| Munich 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Live album by | ||||
| Released | November 1, 2019 [1] | |||
| Recorded | July 16, 2016 | |||
| Venue | Gasteig Philharmonie Munich, Germany | |||
| Length | 1:33:33 | |||
| Label | ECM ECM 2667/68 | |||
| Producer | Keith Jarrett | |||
| Keith Jarrett chronology | ||||
| ||||
Munich 2016 is a live solo double-album by American pianist and composer Keith Jarrett recorded at the Philharmonic Hall in Munich on July 16, 2016 and released on ECM in November 2019. [1]
According to www.keithjarrett.org, in 2016 Jarrett played a total of 8 solo piano concerts. [2] Munich 2016 was recorded at the last of those concerts, on the last night of his European tour, which retroactively became Jarrett's final.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Pitchfork | 7.9/10 [3] |
| All About Jazz #1 |   [4] |
| All About Jazz #2 |  [5] |
| Jazz Journal | [6] |
| DownBeat | [7] |
In a review for Pitchfork , Madison Bloom wrote: "Munich 2016 provides a snapshot of the piano legend in his seventies: energetic, spontaneous, and inventive as ever... He is so exhilarated by the music that he cannot stop himself from stomping, shouting, and humming off-key throughout the 12-part improvisational suite... Jarrett's talent and ingenuity are self-evident—and so is his passion for the music that shaped him." [3]
Writing for UDiscover Music, Charles Waring called Munich 2016 "magnificent", and commented: "No single Keith Jarrett live album is the same, but they’re all special. As Munich 2016 so clearly shows, every one of the pianist's solo concerts is a unique, never-to-be-repeated performance. The audience never knows what it's going to hear. There is, however, always one certainty: they'll get to witness a master musician at the peak of his powers. And that’s what Munich 2016 guarantees. As immersive concert experiences go, it's right up there with The Köln Concert." [8]
Mike Jurkovic, in a review for All About Jazz , stated: "Keith Jarrett continues to astonish with the music he conjures from thin air... Jarrett now spontaneously composes suites, shorter pieces brought to life by his keen, tireless muse and the environment in which he is playing..." [4] In a separate article for All About Jazz, Karl Ackermann wrote: "His improvisational skills in top form, he displays his genius across twelve extemporaneous compositions and three encores... The improviser's diversity and unrelenting inventiveness continue to be stunning. It is possible to listen to Jarrett's dozen live solo collections—including box set and multi-disc releases—and never feel that you're covering the customary territory. Barring the standards-focused encores, nostalgia is no match for the emotional power of Jarrett's spontaneous creations." [5]
In an article for Between Sound and Space, Tyran Grillo wrote:
Throughout this two-disc recording... Jarrett unveils 12 numbered sculptures of possibility, each more freestanding than the last. Not that the path between them is linear. What begins in Part I—the set’s longest, just shy of 14 minutes—as a many-tentacled deep sea creature has by Part III already morphed into a landbound shepherd. The latter's hymnal qualities light a gospel fire in the underground railroad lantern of Part IV before dissolving into the child's dream that is Part V... Part VI marks another change of face, uniting questions of mountains above with answers of valleys below. The contortions of Parts VII, IX, and XII are ages between, giving way to meditations in which un-pressed keys speak as truthfully as their contacted neighbors. Few are so profound in this regard as Part XI, of which a certain air of finality is only as permanent as the wind on which it's written. It whispers as an antidote to the shouting match that has become our lives... In light of all this, we get a trinity of shades in Jarrett's choice of encores. In 'Answer Me, My Love,' he embraces the past as if it were a dying future. In 'It's A Lonesome Old Town,' he embraces the present as if it were the only hope of peace. And in 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow,' he lets go of all three states of mind, knowing that honesty of expression is the only wave we can catch to keep him visible as he follows one horizon in search of the next. [9]
Writing for London Jazz News, Patrick Hadfield commented: "Every time I see there's a new release of solo piano by Keith Jarrett, I find myself asking the same question: do I really need another Keith Jarrett record? But after hearing the album, the answer is invariably the same: a resounding YES!" [10]
All compositions by Keith Jarrett except where noted.
Disc #1
Disc #2
Keith Jarrett is an American pianist and composer. Jarrett started his career with Art Blakey and later moved on to play with Charles Lloyd and Miles Davis. Since the early 1970s, he has also been a group leader and solo performer in jazz, jazz fusion, and classical music. His improvisations draw from the traditions of jazz and other genres, including Western classical music, gospel, blues, and ethnic folk music.
