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7Dreams: The Story of a Country, a Friendship and a Sound

7Dreams: The Story of a Country, a Friendship and a Sound
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I think without a tradition and documentation of our jazz history we will never be able to have an identity. What am I? - just a good player and an imitator of this style or musician? I think those times have gone away, we don't need to imitate anybody
—Nicolas Simion
One of the things that is great about the digital age is how easy it is to get access to music from different parts of the world. Pluralism is the keyword. Jazz is not just one thing and each country has its specific take on the jazz tradition. However, sometimes jazz musicians of a particular country forget their own heritage because they are too busy following the latest trend. This is not the case with Nicolas Simion, Romanian saxophonist and owner of the label 7Dreams. To Simion, originality is inextricably linked to an awareness of history, in his case the history of Romanian jazz, and he has done a lot to preserve the music of his country -not only through new recordings and arrangements of old tunes, but also through historical releases with Romanian jazz masters like pianists Richard Oschanitzky and Jancy Körössy whose importance and position could be compared to that of pianist Krzysztof Komeda in Poland.

All About Jazz: When did you start the label and how did it happen?

Nicolas Simion: I started in 2004 and I wanted it to be a documentation of the most important Romanian jazz music and a platform for some of the best Romanian jazz musicians. I wanted to make a documentation of my work too, of the recordings I did, starting in 1991 when I started to make studio and live recordings in Western Europe, in Austria and Germany etc.

I worked with TUTU Records producer Peter Wiessmueller from 1991 until 2000 and somehow I was not satisfied with how things developed. Afterwards I tried finding a new label in Germany, with no success, so I decided to start my own thing and put out the recordings I did myself. And after 10 years I think that it was a good decision, at least I did what I thought was good for the music and for the musicians and not only for the business and the money -the things almost every producer is looking for!

AAJ: Is there a story behind the name of the label? Why is it called 7Dreams?

NS: Well, first I like that magic number 7 and I am somehow a dreamer. I couldn't say "dreamer #7" or "dreamer X" but because we all have dreams, good or bad...I decided to only have 7 dreams! It sounds funny maybe, but what else can we do in our lives than try to realize some of our dreams? Believing in something and struggling to make it happen -this is my philosophy!

AAJ: How many people are involved with the label and what is your own role?

NS: The label is more or less a "one man show," but I do have some friends who are helping and supporting me release all those CDs. Like Ana Maria Gavrila from Brasov (Romania), an old friend who is helping me with the printing and manufacturing, all the graphic work and the rollings, printing also the CDs. She is also helping me with all the formalities, paper work, contracts, bank booking etc, also distributing the CDs in Romania etc.

Another important person is my friend Knut Schötteldreier from Cologne, a great graphic designer and layout guy who did almost all the covers and booklets, except the texts. I also have some other friends who are helping me with their recording and mixing studios, of course not for free! And last but not least my musician friends, all of them who did their best and put their signature on the music we played together!

AAJ: Do you have your own studio and office?

NS: Actually, I don't have my own studio or office and I can not afford to work every day for that. I can not afford to have somebody employed and work as a PR or so. But until now there are about 25 CDs out and things are getting better. My main role is to find the money and keep running and putting the CDs out!

AAJ: You are a musician yourself. How does that influence the way you run your label?

NS: I am a saxophonist and a composer, sometimes arranger and producer. I started to think about all those things, repertoire, line up, band, recording, mixing, mastering, finding the money for everything, producing the music finally from the very beginning in 1991. It is a work in progress, you are learning from your own experiences and from your own mistakes.

I am trying to concentrate myself on music, playing, writing, performing and not only on making music business. We all need to be a bit of a manager and a producer and make it happen in that jungle music business where big labels are just making our existence almost impossible! In the end it´s (almost) all about the money. The big brothers are not really interested in music, but selling and making images and controlling the market. The printed mass media, electronic mass media, radio and tv shows, festivals and also some clubs are under their influence or even control. And the big brother is always right because he is stronger and has money and power, has contacts and some people working for them. It is not a joke, it is real. Nothing new, it was the same before and it will stay the same, even though the infrastructure is changing with the internet evolution, distribution, download, sales etc.

