MY INSTRUMENTS : grand piano, wurlitzer piano, pianet clavinet duo, hohner electra piano, clavia nord stage 88, yamaha cs1x synthesizer, african flute, vocals, acoustic & electric guitar, percussion, electric bass, mac power book
Influences
stevie wonder, donny hathaway, the blues, john coltrane, charles mingus, sun ra, erik satie, horace silver, bill withers, carole king, gil scott heron, nina simone, steve reich, ramsey lewis, james brown, leonid chizhik, isaac hayes, quincy jones, monk, wes mongomery, yma sumac, omar, sonny clark, bronislav kaper, prince, early lenny kravitz, jaki byard, frederic chopin, grace jones, otis redding, moises vivanco, return to forever, keziah jones, mark hollis, talk talk, jamiroquai, poets of rhythm, michael nyman, abdullah ibrahim, violent femmes
projects :...................................................................................................
RALPH KIEFER SOLO PIANO - performing my compositions, improvisations & standards - a deep & soulful mixture of jazz, funk, blues, afrobeat .................
DAGWAMBADE - hammond organ & drums duo celebrating a hot & spicy rare groove & souljazz session...........................................................................
RHYTHM & VOICE ARKESTRA - duo project with berlin vocalist ANAJ RA based on loops & live jamming with 70s keyboards - always different, soulful & lowdown....................................................................................................
RALPH KIEFER 6TET - my originals arranged for 6tet, mixing hard bop, spiritual jazz & some outta space elements on a high energetic level - inspired by charles mingus, horace silver, mahavishnu orchestra, sun ra.....................
RALPH KIEFER SOULJAZZ TRIO - pumpin..souljazz for the dancefloor with some latin flavor in the tradition of ramsey lewis & les mc cann.....................
TRIGGER OSC - ambient jazz grooves featuring laptop, trumpet, wurlitzer piano & double bass...................................................................................
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bio :..........................................................................................................
my first hit "BLACK FOREST STOMP" i dedicated to the place where i was born in the sunny southwest of germany. i began playing with a 2 manual organ at the age of 8, learning by ear. each christmas the instrument grew a bit larger and i began composing & arranging. at the age of 16 my grandma gave me her old piano. i played blues, soul & acid jazz with local bands until i moved to munich where i studied jazz piano with leonid chizhik.
after some excursions through the jazz scene (HIPNOSIS and others) i came back to my roots of soul & funk, recording & touring with multi-talent MARC FRANK (LES GAMMAS) and vocalist DITA. the album MOKADI "human natures" was celebrated as "best german new-jazz-album in 2004" (WOM-Journal). in 2003 while touring with rare groove legend POETS OF RHYTHM & FELA KUTI..s 80..s drummer JOJO KUO i absorbed some more afro rhythm & -spirit that already had a large influence on my music. LOVE, PEACE AND SUNSHINE TO ALL OF YOU ! ()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
releases :..................................................................................................
CD FREAK OFF “freak off“ 1997
CD VENUS MALONE “eye on the prize” 2000
CD/LP HIPNOSIS “jazz” 2002
EP HIPNOSIS “black forest stomp” remix 2002
CD “BREAK..N BOSSA” 2003
CD “NOVA SOUL 2” 2003
CD “BRAZILUTION” 2004
CD/LP MOKADI “human natures” 2004
EP MOKADI “chica da ici” 2004
EP MOKADI feat. DUDLEY PERKINS “human natures” remix 2004
EP PANOPTIKUM “blackland of the nile” 2005
CD RALPH KIEFER "solo piano"
2007
Ever wondered what to do in the event of a nuclear threat?
A while ago I found stuff that inspired me to make this film:
Living Under the Shadow of the Nuclear Umbrella
Both artistic (ensure you get the background music!) and educational, it primarily comprises official British government civil defence advice.
Though source materials are quite aged, much remains relevant today.
I encourage all to visit the YouTube page to learn more (Show support! Rate! Comment!) and responsibly circulate as widely as possible, here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaIim3Rj7L4
Danke Ralph, schön daß es Dir gefällt! Nächste Woche haben wir CD Release Konzert im Gloria in Regensburg, so weit ist das ja nicht.... also wenn Du Lust hast, würd mich freuen!
Hey my friend - Spirit is larger than the distance that seperate any of us! So good to be in tune with yours - have a great time with your family - and many blessings!
Hi my friend - life been taking me on a bend! - I feel a deep connection with you too - and would love it if you come to Australia. I have been working at festivals - all happening here now because of the summer weather - they are amazing here in Australia! You really have to make it over some time. Hey - check out starnow. com - lots of musician and teaching jobs here - lots of stuff going on - got some vid of my last gig - will post on space soon - keep well my amazing friend - its an honour to be one of your friends - lots of sunshine your way - respect and lots of love from Ashton.
Also, Ideen hab ich auf jeden Fall bei Sun, Earthtones (wobei ich das ja schon kannte und daher nicht weiß, ob das auch zur Auswahl steht) und Black Forest Stomp. Uiuiui. Das wird mir ein großes Vergnügen sein...
Hi ralph. Great tunes and thanks for the add...hope all is well in germany! Here's some more Big Organ Trio stuff below if you're interested:
You can visit the B.O.T. MySpace profile to hear free music samples. CD tracks can be downloaded through the links below, and the full hardcopy CD is available via mail from CD Baby. Thanks for your time!
Email List: Join the Big Organ Trio EMAIL LIST to receive the latest updates on the band, including shows in your area, and the release date of B.O.T.'s new album.
