Marina Zettl

Forget about being reasonable, and switch off your head. Just do it, move out onto thin ice: this is something which musicians seem to walk on more and more often. ‘Thin Ice’ is the new album by the Viennese singer Marina Zettl and guitarist Thomas Mauerhofer. For both, their music roots are in jazz but they are not stuck there. Long live the in-between!

Thin Ice, their second album, is a live album recorded in a studio. No, this is not a contradiction in terms: there is more power to music when played live, full of energy, and this is exactly what this album is all about. “The famous first takes with rough edges,” says Marina Zettl.

Onstage, Marina Zettl is a burst of energy who instantly captures the audience. She played at the Lancaster Music Festival, Jazzfest Vienna, Jazzsommer Graz, Jazzfestival Maribor and is featured in all the promo videos to AKG’s Perception Microphone Series.

The story of Marina Zettl’s is a story of escape. This is not as radical as it sounds; obviously, one does not want to collapse within routines, and needs to escape as soon as boredom takes over. Then, off onto thin ice!

Klaus Wienerroither & Thomas Mauerhofer

The music of saxophone player and composer Wayne Shorter is the ultimate challenge for every aspiring jazz musician. Thomas and I find the rich harmony and the spaced-out beautiful melodies of his compositions most inspiring. For this tribute, we decided to focus mainly on his impressive body of work for the Blue Note label which was recorded throughout the sixties. You normally don’t hear this type of music played on two electric guitars. We’re really proud that we were able to translate Mr. Shorters rather complex vocabulary to our “down to earth”way of playing without losing the musical core of these fabulous tunes. (Klaus Wienerroither)

Two of the same kind celebrate the music of Wayne Shorter by playing it in the unusal setting of a guitar-duo. Compositional pearls from a completely different perspective.