V/a / Liebling Luitpold - Swing, Rumba & Kaffeehaus Blues

Trikont

Music maintains a tradition in Europe's coffee-houses that is nearly as long-lived as the sale of caffeinated drinks itself. Thus in Vienna, the cradle of coffee-house culture, mostly violinists and small string combos delivered discreet entertainment. The apparent lightness of their music depended on a delicate balancing act: On the one hand it was necessary to be heard, on the other hand the music shouldn't disturb the contemplative atmosphere of the favored meeting place of writers, philosophers and philanderers. Since the 1920s and 1930s it became fashionable to dance in the coffee-houses. At this time so called "Tanz-Cafés“ were established all over Germany: The growing popularity of new medias like radio, sound films and music discs was accompanied by a demand to be entertained outside of ones homes. Coffee-houses delivered an ideal stage for an urban audience: It was all about to see and be seen and flirting in a cultivated ambiance. But only few of these "Tanz-Cafés“ could come up with star-studded orchestras like the Luitpold Café in Munich. The compilation Liebling Luitpold is a musical hommage to its history and at the same time proof, that it is sill possible to catch and support the moods of a coffee-house, without falling back upon the traditional fiddler. With songs from Pearl Bailey, Joao Gilberto, Coco Schumann, Louis Armstrong, Nina Simone, Billie Holliday, Earl Grant, Coconami, Chico O’Farrill, Soumaya Baalbaki, and others.

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