Franz Hautzinger

When we talk about Franz Hautzinger, we are talking about a free spirit in the true sense of the word, a musician who has been following his own unmistakable path for years and who, thanks to his unique and unmistakable playing technique, has so far successfully defied any attempts at categorization. In short, this is one of Austria’s most distinguished musical personalities.

As his numerous projects show, the trumpeter and composer, who has received numerous awards, feels at home above all at the interfaces between the individual contemporary music genres. Whether in jazz, improvisation and electronics, new music, avant-garde or world music. Through his playing, Hautzinger tries to build bridges, to override stylistic boundaries in order to create something completely new and extraordinary. Due to these unique abilities, it is therefore not really surprising that he is also one of the most sought-after musicians in his field internationally.

A concert by Hannibal Marvin Peterson at the Nickelsdorf Jazz Gallery opened Franz Hautzinger’s eyes to improvised music. Born in 1963 in Tadten in the Seewinkel region of Burgenland, the musician studied trumpet and composition at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz and at the Vienna Conservatory. Just as the trumpet player was preparing to embark on a musical career, a lip paralysis forced him to take a long break. “As a result, I wasn’t allowed to play a single note for ten years, which I was very sorry about because I loved the trumpet and still do,” said Hautzinger in an interview with mica.

A stroke of fate, which in retrospect, however, led to a positive turnaround. Instead of burying his head in the sand, the musician carried on. He used the time to work intensively with his instrument and develop his own playing technique, which enabled him to get back into music. What’s more, it turned out that the way he was able to play his instrument from then on was simply unique in jazz music. No one was able to elicit such weird tones and sounds from the trumpet as Franz Hautzinger did.
“I was the only one making music like that, which meant I could go anywhere, there were no points of friction anywhere”. An advantage that he still knows how to use to his advantage today. When he moved to Vienna in 1986, he quickly made contact with the local jazz scene. He got to know Christoph Cech and Christian Mühlbacher, among others, and played in the big band “Nouvelle Cuisine” and the octet “Striped Roses”. This was followed by the CD “Zong of se Boboolink”, recorded together with Helge Hinteregger, which gave an idea of Franz Hautzinger’s musical visions for the first time.

A stay of several months in London in 1995 was also instructive for the trumpeter, where he was able to establish contacts with greats such as Kenny Wheeler, Henry Lowther, John Russell and Steve Noble. The knowledge he gained during this time was subsequently put into practice in various projects, such as the “Regenorchester” or the trio “Speakers’ Corner”.

Seinen Platz an der Spitze der internationalen Impro-Szene erklomm Franz Hautzinger, der seit 1989 auch die Stelle des Lehrbeauftragten für Ensembleleitung, Komposition und Arrangement an der Hochschule für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Wien inne hat, mit seiner Aufsehen erregenden Solo-Trompeten-CD „Gomberg“ im Jahre 2000. Die Veröffentlichung schlug allerorts hohe Wellen, erschuf der Trompeter mit einer Musik doch ein bis dato ein noch nie gehörte Klangsprache, in dem herkömmliche musikalische Begrifflichkeiten keine Anwendung mehr gefunden haben.

To this day, connoisseurs of the scene speak of one of the most important and groundbreaking records in European improvisational music of recent years. What followed were countless concerts at home and abroad as well as numerous collaborations and CD recordings with internationally renowned artists such as Elliott Sharp, Gil Evans, Sainkho Namtchylak, John Cale, Christian Fennesz, Otomo Yoshihide, Butch Morris, Phil Niblock, Klaus Öhring, Lou Reed, Derek Bailey, the Temptations. John Tilbury, Tony Oxley and Joachim Kühn.

To this day, nothing has changed in the Burgenlander’s attitude. Whether as a solo artist or as a member of various formations, Hautzinger presents himself as a musician who is always one step ahead of his time. His love of experimentation and his curiosity for new things inspire the trumpeter to unimagined creative peak performances. With his ability to constantly reinvent his trumpet playing, it can be assumed that this extraordinary musician has by no means reached the end of the road.

(Michael Ternai)