Ein paar Szenen aus dem bisherigen Film...
Es begann in den ersten Lebensjahren. Von Anfang an große Faszination für Musik und ... SCHLAGZEUG muss es sein, nichts anderes! Mein Vater baut mir mein erstes "Set" aus original Persil-Waschmittelpapptrommeln. Ich war das glücklichste Kind. Mit Fünf dann mein erstes richtiges Set, ein SONOR Rocker 2000 in Pink Pearl (!). Fortan anstatt Kindergarten stundenlange selbstversunkene Entdeckungsreisen am Schlagzeug mittels inspirierenden Klängen aus dem Kopfhörer: Santana, Count Basie, Dutch Swing College Band, Pink Floyd, James Last, Beatles, Woody Herman und was Anfang der Siebziger Jahre so alles im Radio lief.
Einige Jahre später: Der Junge soll es endlich richtig lernen! Erster klassischer Schlagzeugunterricht bei Erich Seiler und Karlheinz Bender vom SWR Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden. Das ganze Sammelsurium: Kleine Trommel, Pauken, Stabspiele und endlich - man sagte mir, es sei wichtig (?!) - Notenlesen lernen.
Kurz darauf: Schlüsselerlebnis! Kaufe mir im Plattenladen John Coltrane's "Lush Life". Nach dem Auflegen der LP: Boing! Kein noch so guter indischer Schlangenbeschwörer hätte es besser gekonnt als Coltrane: Initiation!
...Große Verzauberung, tiefe Verzückung, weite Entrückung...!
Hält bis heute an...
Ungefähr zur gleichen Zeit: Im Radio grooven Earth, Wind and Fire, Average White Band, die Bee Gees und Boney M. :-) Tja, bin eben auch ein Kind der Disco Ära! ;-)
Mit Siebzehn: Klassischer Schlagzeugunterricht bei Gabriel Bouchet und Claude Ricou, Mitglieder des bahnbrechenden französischen Schlagzeugensemble "Les Percussions de Strasbourg. Jetzt gehts erst richtig los, bin Feuer und Flamme! Intensive Beschäftigung mit zeitgenössischer Musik und Schlagzeug-Sololiteratur. Neben Bird, Trane und Miles werden Iannis Xenakis, Edgard Varèse und John Cage meine Helden.
Nach dem erlösenden Abi: Studium an der Musikhochschule Freiburg/Br. bei Prof. Bernhard Wulff, Franz Lang und Peter Wirweitzki. Um als Musiker weiter und weiter wachsen zu können, musste ich noch tiefere Wurzeln schlagen, mich intensiv mit der klassischen Musiktradition und der Spielkultur von Schlaginstrumenten auseinandersetzen. Es war der richtige Weg für mich.
Nach dem Studium: ...New York! Weiter suchen, weiter forschen, weiter lernen. Die geschätzten Drummer John Riley, Vernel Fournier und Al Harewood wurden Mentoren. Gelegenheiten auf Bühnen, in Clubs mit Musikern wie George Coleman, Jim McNeely, Joe Lovano, Ben Monder und Tim Hagans zu musizieren. New York tat mir unglaublich gut, war erhellend, energetisierend und vor allem auch prägend. In der Ferne sieht man vieles klarer.
1996: Die RIAS Bigband ruft, auf nach Berlin! Und: Lehrauftrag an der Jazzabteilung der Hanns Eisler Hochschule für Musik. Neue und interessante Erfahrungen in jahrzehntelangen Strukturen und altgedienten Institutionen.
Momentan: Neue Bandprojekte. LilaQuartett ... mit Ack van Rooyen, Jay Anderson und Jasper Soffers und die Band TRIONELL mit dem Saxophonisten und Klarinettisten John Ruocco und dem niederländischen Bassisten Jos Machtel.
Seit April 2008: Lehrauftrag für Jazzschlagzeug an der Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg.