AAJ: Your label is based in Romania. How would you characterize the Romanian jazz scene and your connection with it?

NS: I am one of the first independent labels in Romania and the jazz scene is pretty small. But we do have a few great jazz musicians, some other labels too, who are producing other kind of music also. We do have some jazz festivals, some clubs and an audience like everywhere but we need to be better organized and work together as a team. I see myself as a catalyst, somebody who is trying to bring all the good recordings and musicians together, documenting the works of the former generation and the younger, newer generation. Of course, I can´t say that I am the only one who is doing that, we also have some other people working on that field but I have at least a vision and an idea about the real history of the Romanian jazz music, knowing and playing with almost all of them, except the old guys who I never met in the 60s and 70s.

AAJ: Your label does not only include new releases, but also historical recordings. Why is the historical aspect of the music important to you?

NS: I think without a tradition and documentation of our jazz history we will never be able to have an identity. What am I? -just a good player and an imitator of this style or musician? I think those times have gone away, we don't need to imitate anybody anymore! It just doesn't really work and then who is interested in listening to a "monkey" playing as X or Y? I don't mean playing the classical repertoire, nothing against that, but who can play that better than our American legends? That's their own tradition and they are growing up with that music. The music is like everywhere, you can hear it, smell it, taste it! So when I started the label I knew I will put out as far as I could only the best historical recordings, starting with musicians like Jancy Körössy and Richard Oschanitzky, Johnny Raducanu etc to name just a few of them.

AAJ: Is it possible to talk about a Romanian jazz sound or aesthetic and is there a specific sound that you are looking for?

NS: Well, there is something I could say sounds like Romanian jazz. There are some recordings and songs that are inspired by Romanian folk music. People like Körössy -the first who started that in the 50s -and then Oschanitzky in the 60s, followed by Johnny Raducanu and Marius Popp, Aura Urziceanu in the 70s etc. I see our jazz tradition related to our folk music, because you can feel it, you can hear it immediately. I am not saying that we all need to play only folky, ethno stuff, but what makes the music sound fresh and original, authentic, is that vibe from the folklore, those nice ballads and rhythms, scales and stories from our culture.

When I play a piece that has a story behind it, and it's about my country and people I feel at ease with, I am just talking through my instrument. I can imagine dancing, or crying, talking about love songs, getting crazy, getting drunk and so on!

AAJ: How would you define your aesthetic profile and the audience you are targeting?

NS:Hard to say exactly what my aesthetic is, but you can hear that in my music. A few notes and the mood is here, a dance, a sorrow song etc. Basically I am looking to make it simple and clear, to have a great singing melody, a strong rhythm and groove behind that and to bounce somehow, to make people feel like stepping during the performance. I am trying to make the music sound like Romanian and international jazz at the same time.

What else can I say? Maybe one more thing. If I feel good when I am playing, all the band feels good and the audience gets that vibe too. In other words, I like to give something to the people. My "uncle" St. Nicholas told me, hey my boy, you are coming from a great legacy...you have to first give to the people and not expect to get it back....of course giving and getting belongs together. I am happy myself when I see happy people. Also, the music I do has a positive energy and a strong rhythm feel, has a power and it's like fighting for something good, for a truth. Actually I am a fighter, I have my songs, my music, my duties etc. I am more like "to be" than "to have"!

AAJ: Which record labels do you admire yourself?

NS: I will start with the great old American labels like Blue Note, Atlantic, Impulse, Fantasy Records, Warner Bros. Records, Columbia and than some early European labels like Soul Note, Enja, ECM, Polish Jazz(Polskie Nagrania Muza) etc.