Eyes of The Heart is a live album by American pianist Keith Jarrett recorded at the Theater am Kornmarkt in Bregenz, Austria in May 1976 and released on ECM in 1979—the last release by Jarrett's "American Quartet", featuring saxophonist Dewey Redman and rhythm section Charlie Haden and Paul Motian.
Solo Concerts: Bremen/Lausanne is a live solo triple album by jazz pianist Keith Jarrett recorded at the Salle de Spectacles d'Epalinges in Lausanne, Switzerland and the Kleiner Sendesall in Bremen, Germany on March 20 and July 12, 1973, respectively and released on ECM November that same year—Jarrett's debut solo live album for the label.
Sun Bear Concerts is a live box set by American jazz pianist Keith Jarrett compiling five solo piano concerts performed over two weeks during his November 1976 tour in Japan and released on ECM in January 1978.
The Carnegie Hall Concert is a solo live double-album by the American pianist Keith Jarrett recorded at the Isaac Stern Auditorium of Carnegie Hall on September 26, 2005 and released on ECM September the following year.
Paris / London: Testament is a live solo piano album by American pianist Keith Jarrett, recorded at the Salle Pleyel in Paris 26 November 2008 and the Royal Festival Hall in London the next week on December first, and released as a three CD set on ECM in October the following year.
The Out-of-Towners is a live album by American jazz pianist Keith Jarrett recorded at the Bavarian State Opera in Munich on July 28, 2001 and released by ECM on August 30, 2004. Jarrett's trio—the Standards trio—features rhythm section Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette.
Still Live is a live double album by the Keith Jarrett Trio recorded on July 13, 1986, at the Philharmonic Hall in Munich, Germany, and released on ECM in March 1988. Jarrett's Standards trio features rhythm section Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette.
Inside Out is a live album by American jazz pianist Keith Jarrett, recorded at the Royal Festival Hall in London on July 26 & 28, 2000 and released on ECM October the following year. The trio—Jarrett's "Standards Trio"—features rhythm section Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette. Along with Changes (1983) and Changeless (1987), this was the trio's third album to feature mainly original improvised material.
Concerts is a live solo triple album of by American jazz pianist Keith Jarrett recorded at the Festspielhaus in Bregenz, Austria on May 28, 1981, and the Herkulessaal in Munich, West Germany on June 2, 1981, and released on ECM in September of the following year.
Hymns/Spheres is a solo double album by jazz pianist Keith Jarrett recorded on the Karl Joseph Riepp "Trinity" Baroque pipe organ at the Benedictine Abbey in Ottobeuren in September 1976 and released on ECM later that year.
Invocations/The Moth and the Flame is a solo double album by American jazz pianist Keith Jarrett recorded in October 1980 and November 1979 respectively and released on ECM in May 1981.
The Celestial Hawk: For Orchestra, Percussion and Piano is an album of contemporary classical music by Keith Jarrett recorded at Carnegie Hall with the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Christopher Keene, on March 22, 1980 and released on ECM November that same year.
Sleeper is a double album by Keith Jarrett's "European Quartet" recorded on April 16, 1979 in Tokyo, and released on ECM 33 years later in 2012.
Somewhere is a live album by Keith Jarrett's "Standards Trio," recorded in Switzerland on July 11, 2009 and released on ECM in May 2013.
Last Dance is an album by American pianist and composer Keith Jarrett and American jazz double bass player Charlie Haden—long-term collaborators—recorded at Jarrett's home studio in March 2007 and released on ECM in June 2014 containing outtakes and two alternate takes from Jasmine, released four years previously.
No End is solo album by American pianist and composer Keith Jarrett, credited to "Solo/Band," recorded in 1986 at his home studio in New Jersey and released on ECM in November 2013.
La Fenice is a live solo album by Keith Jarrett recorded at the Teatro La Fenice in Italy on July 19, 2006 and released on ECM 12 years later, in October 2018. According to ECM, its release was "timely" as the 62nd International Festival of Contemporary Music of the 'Biennale di Venezia' honoured Keith Jarrett with its Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement.
Budapest Concert is a live solo double-album by American pianist and composer Keith Jarrett recorded at the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall, Budapest on July 3, 2016 and released on ECM in October 2020.
Bordeaux Concert is a solo piano album by Keith Jarrett containing music recorded live on July 6, 2016, at L’Auditorium de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, during a European tour. It was released by ECM Records on CD in September 2022.