Habe auf meinem bisherigen Weg viele interessante und tolle Musiker/Komponisten/Arrangeure/Ensembles treffen dürfen, mit denen ich auf Bühnen, in Konzertsälen, Clubs, Studios etc. in vielen Ländern musizieren konnte. U.a. Toshiko Akioshi, Jay Anderson, Benny Bailey, Marjorie Barnes, Richie Beirach, Madeleine Bell, Stephane Belmondo, Peter Bernstein, Helmut Brandt, Randy Brecker, Till Brönner, Bobby Brookmeyer, Ray Brown, Bobby Burgess, Ingolf Burkhart, Frank Chastenier, George Coleman, Todd Coolman, Barbara Dennerlein, Gary Dial, Klaus Doldinger, Silvia Droste, Johannes Enders, Jon Faddis, Örjan Fahlström, Georgie Fame, Peter Fessler, Bob Florence, Buddy DeFranco, Joe Gallardo, George Garzone, Walter Gauchel, Terry Gibbs, Roberto di Gioia, Marc Godfroid, Steve Gray, Tim Hagans, Roger Hanschel, Alan Harris, Ingmar Heller, Paul Heller, Peter Herbolzheimer, Heinz von Hermann, Ralf Hesse, Red Holloway, Gregor Hübner, Peanuts Hucko, Horst Jankowski, Ingrid Jensen, Vic Juris, Greetje Kauffeld, Achim Kaufmann, Stacey Kent, Wolf Kerscheck, Dave King, Ryan Kisor, Bernd Konrad, Dizzy Krisch, Paul Kuhn, Rolf Kühn, Tony Lakatos, Nils Landgren, Dave Liebman, Bart van Lier, Joe Lovano, Tony Lujan, Andy Macintosh, Andi Maile, Junior Mance, Claire Martin, Rob McConnell, Jim McNeely, Adrian Mears, Don Menza, Frank Möbus, Ben Monder, Dirk Mündelein, Mark Murphy, Simon Nabatov, Norbert Nagel, Knut Nell, Sammy Nestico, New York Voices, Judy Niemack, Hubert Nuss, Peter O..Mara, Jimmy Owens, Ken Peplowski, Gregoire Peters, Davide Petrocca, Olaf Polziehn, Gerard Presencer, Claudio Puntin, Dieter Reith, Mike Richmond, Claudio Roditi, Ack van Rooyen, Jesse van Ruller, John Ruocco, Martin Scales, Axel Schlosser, Wolfgang Schlüter, Maria Schneider, Steffen Schorn, Diane Schuur, Vladislav Sendecki, Bobby Shew, Ramesh Shotam, Henning Sieverts, Judy Silvano, Norman Simmons, Jocelyn B. Smith, Jim Snidero, Lew Soloff, Thomas Stabenow, Claus Stötter, Harvie Swartz, Lew Tabackin, John Taylor, Rainer Tempel, Clark, Terry, Turtle Island String Quartet, Bill Watrous, Bobby Watson, Ernie Watts, Doug Weiss, Peter Weniger, Kenny Wheeler, Jiggs Whigham, Martin Wind, Hubert Winter, Jens Winther, Thorsten Wollmann, Bundesjazzorchester, Bobby Burgess Big Band-Explosion, Thilo Wolf Big Band, German Jazz Orchestra, Manhattan School Of Music Jazz Orchestra, Timeless Art Orchestra, HR Bigband Frankfurt, NDR Big Band Hamburg, RIAS Big Band Berlin, SWR Big Band Stuttgart, BBC Big Band London, Brussels Jazzorchestra, Deutsches Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Berliner Staatskapelle, Berliner Sinfonieorchester, Orchester der Komischen Oper Berlin, WDR Rundfunkorchester, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Freiburger Schlagzeugensemble.