AAJ: Do you have a particular studio and engineer that you use? Do you prefer the studio or a live sound?

NS: I don't have my own studio but through the years I met some great sound engineers that I like and I am working with them sometimes. I prefer live recordings for the energy and the spontaneous things that happen sometimes. But I also like the studio, where you can change the arrangements, the line up, you can try different takes and also get more possibilities when you mix the music. You can put out or add parts etc! But I can say that I don't like to record with a "click" -it means I prefer to play live with the band and get that interplay between the musicians. I kind of need that playing together!

AAJ: Tell about the packaging and design of your albums. Do you have a specific approach to the design of your albums and the inclusion of material like liner notes or photography?

NS: Well that's more the decision of Knut, my designer. Sometimes I ask him to change things, to find something else. I can suggest some photos etc. But he is doing all that and I think he got it together, it has a unity and his ideas have something particular. I rarely use photos for the cover. Of course it has something to do with the artist(s) but music is more than that, it has different meanings. Actually every listener can find something else in music, moods, pictures, landscapes, colors etc. I used to do the liner notes myself, but sometimes some of my native speaking English friends are helping me organize my thoughts and make them clear and simple...

AAJ: If you had to pick some of the highlights from the catalog so far, what would they be?

NS: Hm....it is not easy, but I do have "my favorite things" within my catalog, I would say:-Live in Berlin (jazz across border) (2001), Unfinished Square (1996), the DVD Transylvanian Grooves (2006), American Impressions & Romanian, Landscapes (1972), Classic meets Jazz vol. I (2004), Magic Drops (2007), Transylvanian Jazz (2009), Classic needs Jazz (1999/2007), Memorial Richard Oschanitzky vol. I and vol. II (1960s), Crazy World (2013) and Tarantella facile (2011). The year the album was recorded is in parentheses.

AAJ: How do you find your artists?

NS: Sometimes I just listen to them playing with some other people (groups), other times we meet at some jam sessions etc. I know right away with whom I can do great music. It is a kind of code, a communication between us and a language telling me who is open for my music. I like almost all of them. We are friends and buddies.

The only difficult thing is to bring together the right musicians for the right music. Sometimes our own stylistic preferences are that different, that we hear and go in different directions. So how can you explain to people that you want something else now? If they feel it and hear it it's fine, if not -bad luck. But most of the time I was lucky with the constellations of the line up!

AAJ: Could you elaborate on some of the key artists that have helped to shape the label's sound?

NS: For a while -when I moved to Cologne -I used to play and record with Zoltan Lantos (violin), Norbert Scholly (guitar), Martin Gjakonovski(bass), Kruno Levacic (drums), then came Florian Weber on piano, Fausto Beccalossi on accordion, Piotr Wojtasik (tp), Sebastien Boisseau (bass), Alan Jones (drums), Ziv Ravitz (drums) and some other guys.I think with these musicians I could get the color and the mood of the music easily.

I heard some Transylvanian sounds coming out, and it was a lot of fun playing together. Actually also my experience with some other American or European jazz musicians helped me to get closer to a certain sound. The most important thing for me is the spirit of the music! If I can get that, it doesn't matter so much what we play... if the spirit and the communication between us is there, the real music just happened.

AAJ: How does your release schedule look? How many albums do you release in a year and what can be expected in the future?

NS: I started very low and easy because of the financial situation. Lately I started putting out more and more recordings, since last year came out maybe 10 CDs...anyway, I have a plan and I would like to bring out some old recordings and some new ones, with me, without me etc.

I do have some recordings more like folky stuff, then some more contemporary music and some cross-over with bigger ensembles and then some historical recordings from other Romanian jazz musicians. So I will try to balance all that and bring at least 5-6 CDs every year, maybe even more. It depends on my financial situation.

AAJ: Finally. How would you evaluate the story of 7Dreams so far and what are your plans for the future?

