austria" (trans. "Oh, Happy Austria"), a time-honored Austrian campaign slogan, became his very own motto in no time at all. The pleasure he derived from playing the piano and meeting musicians on the same wavelength did the rest: an enthusiastic Roedelius allowed new impressions and discoveries to flow virtually unfiltered into his music. Momenti Felici is one of the finest examples hereof. With characteristically exuberant inventiveness, Roedelius tickles the ivories lightheartedly, or, entering into a more pensive mood, seems to caress the keys. With saxophonist Alexander Czjzek dueting on some of the pieces, Roedelius shuffles a pack of disciplined compositions and carefree improvisations. In this respect, Momenti Felici most closely resembles Jardin Au Fou. On closer listening, however, the length of time between the two albums can be discerned. Roedelius honed both his compositional and, more than anything, his playing skills in the lengthy period in between. Naturally, Momenti Felici saw Roedelius distance himself further still from the electronic scene. The signs had been there on his preceding albums and this release simply removed any last vestige of doubt. Roedelius had, in any case, long since found a new audience, who continue to follow him avidly today. With the passage of time, many of his companions from earlier days have come to realize that a beautiful melody and a rich piano chord can be just as pleasing to the ear as pure tones and rhythm machines. Includes three CD-only previously-unreleased bonus tracks. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens.
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BB 068LP
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180 gram vinyl version. Bureau B reissues Momenti Felici by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1987 on the Virgin label Venture. Since the early '80s, Roedelius had more or less dispensed with electronics, focusing increasingly on the grand piano. He also collaborated with various combinations of musicians to create a new kind of music, vastly different from Cluster and Harmonia aesthetics. For Roedelius, it was not only a period of reorientation in musical terms, but also geographically: Austria was now his home. "Tu Felix Austria" (trans. "Oh, Happy Austria"), a time-honored Austrian campaign slogan, became his very own motto in no time at all. The pleasure he derived from playing the piano and meeting musicians on the same wavelength did the rest: an enthusiastic Roedelius allowed new impressions and discoveries to flow virtually unfiltered into his music. Momenti Felici is one of the finest examples hereof. With characteristically exuberant inventiveness, Roedelius tickles the ivories lightheartedly, or, entering into a more pensive mood, seems to caress the keys. With saxophonist Alexander Czjzek dueting on some of the pieces, Roedelius shuffles a pack of disciplined compositions and carefree improvisations. In this respect, Momenti Felici most closely resembles Jardin Au Fou. On closer listening, however, the length of time between the two albums can be discerned. Roedelius honed both his compositional and, more than anything, his playing skills in the lengthy period in between. Naturally, Momenti Felici saw Roedelius distance himself further still from the electronic scene. The signs had been there on his preceding albums and this release simply removed any last vestige of doubt. Roedelius had, in any case, long since found a new audience, who continue to follow him avidly today. With the passage of time, many of his companions from earlier days have come to realize that a beautiful melody and a rich piano chord can be just as pleasing to the ear as pure tones and rhythm machines. With liner notes by Asmus Tietchens.
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CD
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BB 062CD
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This is the tenth solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1984 on Editions EG. On Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment, Roedelius broke away unequivocally from purely electronic music. If Lustwandel (BB 055CD/LP) and Jardin Au Fou (BB 023CD/LP) had seen the process set in motion, this was the album that completed the transition. Following the Selbstportraits, which had at least been created through the use of electric organ and synthesizers, Roedelius focused on the grand piano, sometimes accompanied by a cello, violin and guitar. Distant echoes of a not-so-distant musical past could only be detected in the occasional appearance of sparse chords played on a polyphonic synthesizer. Significantly, his arrival in Austria (having moved there a few years earlier) was much more than a geographical relocation. Roedelius responded to the musical culture of romanticism and the Biedermeier tradition, their influences seeping into his essentially modern understanding of composition in bewildering fashion on Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment. It was all too much for his listeners, reared on the more familiar sounds of Cluster and Harmonia. Moreover, the album wore a veil of delicate melancholy: no vibrant folk dances, no colorful carousels, no cheerful melodies. Instead, Roedelius offered a calm, almost detached form of music, openly acknowledging romantic heritage. Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment eluded contemporary definitions of the "experimental" concept, as Roedelius was now experimenting in new, eclectic areas, too weighty, too grainy to be labeled "proto New Age." Roedelius was not striving for perfection, but for authenticity -- a music stripped of disguise; and to this end he left little playing errors in the mix, fading out tracks rigorously to eliminate any bigger blunders. Such artistic honesty bears no relation to reality-free New Age music. Liner notes by Asmus Tietchens.
