VENICE is the debut album of the jazz quartet DISTANCES, founded in 2014 by the Munich bassist Georg Kolb and the Venetian pianist Marco Ponchiroli. On the saxophone, the brilliant Jan Grinbert, who is from Latvia; Drummer is Nevyan Lenkov, an elector from Bulgaria. After successful concerts in Germany and Italy, among others. At the Bavarian Jazzweekend in Regensburg, a releasetour will take place in the spring of 2017, with concerts and the like. In Latvia, Poland and Italy. For this, cinematic projections are planned, which are in visual dialogue with the spontaneous musical performance of the band. DISTANCES 'stylistic markers are the combination of poetic, atmospheric sensibility on the one hand, but also of energetically intense density. Ponchiroli's timeless beautiful compositions create a unique atmosphere of Italian flair and explosive improvisations. The name DISTANCES is derived not only from the international band occupation, but also describes musical spaces that transcend stylistic boundaries. The compositions, one by Grinbert and Kolb, contrast with regard to tempo, character and intensity - from almost "classical" chamber music minimalism to massive complexity. VENICE is not only a homage to the Venice of Marco Ponchirolis, but is also a multi-layered metaphor for the historical development of splendor and power to decay and decline. A city of mysterious elegance that is still considered one of the most beautiful in the world - not least by a glimpse of glamor - but is threatening to become a living museum due to its dependence on gigantic tourist streams. VENICE is not the subject of the Serenissima of the day, but the nightly - with all its shadows and dazzling myths of secluded places, bars and palaces - the leitmotiv of a jazz concept album with precisely these different associative facets. Georg Kolb has given a subtle "Venetian" touch to the production through delicate brush strokes with additional instrumental colors such as mandolin and cello (as guest of the cellist Eugen Bazijan). Particular attention was also paid to the design of the artwork: thus the emotional polarity of the music continues with the unusual design of the front cover by the Italian sculptor and painter Romano Abate.