NS: First of all I would like the new generation of Romanian musicians and public to get these recordings and be informed about our musical roots. Then I will do my best to record also some young musicians and make sure I help them find their own way and continue what I think is the right direction musically. I have the feeling, they need somebody with experience and knowledge and understanding to follow their own ideas! I am an autodidact and I am proud of it, of course I learned a lot from some other musicians but I didn't study jazz music in a school, I was just learning by doing ! And now I think I can help some young musicians play together and support them starting their own thing.

By now Nicolas Simion certainly has his own thing going and the evidence is the rich catalog of 7Dreams. The following selections are some of the highlights from the label.

Richard Oschanitzky
Memorial Richard Oschanitzky Vol. II
2006

When it comes to Romanian jazz, it is hard to underestimate the importance of pianist, composer and conductor Richard Oschanitzky (1939-1979). 7Dreams has helped preserving the musical legacy of Oschanitzky through the release of two important double-CD releases entitled Memorial Richard Oschanitzky Vol. I and II. Volume II shows Oschanitzky's wonderful eclecticism. He was capable of playing virtually any genre and his recordings span gentle bossa nova, funky folk-music with a twist of psychedelia, classical compositions, film music with Ennio Morricone-like choir and pure swinging jazz. One of the highlights of the set is a stunning reading of the folk-tune "Pe Deal Pe La Cornățel" that is almost like a shortened version of saxophonist John Coltrane's "My Favourite Things" with Oschanitzky in the role of pianist McCoy Tyner. No matter what he chooses to play, Oschanitzky plays with conviction and his eclecticism is not shallow, but the result of a musical mind that feels the connections between folk music, rock, jazz and classical and comes out with his own original sound.

Jancy Körössy
American Impressions and Romanian Landscapes
2008

Pianist Jancy Körössy (1926-2013) is another giant of Romanian jazz and some of his historical recordings are preserved on the double-CD American Impressions and Romanian Landscapes that collects two significant concerts from a time when Körössy was living in America. The first album is entitled American Landscapes and was recorded at the University of Georgia in October 1972. Here, Körössy is digging deep into a wide American repertoire, including standards like "When I Fall In Love" and "Yesterdays," but he also plays classical pieces and his own music. Körössy's unique approach and touch is present in all the music he plays and Burt Bacharach's "Raindrops" is transformed into a dazzling classical piece, but he also has the whole history of jazz in his fingertips and knows the vocabulary from ragtime to modern jazz.

Speaking of improvisation, the second album is a very special concert of completely improvised music, recorded in Atlanta in 1975. In the liner notes to the release, Körössy tells about the experience: "Once I sat at the piano, preparing to start to play, suddenly I had a kind of flashback, remembering the trips with my father, travelling along the Transylvanian countryside by train...so my fingers started to touch the keys, like I was playing a composition, something written before. But in fact, my fingers they were just following my thoughts and my memories about my native land." The result is nothing less than stunning. Beautiful, bittersweet, coherent and complex lines with depth of emotion. Nicolas Simion is also in awe of Körössy's perfect improvisations and he writes: "Not even Keith Jarrett and Herbie Hancock -two of the greatest contemporary piano players -are a match! This should say something about what kind of gem Romanian Landscapes is.

Jancy Körössy and Nicolas Simion Trio
Sweet Home
2014

On Sweet Home Jancy Körössy continues the homage to his country, but this time in the company of saxophonist Nicolas Simion, bassist James Singleton and drummer Peter Perdido. Together they make music that goes in many directions, from the pleasantly swinging Körössy-composition "For Oscar," with its rolling piano-theme, to a wild interpretation of an George Enescu-composition with passionate playing from Simion. It starts out with the drums playing solo before Singleton enters with a walking bass-pattern. Then comes Simion. He honks, screeches and blows while Körössy's piano patterns emerge from the deep. It is powerful and complex music, but the highlight of the album is the beautiful balled "You Wouldn't Believe" written by Richard Oschanitzky.

