Against All Odds: The Köln Concert

In January 1975, Keith Jarrett arrived at the Cologne opera house for a pivotal concert, expecting to perform on a grand Bösendorfer Imperial piano but instead faced a subpar 6ft baby grand with significant defects. Despite his initial frustration and desire to cancel, 18-year-old concert promoter Vera Brandes successfully convinced him to perform, famously stating, “if you don’t play this concert, I’ll be fucked.” The resulting one-hour improvised set became the best-selling solo jazz album of all time, “The Köln Concert,” selling over 4 million copies. Although the concert inspired numerous talks on overcoming obstacles and two films—”Köln 75″ and “Lost in Köln”—Jarrett has since dismissed the performance as repetitive and expressed a desire to destroy recordings of it, likening it to a lesser work. Brandes, who has shaped the German jazz scene for decades as a promoter and music therapist, successfully gathered a vibrant audience of 1,432 attendees, showcasing the demand for live jazz in the city. The concert exemplifies creative resilience, highlighting both Jarrett’s artistry and Brandes’ significant impact on the music landscape.

Source: THE GUARDIAN