About Me
Vocalist & lyricist Susanne Menzel, here together with pianist Klaus Ignatzek, is making her first steps out in the jazz world, as the fabulous CD „INTANDEM“
was her debut recording, closely followed by the second excellent album “SEASONS†in 2007. Susanne Menzel wrote all the lyrics and with her great sense for words she is making something special out of Klaus Ignatzek’s original
compositions. While listening to the music you will surely understand why 1 + 1 can be much more than just 2.
Susanne Menzel’s voice is clearly her own. An improvising singer who values lyrics, Susanne is known for her tasteful, understated phrasing, clear diction and great intonation. She delivers a song with sophistication and heartfelt emotion and is surrounded with only the best and most accomplished musicians, with the knowledge that a great band is the backbone of any vocalist.
On their tours the two leaders are accompanied by a great band as well. Johannes Enders (saxophones), Peter Cudek (bass) and Sebastian Merk (drums) are well-known and do a marvellous job in the band.Susanne Menzel, born in the hanseatic City of Bremen, Germany, where she was a member of several choirs and groups, discovered her love for jazz and jazzrelated music at the age of 19. She began a jazzstudiesprogramm
in Dresden, the most beautiful city and so called „capitol of culture“ in former east-germany. She also studied at the school of music at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, being part in the Big-Band jazz-programm.
She works as a jazzsinger and vocaljazz-educator for the University of
Oldenburg, Germany. Susanne Menzel is known for her tasteful, understated
phrasing, clear diction and great intonation. She has had some inspiring and
educating moments with famous internationally known jazzmusicians, such as
Claudio Roditi, Klaus Ignatzek, Dick de Graaf, Maria Schneider, Jean-Louis
Rassinfosse, Gustavo Bergalli and others. Susanne Menzel writes her own lyrics
for contemporary jazzcompositions by famous german pianist and composer
Klaus Ignatzek, with whom she has recorded 2 albums.No matter whether he plays solo or in quintet, Klaus Ignatzek always succeeds in arousing his audience’s enthusiasm, thanks to his richly nuanced performance on the piano in connection with the original compositions. He is firmly established as one of the top pianists on the European jazz scene. Constantly forming and re-forming, he has been heading up international line-ups for years. Among others he performed and recorded with Joe Henderson, Dave Liebman, Billy Hart, Bobby Watson and Kenny Washington. Klaus Ignatzek has also gained a considerable reputation for his exciting compositions. Over 200 recorded compositions bear testimony to his talent. So far, he has accomplished more than 50 records as a band leader. No matter whether he plays solo or in quintet, Ignatzek always succeeds in arousing his audience's enthusiasm, thanks to his richly nuanced performance on the piano in connection with the original compositions. His comprehensive jazz teaching experience is documented in three textbooks.