Nicolas Simion Group feat. Lee Konitz and Jancy Körössy
Live in Graz & Brasov
2014

The group with Simion, Körössy, Singleton and Perdido add an important guest on their album Live in Graz & Brasov. In the liner notes, Simion tells about the process: "We invited Lee Konitz as special guest and we recorded in quintet, and then in the evening we performed live -however just in quartet. On the same night, we took the train to Graz where we played and recorded the next day in a club called Stockwerk, where the ORF (Austrian Broadcasting Corporation) recorded us live." The result of this intense period of collaboration is documented on the album. While Konitz and the group play a varied repertoire, with standards and compositions by Konitz and Simion, the highlight is the fragile reading of the masterpiece "Body & Soul" that is associated with Coleman Hawkins' definitive version. Here Konitz gives it a go and comes out with vulnerability where he almost sounds off-key as he breathes emotion into his horn and the riverbed of chords from Körössy gives the kind of luxurious backing that this timeless song deserves.

Jancy Körössy and Nicolas Simion Duo
Live in Transylvania
2014

The deep musical friendship between Jancy Körössy and Nicolas Simion has been documented on albums like Sweet Home (7Dreams, 2014), Live in Graz & Brasov (7Dreams, 2014) and Live in Brasov (7Dreams, 2014). However, the album where their communication is distilled is Live in Transylvania. Here it is just the two of them playing music together. It is something that they enjoy immensely, as the blues-inflected opener "Blues for Garay" shows. Compositions as diverse as an homage to Bela Bartok and the standard "Autumn Leaves" show how many colors they have on their musical palette. Folk tunes, jazz standards and classical music merge into a very special language filled with emotion and awareness of tradition.

Mal Waldron & Nicolas Simion Duo
Misterioso
2014

Another special duo recording with saxophonist Simion is his album with the pianist Mal Waldron. In the liner notes, Simion tells about the experience: "What was it like to work with Mal Waldron onstage? I can only say that the man had everything you could ask for in a partner -besides his rich musical ideas and unique piano style, he was a very supportive player. With his deceptively simple comping, he managed to convey a strong rhythmical and harmonic structure while giving you all the space you needed to do your own thing -it was like riding in a Cadillac."

Indeed, it is a luxurious ride to follow the two musicans whose link with modern jazz is not denied with a repertoire where pianist Thelonious Monk, trumpeter Miles Davis and bassist Charles Mingus all pop up while saxophonist Eric Dolphy is given an homage on Simion's "Mood for Eric."

Nicolas Simion / Florian Weber
Classic Meets Jazz Vol. 1
2008

Nicolas Simion continues to explore the format of the duo on Classic Meets Jazz Vol. 1, but this time he is in company of pianist Florian Weber. As the title implies, the music leans towards classical music, including pieces by Bela Bartok and Claude Debussy, but as Simion explains in the notes, he doesn't care much about musical boundaries: "If it is jazz, classical, folklore or traditional music from Mars, it doesn't matter to me: it just has to have a message -to move me, to ring my bell, to touch me."

The music itself contains many emotions, from the hectic cascades of notes on "Cearta (the quarrel)" to the gently impressionistic reverie on "N-ai Vrut Sa Crezi (You Wouldn't Believe)" -both written by Richard Oschanitzky. Especially "You Wouldn't Believe" has become something of a standard in repertoire of Simion and it is exactly by repeatedly playing a tune and insisting on its timelessness that it becomes a standard. It is also a statement in itself that the compositions by Oschanitzky hold up so well in the prominent company of Debussy and Bartok.

Nicolas Simion Trio
Magic Drops
2014

Simion has done a lot to keep the Romanian jazz tradition alive by playing the music of Jancy Körössy and Richard Oschanitzky, but on Magic Drops the focus is entirely on his own compositions, except two pieces written by the accordionist Fausto Beccalossi.