ENGLISH VERSION:
Holger Nell was born in Renchen, a small town not far from the Black Forest in south-west Germany, and began playing the drums at the age of 5. Throughout his childhood he continued to explore the instrument without any formal instruction, playing to records and performing in the various bands and orchestras led by his father, a talented amateur musician. In his early teens he received his first formal tuition from Karlheinz Bender and Erich Seiler, both principal percussionists with the SWR Radio Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden. "At that time I was playing in the high school orchestra, in a dixieland band, a rock band, my father's brass band and was timpanist in the church orchestra. I totally enjoyed playing music and didn't think about the difference of musical styles. All I wanted to do was to play percussion instruments with music ensembles", says Holger.
After hearing a concert of the world famous percussion ensemble "Les Percussions de Strasbourg" his interest turned to contemporary classical music. As Strasbourg was near his hometown across the French border, he contacted the ensemble and was eventually given lessons by Gabriel Bouchet and Claude Ricou, two of the founding members of the group. Despite jazz was still his first love, after finishing school, he went to the conservatory in Freiburg to study classical percussion with the renowned professor Bernhard Wulff and teachers like Franz Lang, Peter Wirweizki and Robert van Sice. "Although I always knew deep inside myself that jazz was my thing i felt I had to explore classical music and study the art of playing percussion instruments to give me the necessary foundation to express my ideas as an improvising drummer. For me it was the best thing to do".
At the same time he was making a name for himself on the German jazz scene as a remarkably talented young drummer and was soon playing regular gigs all over Germany. After his graduation summa cum laude in Freiburg he won a scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and moved to New York. There he became close friends with Vernel Fournier, Ahmad Jamal Trio's legendary drummer, studied with the legendary Blue Note Records drummer Al Harewood and found a mentor in the highly acclaimed drummer and teacher John Riley "New York was a key moment for my carrier. I had to see where it all came from and what culture had created it. In addition to having the opportunity of playing with some of the greatest jazz musicians around, I also met a lot of encouraging and supportive people. Jazz has spread all over the world in the last decades and there is more and more serious, new creative stuff coming from outside the US. More and more people appreciate and acknowledge that".
In 1996 he joined the RIAS Bigband Berlin, one of the five German state-subsidized professional big bands, and started teaching Drumset at the Jazz department of the Hanns Eisler Conservatory in Berlin. In the following years he became one of the most sought after jazz drummers, performing all over Europe, but was also involved in studio productions and work with classical orchestras. "My extensive work with big bands actually developed in a natural way. It may be surprising, but there is just a very small group of highly qualified drummers in Europe and the US who can handle the job of playing in a mayor league big band. So if you have the right personality in terms of leading a band from the drum chair, the required skills, the necessary experience, and do a good job, you can get piles of work and a lot of appreciation." Holger has worked with many of the finest European big bands like the Bobby Burgess Bigband Explosion, SWR Bigband Stuttgart, NDR Bigband Hamburg, HR Bigband Frankfurt, German Jazz Orchestra, Brussels Jazzorchestra and composers/arrangers like Sammy Nestico, Jim McNeely, Bob Florence, Bobby Brookmeyer, Rob McConnell, Toshiko Akioshi, Rob Pronk, Jerry van Rooyen, Steffen Schorn and many more, but still defines his ambitions as "multi-layered".
"What are musical styles anyway? The most important aspect for me is the musical range of the drums, no matter in what style they are played. The drums are a perfect, totally complete musical instrument. Having said that, still not everybody can see, hear and appreciate the drums' musical possibilities. Parents still tell their kids not to learn drums but a "real instrument" instead. But the truth is that history is full of master drummers of all styles who have demonstrated the incredible musical potential that drums represent. There is still a lot of undiscovered land to explore, not just the raw, loud, energetic and virtuoso aspects of drums, but also the more subtle, colorful, feminine, delicate qualities of the instrument's soul."
