I'm the leader of the professional Thomas Franke Jazz Trio which has been active since 2003. It originally began as a quartet but later shifted to a drumless lineup, focusing on the sensitive and intimate interplay of piano, double bass, and tenor saxophone. Concerts in Germany—including at the Tübingen Jazz & Classical Music Festival—and in Istanbul, Turkey, followed. I studied in classical and jazz music theory (with Werner Acker) and contemporary music (with C.J. Walter) as a visiting student at the Stuttgart University of Music and Performing Arts inspired him to pursue further projects. In 2013, this led to the creation of the performance group “Fluxus ist Luxus,” which has been performed multiple times and offers a completely new interpretation of the Fluxus movement from the 1960s. In addition to working as a consultant and project manager for digital transformation, I have also been active as a composer since the 1990s. The compositions are primarily rooted in jazz and pop, but also include contemporary music (“Fluxus ist Luxus”) and classical music (a 30-minute concerto for cello and symphony orchestra). My current focus is on compositions for pop and jazz, as well as arranging for ensembles such as big bands. I register my work at GEMA. During the COVID-19 years - which were difficult for many artists - I did distance learning with one of New York’s hottest saxophonists, Chad Lefkowitz-Brown. My lastest album:
The professional Thomas Franke Jazz Trio has been active since 2003. It originally began as a quartet but later shifted to a drumless lineup, focusing on the sensitive and intimate interplay of piano, double bass, and tenor saxophone. Concerts in Germany—including at the Tübingen Jazz & Classical Music Festival—and in Istanbul, Turkey, followed.
We are a drumless Jazz Trio and play relaxed, ballad-like, intimate jazz music that occasionally takes unexpected turns.
The story of my selection of the top jazz albums of 2025, is, fittingly a conversation between past and present. New recordings by working bands and veteran leaders proved that the language of swing, blues and modern harmony is still being spoken with conviction, while carefully curated reissues reminded us just how deep the tradition runs. ...
Label: Chill Tone Records
Released: 2025 Track listing: Stan's Mood; Carry Me Ohio; Unfair World; In Our 20s; Democracy; PNEU; Someone to Watch Over Me.
A year is an arbitrary time. The list is chronological by how they came to me. The albums that still stand out are Bone Bells (Pyroclastic Records) by Sylvie Courvoisier and Mary Halvorson and the sheer professional expertise of Jed Levy Faces and Places (Self Produced). Both albums, in their different ways, exude creativity and joy. ...
Noah Preminger has long been an artist who thrives at the intersection of tradition and innovation. On Ballads, the tenor saxophonist delves into the depths of lyricism with a quartet that exudes understated intensity: pianist Julian Shore, bassist Kim Cass, and drummer Allan Mednard. This release communicates in whispers rather than shouts, yet it never loses ...
Acclaimed vocalist Carlo Chapelle has been delighting audiences across the globe with what WINDY CITY TIMES calls his "warm tone" and "high register." CABARET SCENES exclaims that Carlo has "dazzled" and "engaged audiences" with "his subtle falsetto" from Tokyo's ON THE MARKS to Manila's Jazz lounge at the CONRAD, New York's DON'T TELL MAMA'S, and various music venues in Chicago, including DAVENPORT'S, UNCOMMON GROUND, BORELLI'S, UNDERGROUND WONDER BAR, KATERINA'S, and GENTRY.
Carlo's 2009 debut recording, SHADE OF BLUE, earned him international radio play and several hundred thousand streams, capturing critical acclaim. The track "PLEASE DON'T ASK ME" reached #37 on AUSTRALIA'S iTunes Radio Jazz Charts. CHICAGO'S WZRD 88.3 FM host Meagan Panici called the recording "beautiful... nothing like it." Jazz contemporary recording artist KEVYN LETTAU praised him, saying, "This man has the voice of an angel." Another track, "ON A BUS TO ST. CLOUD," became a top trending song on REVERBNATION, gaining over 20,000 streams in one week. The album is available on iTunes, Amazon Music, and all streaming platforms including Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, and Shazam.
Balladry becomes Noah Preminger. And that may come as a surprise to some. Over the past seventeen years and about as many releases, this critically-acclaimed tenor saxophonist has often made his mark going the opposite way--in myriad bold-and-beyond settings where he's thrown haymakers with precision, explored duo dynamism with bassist Kim Cass, pushed the envelope through ...
Il ritorno a casa. Col suo bellissimo suono di tenore, Noah Preminger inanella in meno di trentotto minuti sette sue composizioni ispirate--anzi totalmente concepite--nel segno del titolo, molto semplicemente Ballads. E qui naturalmente si apre la querelle: i tradizionalisti andranno in brodo di giuggiole (evocando magari l'omonimo album di John Coltrane), perché il disco è assolutamente ...
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