Beccalossi also joins Simion and Florian Weber on the record and contributes his playing on the accordian that he transforms into a box of emotions and delicate textures. His two tunes, "Folksback" and "Marco," are poetic with plenty of folkloric soul. The former finds the three in a delicate dance, but it is also a contemplative piece, and the latter is an epic ballad with pregnant melodic lines. Fortunately, Simion's own compositions are just as strong and it all adds up to an inspired album.

Nicolas Simion Trio
Nick at Night
2000

Simion continues to use the trio as a format on the album Nick at Night, but this time in a more classic jazz-line-up with saxophone, bass and drums. Saxophonist Sonny Rollins has found unique possibilities in this format and the same things goes for Simion, who continues his eclectic approach to genres on the album with the appropriate subtitle: folk songs, ballads and other songs. In a way, Nick at Night is linked to Magic Drops with its emphasis on original material, but there is also a tune based on the traditional "Maicuta Cand M-ai Facut" and Simion once again acknowledges the influence of Bela Bartok on "Slovakian Folk Song" that is dedicated to the master. Another artist gets an homage on "I Remember Erik." The composition is not dedicated to Eric Dolphy this time, as one might think, but Erik Satie.

Nicolas Simion feat. Tomasz Stanko & Jamey Haddad
Unfinished Square
2009

On Unfinished Square, Nicolas Simion moves away from the small format of the duo and trio and works with a larger group with trumpet, trombone, bass, drums and keyboards. The group includes such charismatic musicians as trumpeter Tomasz Stanko, trombone-player Nils Wogram and drummer Jamey Haddad. The rhythm is safely anchored by bassist Ed Schuller and keyboard-player Andreas Mayerhofer adds extra atmosphere and texture on an album where the horns take the lead.

Simion's music on Unfinished Square was originally composed for a ballet of the same name and it has plenty of pirouetting rhythms and sophisticated changes in tempi. Folk-like motifs and Balkan rhythms mix with swing and abstract explosions where the heated horns play with burning passion, as it happens on the free jazzy "Now is the Question" while "Byzantian Chant" is a lyrical piece with an organ-like drone and oriental percussion and guest-trumpeter Piotr Woijtasik blowing elegiacally in his horn.

Nicolas Simion Group
Jazz across the Border: Live in Berlin
2006

Simion's fascination with Romanian folk-music also shines through on the album Jazz across the Border: Live in Berlin and titles like "Transylvanian Suite" and "Balkanella" say it all. A prominent presence on the album, who contributes substantially to the folk-sound, is the violinist Zoltan Lantos. On "Transylvanian Dance" bassist Martin Gjakonovski establishes an irresistible electric groove with guitarist Norbert Scholly and drummer Johannes Bockholt while Simion and Lantos engage in a complex dance with questions and replies where the violin simply soars. "One for Chisar" starts outs with Simion on bass-clarinet and then the rest of the band enters with a rhythm that can only be characterized as Balkan-funk, but suddenly the rhythm changes and becomes a dance and then it changes back again while melodic motifs and twists and turns are added and suddenly guitarist Scholly takes the spotlight . The music is vibrant and in constant transformation while firmly based in a Romanian feeling, but there is also room for contemplation on the beautiful ballad "Looking Back," which has all the sweetness of old memories. However, while the music on the album respects tradition, it is not stuck in the past. It moves naturally across musical borders, but it also has a firm sense of a place called home.

Nicolas Simion Group with Chamber Strings Orchestra Brasov
Classic meets Jazz
2011

Simion's double-album Classic meets Jazz from 2011 is a major work in itself, but as he explains in the liner notes, it is also part of an ongoing project: "The idea of this project Classic meets Jazz (I could also say Classic needs Jazz) is actually a cycle of works and CD recordings that started nearly 25 years ago and that materialized in a few CDs and some orchestral pieces. It's a work in progress, from duos to small jazz combos to orchestral works to such special cycle of pieces written by different composers for this project."

