Hans Koller
Hans Koller was an Austrian jazz tenor saxophonist and bandleader. Koller attended the University of Vienna from 1936 to 1939. After he served in the armed forces from 1940 to 1946 he returned to Vienna and played with the Hot Club of Vienna; in 1950 he emigrated to Germany and formed a small ensemble there. In the 1950s, he played with Freddie Brocksieper, Albert Mangelsdorff, Jutta Hipp, Dizzy Gillespie, Bill Russo, Lee Konitz, Stan Kenton, Eddie Sauter, Benny Goodman, Attila Zoller, Oscar Pettiford, Kenny Clarke, Wes Montgomery, Martial Solal and Jimmy Pratt. From 1958 to 1965, he directed the jazz workshops of the Norddeutscher Rundfunk in Hamburg, returning to Vienna in 1970. Soon after he formed his own ensemble, Free Sound, and later in the decade he worked with the International Brass Company. In addition to his playing and bandleading, Koller also composed; among his original works are a ballet entitled New York City, completed in 1968. Koller was a recognized abstract painter as well!
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1970 Hans Koller returned after 20 Years abroad and was looking for young musicians for his avant-garde musical ideas. He found this in the keyboardist Albert Mair, the guitarist Costa Lukacs and the drummer Karl Prosenik.
All three were "at home" in mainstream jazz at the time. The first rehearsals with Hans, Albert and Costa took place in late 1970, early 1971. It showed the genius of Hans Koller as a band leader, how he implemented his musical avant-garde ideas with them. He invited the bassist Adelhard Roidinger to realize his ideas. At that time he was active in avant-garde music, among other things. Adelhard says today: “Hans was a grandmaster for me. Years later I discovered a deep kinship, the commitment to Central European musical culture in the form of freedom in rhythmic design (agogic) and the overabundance of musical events ”. The "Hans Koller Free Sound Quintet" was born. The decisive factor was Koller's respect for his fellow musicians, whose talents he enhanced.
