Benjamin Schaefer Trio
Benjamin Schaefer, piano
Robert Landfermann, double bass
Marcus Rieck, drums
"Beneath the Surface" is the title of Benjamin Schaefer’s new trio album, released in autumn 2010 on the renowned Enja label. In delicate original compositions, the three jazz musicians explore their mutual musical universe in vigilant interplay, always searching for deeper levels and new truths. The result is an eclectic and highly agile form of music that subtly touches its listeners and, as one might expect, penetrates beneath the surface.
The “Benjamin Schaefer Trio” won both audience award and award for best composition at the “Concours du Jazz Européen” 2007 in Avignon, France. In the same year, the trio also received the “Jazz prize of Lower Saxony”. Since its founding in 2003, the trio has played numerous club and festival concerts, including double bills with Roy Hargrove and Abdullah Ibrahim, and was recorded several times by German radio stations.
“Beneath the Surface” has received rave reviews both nationally and abroad, as did its predecessors – “Shapes & Colours” (2004, Double Moon/ Jazzthing Next Generation) and “Roots and Wings” (2008).
“Bill Evans set the standards for a highly developed form of music in this genre, matching all the requirements of modern jazz, and his legacy is continued today by trios working on the highest level, such as Brad Mehldau or Anat Fort or, in Germany, Benjamin Schaefer, to cite but a few.” - Jazzpodium, 04/2011
„Striking music on an excellent album…” – The Irish Times, 03/2011
„Worth listening to at all costs!“ – Westfälischer Anzeiger, 12/2010
„5 out of 6“ – MM Jazz (Korean Jazz Magazine) 11/2010
“Highly recommended!” – Concerto Magazine 4-2010