The album is a wonderful example of third stream jazz, with participation from Nicolas Simion Group and Chamber Strings Orchestra Brasov. Here, different composers, among them Simion himself and guitarist Norbert Scholly, show how it is possible to combine the vocabularies of folk, jazz and classical into soulful music that has a distinctive sound with echoes of a particular country, in this case Romania. This is what 7Dreams is about: It is the story of a country told through its musical traditions. It is the story of a musical friendship between Nicolas Simion and Jancy Körössy, but also countless other musical friendships with great communication and empathy and last, but not least, it is also the sound of the past, present and future of Romanian jazz.


Tracks and Personnel

Memorial Richard Oschanitzky Vol. II

Tracks: Voce E Eu; Lângă Tine; Corcovado; Noi Doi; Amor Em Paz; O Barquinho; Un Vis; Arie Din Filmul "O Fată Fermecătoare"; Un Mic Cuvânt; Curungudu; Cântec Din Filmul "Parașutiștii"; Kleines Lied; Vorbei; Wer Weiss; Trostlied; De Ce Pari Trist; Dolly Toys; You'll Be Rich; Umbra; Two Hornpipes (Dansuri Marinărești); Balet Nr.30; Balada Regelui Din Thule; Concert Pentru Două Mandoline; Pe Deal La Cornățel; De Iarnă; Perinița; Călușarii; Sanie Cu Zurgălăi; Hăulita De La Gorj; Pastorala; Mugur, Mugurel; Ciuleandra; Paparudele; Pe Deal Pe La Cornățel (Alternate Version); Și Totuși; Muzica 4 Din Filmul "O Fată Fermecătoare"; Melodie Din Filmul "O Fată Fermecătoare"; Muzica 3 Din Filmul "O Fată Fermecătoare"; Muzica 1 Din Filmul "O Fată Fermecătoare"; Muzica 2 Din Filmul "O Fată Fermecătoare"; Walkin' Shoes; C-Jam Blues; There's No Denyin.

Personnel: Richard Oschanitzky: piano, organ, arrangements + Orchestra Electrecord and Orchestra Richard Oschanitzky.

American Impressions and Romanian Landscapes

Tracks: Love Story; Raindrops; Romanian Rhapsody #1; Autumn Leaves; American Impressions (When I Fall In Love; God Bless America; Jean, Jean; That's All); Misty; Trio; I'll Remember April; Ain't Misbehavin; West Coast Blues; Gypsy In My Soul; Smoke Gets In Your Eyes; My Ideal; All The Things You Are; Yesterdays; Tiger Rag; Free Improvisation; Women's Tea Party; Violin Concerto III Part (Fragments); Amintiri (Memories); Gandurile Mele Despre (My Thoughts About); Jocul Florilor De Camp (Dance Of The Wild Flowers); Salbaticul Rau Olt (The Wild Olt River); Dan Taranesc -Dansul Satului (Peasant Dance); Dan Taranesc -Dansul Satului (Peasant Dance); La Seceris (The Harvest); Pe Cararile Muntilor (On The Mountains Pass); Poteci Ascunse (Hidden Pathways); Razele Soarelui Poarta Amintirile Mele (Sun Carried Memories); Amintiri Din Valea Prahovei (Memories From Prahova Valley); Epilog (Epilogue).

Personnel: Jancy Körössy: piano.

Sweet Home

Tracks: For Oscar; You Wouldn't Believe; One For Kisser; Sweet Home; Miss Mr. Shino; Variations On A Theme From The Second Suite For Orchestra; The Game With The Ball; La Hora.

Personnel: Nicolas Simion: tenor & soprano saxophone; Jancy Körössy: piano; James Singleton: bass; Peter Perdido: drums.

Live in Graz & Brasov

Tracks: Concertino; Body & Soul; Stella By Starlight; What's New; Impressions from Brasov; It's You; Thingin.