Nowadays Holger is focusing on doing his own thing with his new project LilaQuartett together with the legendary Dutch flugelhorn player Ack van Rooyen, Jay Anderson on bass and Dutch pianist Jasper Soffers and TRIONELL with John Ruocco (tenorsax/clarinet) and Dutch bassplayer Jos Machtel. He also works from time to time as a percussionist with the Radio Sinfonieorchester Berlin and the Orchestra of the "Komische Oper" in Berlin and keeps up an extensive teaching schedule. He currently teaches Jazzdrums at the Hamburg University of Music and Theater.
During his career he has had many great opportunities to work and perform in a variety of countries with musicians such as Toshiko Akioshi, Jay Anderson, Benny Bailey, Marjorie Barnes, Richie Beirach, Madeleine Bell, Stephane Belmondo, Peter Bernstein, Helmut Brandt, Randy Brecker, Till Brönner, Bobby Brookmeyer, Ray Brown, Bobby Burgess, Ingolf Burkhart, Frank Chastenier, George Coleman, Todd Coolman, Barbara Dennerlein, Gary Dial, Klaus Doldinger, Silvia Droste, Johannes Enders, Jon Faddis, Örjan Fahlström, Georgie Fame, Peter Fessler, Bob Florence, Buddy DeFranco, Joe Gallardo, George Garzone, Walter Gauchel, Terry Gibbs, Roberto di Gioia, Marc Godfroid, Steve Gray, Tim Hagans, Roger Hanschel, Alan Harris, Ingmar Heller, Paul Heller, Peter Herbolzheimer, Heinz von Hermann, Ralf Hesse, Red Holloway, Gregor Hübner, Peanuts Hucko, Horst Jankowski, Ingrid Jensen, Vic Juris, Greetje Kauffeld, Achim Kaufmann, Stacey Kent, Wolf Kerscheck, Dave King, Ryan Kisor, Bernd Konrad, Dizzy Krisch, Paul Kuhn, Rolf Kühn, Tony Lakatos, Nils Landgren, Dave Liebman, Bart van Lier, Joe Lovano, Tony Lujan, Andy Macintosh, Andi Maile, Junior Mance, Claire Martin, Rob McConnell, Jim McNeely, Adrian Mears, Don Menza, Frank Möbus, Ben Monder, Dirk Mündelein, Mark Murphy, Simon Nabatov, Norbert Nagel, Knut Nell, Sammy Nestico, New York Voices, Judy Niemack, Hubert Nuss, Peter O'Mara, Jimmy Owens, Ken Peplowski, Gregoire Peters, Davide Petrocca, Olaf Polziehn, Gerard Presencer, Claudio Puntin, Dieter Reith, Mike Richmond, Claudio Roditi, Ack van Rooyen, Jesse van Ruller, John Ruocco, Martin Scales, Axel Schlosser, Wolfgang Schlüter, Maria Schneider, Steffen Schorn, Diane Schuur, Vladislav Sendecki, Bobby Shew, Ramesh Shotam, Henning Sieverts, Judy Silvano, Norman Simmons, Jocelyn B. Smith, Jim Snidero, Lew Soloff, Thomas Stabenow, Claus Stötter, Harvie Swartz, Lew Tabackin, John Taylor, Rainer Tempel, Clark, Terry, Turtle Island String Quartet, Bill Watrous, Bobby Watson, Ernie Watts, Doug Weiss, Peter Weniger, Kenny Wheeler, Jiggs Whigham, Martin Wind, Hubert Winter, Jens Winther, Thorsten Wollmann, Bundesjazzorchester, Bobby Burgess Big Band Explosion, Thilo Wolf Big Band, German Jazz Orchestra, Manhattan School Of Music Jazz Orchestra, Timeless Art Orchestra, HR Bigband Frankfurt, NDR Big Band Hamburg, RIAS Big Band Berlin, SWR Big Band Stuttgart, BBC Big Band London, Brussels Jazzorchestra, Deutsches Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Berliner Staatskapelle, Berliner Sinfonieorchester, Orchester der Komischen Oper Berlin, WDR Rundfunkorchester, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Freiburg Percussion Ensemble.