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BB 062LP
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2023 restock; LP version, on 180 gram vinyl. This is the tenth solo album by German keyboardist Hans-Joachim Roedelius, originally released in 1984 on Editions EG. On Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment, Roedelius broke away unequivocally from purely electronic music. If Lustwandel (BB 055CD/LP) and Jardin Au Fou (BB 023CD/LP) had seen the process set in motion, this was the album that completed the transition. Following the Selbstportraits, which had at least been created through the use of electric organ and synthesizers, Roedelius focused on the grand piano, sometimes accompanied by a cello, violin and guitar. Distant echoes of a not-so-distant musical past could only be detected in the occasional appearance of sparse chords played on a polyphonic synthesizer. Significantly, his arrival in Austria (having moved there a few years earlier) was much more than a geographical relocation. Roedelius responded to the musical culture of romanticism and the Biedermeier tradition, their influences seeping into his essentially modern understanding of composition in bewildering fashion on Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment. It was all too much for his listeners, reared on the more familiar sounds of Cluster and Harmonia. Moreover, the album wore a veil of delicate melancholy: no vibrant folk dances, no colorful carousels, no cheerful melodies. Instead, Roedelius offered a calm, almost detached form of music, openly acknowledging romantic heritage. Geschenk Des Augenblicks - Gift Of The Moment eluded contemporary definitions of the "experimental" concept, as Roedelius was now experimenting in new, eclectic areas, too weighty, too grainy to be labeled "proto New Age." Roedelius was not striving for perfection, but for authenticity -- a music stripped of disguise; and to this end he left little playing errors in the mix, fading out tracks rigorously to eliminate any bigger blunders. Such artistic honesty bears no relation to reality-free New Age music. Printed inner sleeve with notes by Asmus Tietchens.
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BB 028CD
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The Bureau B label reissues the first solo record by composer/poet Hans-Joachim Roedelius, one of the most prolific musicians of the German avant-garde and a key figure in the birth of Krautrock, synthesizer pop and ambient music. Durch Die Wüste was originally released in 1978 on Sky Records, and fans of German electronica awaited the LP with particular anticipation, as the founding member of Cluster/Kluster/Harmonia had played a major role in the development of synthesizer music. They were in for a shock, however, as Durch Die Wüste turned out to be anything but an electronic album; in the avant-garde landscape of popular music, the record was a beacon of innovation. Initial reaction was rather less auspicious, centering around the question: what did this music have to do with Harmonia and Cluster? Anyone who has listened carefully to Cluster's 1974 effort Zuckerzeit will have come to recognize Roedelius' stamp on this and all subsequent Cluster and Harmonia albums. Just how far Roedelius would develop his own compositional technique and mode of playing would only become obvious when he was set free from the ensemble environment. Listeners at the time were baffled by just how little electronically-generated sounds were a feature of the album. Synthesizers and electronic effects did play a part, but Roedelius integrated them so seamlessly into the arrangement, that one barely noticed them. The rhythm machine was relegated to the status of metronome. In fact, Roedelius' decision to distance himself from electronic music, rigid in structure as it had become, and turn to a new form of musical expression, is what really gave the album its experimental character. Recorded over a 2-year period assisted by engineer Dave Hutchins and Conny Plank, who also contributed his unmistakable guitar and percussion style, and Dieter Moebius, who, in spite of everything, set a few significant markers with the synthesizer. There is a space-y, organic, relatable warmth to this record that absolutely transcends time. This reissue is housed in a digipak including a booklet with liner notes by Asmus Tietchens. Vinyl version pressed on 180 gram vinyl.
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BB 028LP
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2020 restock; LP version. The Bureau B label reissues the first solo record by composer/poet Hans-Joachim Roedelius, one of the most prolific musicians of the German avant-garde and a key figure in the birth of Krautrock, synthesizer pop and ambient music. Durch Die Wüste was originally released in 1978 on Sky Records, and fans of German electronica awaited the LP with particular anticipation, as the founding member of Cluster/Kluster/Harmonia had played a major role in the development of synthesizer music. They were in for a shock, however, as Durch Die Wüste turned out to be anything but an electronic album; in the avant-garde landscape of popular music, the record was a beacon of innovation. Initial reaction was rather less auspicious, centering around the question: what did this music have to do with Harmonia and Cluster? Anyone who has listened carefully to Cluster's 1974 effort Zuckerzeit will have come to recognize Roedelius' stamp on this and all subsequent Cluster and Harmonia albums. Just how far Roedelius would develop his own compositional technique and mode of playing would only become obvious when he was set free from the ensemble environment. Listeners at the time were baffled by just how little electronically-generated sounds were a feature of the album. Synthesizers and electronic effects did play a part, but Roedelius integrated them so seamlessly into the arrangement, that one barely noticed them. The rhythm machine was relegated to the status of metronome. In fact, Roedelius' decision to distance himself from electronic music, rigid in structure as it had become, and turn to a new form of musical expression, is what really gave the album its experimental character. Recorded over a 2-year period assisted by engineer Dave Hutchins and Conny Plank, who also contributed his unmistakable guitar and percussion style, and Dieter Moebius, who, in spite of everything, set a few significant markers with the synthesizer. There is a space-y, organic, relatable warmth to this record that absolutely transcends time. This reissue is pressed on 180 gram vinyl and comes in a glossy inner sleeve with notes by Asmus Tietchens.
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