Personnel: Lee Konitz: alto saxophone; Nicolas Simion: tenor & soprano saxophone, bass clarinet; Jancy Körössy: piano; James Singleton: bass; Peter Perdido: drums.

Live in Transylvania

Tracks: Blues For Garay; You Wouldn't Believe; The Good Old Man; Meditation; One For Richard; For Oscar; Jancy's Tune; Hommage A Bela Bartok; Autumn Leaves.

Personnel: Jancy Körössy: piano; Nicolas Simion: tenor & soprano saxophone, bass clarinet.

Misterioso

Tracks: Misterioso; Goodbye Pork Pie Hat; Theme from the 3rd Symphony; Epistrophy; My Duchess; Rhythm Changes in Moods; Mood for Eric; The Seagulls of Kristiansund; Jean Pierre.

Personnel: Mal Waldron: piano; Nicolas Simion: tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, bass clarinet.

Classic Meets Jazz Vol. 1

Tracks: Tralalala Tulipan (Studie Für Die Linkehand); Klagelied; Holzschuhtanz (Tanz Der Kinder); Soir A La Campagne Béla Bartók; Delea Veche 45; Toccatina Facile; Prelude À L'unison; La Tescani; The Little Shephard; Jimbo's Lullaby; N-ai Vrut Sa Crezi (You Wouldn't Believe it); Cearta (The Quarrel); Landscapes; Free Winds; Havanera.

Personnel: Nicolas Simion: tenor & soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, piano (#13), whistle; Florian Weber: piano, vibraphone (#13), melodica (#13).

Magic Drops

Tracks: Thinking of Bartok; Evening in the Village; Havanera; Love Song; Colind Din Ardeal; Folksback; Bear Dance; Hungarian Folk Song; Marco; Square Dance; Transylvanian Woods.

Personnel: Nicolas Simion: soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone, bass clarinet; Florian Weber: piano; Fausto Beccalossi: accordion.

Nick at Night

Tracks: Slovakian Folk Song; Stag's March; Wedding Song from Banat; Come Along, Sweet Heart; Purtata Din Ardeal; I Remember Erik; Ma Belle Stephanie; Nick at Night.

Personnel: Nicolas Simion: tenor & soprano saxophone; Andy McKee: bass; Billy Kilson: drums.

Unfinished Square

Tracks: Lullaby (#3); Doina from Maramuresh; Fighting Song; Carol Song; Choral; Toba; Adagio; Now Is The Question; Byzantinian Chant (for Richard Tieber).

Personnel: Tomasz Stanko: trumpet; Nicolas Simion: tenor & soprano saxophone, tarogato; Nils Wogram: trombone; Ed Schuller: bass; Jamey Haddad: drums, percussion; Andreas Mayerhofer: keyboards; Piotr Wojtasik: trumpet (#9).

Jazz across the Border: Live in Berlin

Tracks: Transylvian Suite; Dear Village; Transylvanian Dance; Bird Song (Ciocârlia); One for Chisar (Kisser); Looking Back; Hommage Á Mr. Brãiloiu; Balkanella; That's The Evening of St. Claus; Lullaby.

Personnel: Nicolas Simion: saxophones, bass clarinet; Zoltan Lantos: violin; Norbert Scholly: guitar, wald-zither; Martin Gjakonovski: bass, oud; Johannes Bockholt: drums, percussion.

Classic meets Jazz

Tracks: Piece for Strings and Jazz-ensemble; Românologie I; Song Of; Rugaciune (Prayer); Tribut; Nau; Jocuri IX (Echoes)

Personnel: Antonio Anissegos: piano; Norbert Scholly: guitar; Fausto Beccalossi: accordion; Chris Dahlgren: bass; Alan Jones: drums; Nicolas Simion: reeds; Sabin Pautza: conductor + Chamber Strings Orchestra Brasov.

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