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The Vortex Jazzclub 14.Januar 2007
Mark Koch Trio "Red, Blue & Green"
Swiss pianist Mark Koch has been part of the European jazz, fusion and latin scene for nearly thirty years, and this, the debut album by a trio founded in 2004 (completed by bassist Samuel Joss and Koch’s colleague in the jazz-funk band Twice a week, drummer Peter Fischer) touches a refreshingly wide variety of musical bases. Straightahead jazz, hard bop, funk-lite, freely improvised music, the occasional burst of rackety street-beats: all are wovon into an accessible, alternately hard-swinging and coolly contained set of originals in which Koch seems able to range freely between sparkling lyricism and bluesy funk at will, enlivening the mix occasionally with robust, splashy passages of entirely free playing or cascading, percussive romps faintly reminiscent of Don Pullen or D.D. Jackson. As with, say, the new Tom Cawley Trio, Koch’s trio depends, for its robust overall sound, largely on drummer Fischer, who, in the contemporary manner, is just as likely to burst into hip-hop or funk rhythms as he is to swish away at the hi-hat and drop bombs, and so from time to time subtle jazz propulsiveness is sacrificed to emphatic vigour and clatter, but overall this is a pleasingly varied and enjoyable album from a somewhat neglected jazz territory.
Jazz Notes Nr 89 Juli 2006
Mark Koch Trio, „Red, Blue & Green“
Mark Koch est bien connu dans sa belle Suisse depuis plus de 30 ans, comme pianiste proposant fusion et latin music. Il fonde un nouveau trio en 2004, comprenant Samuel Joss: cb, Peter Fischer: dr. À eux trois ils s’élancent dans un monde musical au lyrisme mélodique, cascades de notes s’en échappant à travers les compositions du leader où ils laissent aller leurs inspirations. Ce groupe dénote d’une belle maturité, et sait donner à sa musique une ouverture totale dans un genre tout à fait actualisé. Les rythmes donnent de bien belles couleurs à la fusion proposée. Koch mérite toute notre attention car en plus ses mélodies sont agréables.
Berner Oberländer, February 3, 2006
Music for body and soul
Mark Koch Trio at the Hapimag in Interlaken
Samuel Günter
The first Thursday every month means "jazz at its best" at the Hotel Hapimag Belvédère, Interlaken. This time round the Mark Koch trio made a visit. The Bernese combo of pianist and
composer Mark Koch treated the numerous guests of the Brasserie Belvédère with ambient groove jazz. It was varied, exiting and entertaining music. “The Mark Koch trio plays music for body and soul, music which evokes pictures, has
your imagination roaming and makes your heart dance.“ as you can read on Mark Koch's homepage www.markkoch.ch. A statement the Hapimag audience on February 2 would have agreed to without any hesitation. Koch and his fellow
musicians Peter Fischer (drums) and Samuel Joss (bass) offered exactly this kind of jazz. Koch and Fischer have been playing together for 20 years and made hundreds of concerts within this period. In 2004 Joss joined them.He is one
of the most distinguished Swiss bass players. He played among others with Kenny Wheeler, Percy Sledge and John Otis. Most of the songs were Koch's originals. The pianist succeeds in touching the feelings of the audience and evokes
pictures in their minds with his compositions. Improvisations, a succession of harmonies and melodic arches alternate.The musicians have the benefit of the largest possible freedom in their own playing without neglecting the
overall sound though. In May the first CD by the Mark Koch trio, „Red, Blue and Green“ will appear.
Bieler Tagblatt, Wednesday, November 30, 2005
A dream came true
Per Magnus Larsson
The trio of pianist Mark Koch has been existing since autumn 2004. Thus a dream he had had for years came true. Together with drummer Peter Fischer whom he has been playing with for
20 years in different groups and the equally gifted bass player Samuel Joss, two very qualified musicians are by his side now. Coming spring this will even be topped with their first trio CD by the title «Red, Blue and Green».
The trio presented itself almost exclusively with inventive and occasionally very independent originals by Mark Koch. The basis for this kind of music is called interplay,
established since the late fifties, in which all instruments have an independent rank in ensemble playing as well as in soloing.
Not later than at this point it became very evident that the three full-blooded musicians have really found each other. The trio tackled the mostly lyrical themes in an impressively
wide range of styles. In a very thrusting and extremely present way, Peter Fischer mixed together lovely combinations of hard bop elements and multi-layered fusion rhythms from his extensive repertoire of beats and rhythms. Samuel
Joss also proved his inspirational side and especially knew to please with his substantial and melodious solos. Mark Koch worked up his originals in their thematical parts in a rather simple but non the less striking way, only to
develop them in open musical communication during the interplay with his fellow musicians. As far as that goes the trio managed the artful splits between the largest possible freedom of improvisation which was also leading
them from time to time on a modal level, and an individual overall sound.
Correspondingly the well deserved applause was enthusiastic and inspired the trio to a groovy
encore.
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