Name: Total Space
Brand: The Rolf Kuhn Group

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

0214251MSW

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Colour

Black

Colour details

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

Format Music GB

Limited edition

Release date

2022-02-25

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier GB

Proper

Tax rate GB

Standard:20

UPC / Barcode

4029759142515

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Total Cap

1 / Extended format: No / LP / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No / black

Artist

The Rolf Kuhn Group

Genre GB

Jazz

Label GB

MPS is a German jazz label that was founded in 1968 by Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer. It started as a successor to SABA and quickly gained recognition for its exceptional sound quality. Often compared to the renowned Blue Note label, MPS became known as Most Perfect Sound.

From 1971 onwards, MPS releases were distributed by BASF and later by Metronome Records GmbH (renamed Metronome Musik GmbH in 1977). However, in 1983, due to declining budgets for recording jazz music, Brunner-Schwer shifted his focus to classical music and sold the rights of MPS to Philips. Eventually, the label found its way under Polydor's ownership and its recordings were re-released by Motor Music starting from 1993.

In Hamburg, Universal Jazz Germany took over the MPS archives in 1999 while Speakers Corner Records released various vinyl reissues. After ten years since Brunner-Schwer's passing, Edel acquired MPS's back catalogue from Universal on January 7th, 2014. Now led by Andreas Brunner-Schwer and Friedhelm Schulz, the team has returned to Villingen where they continue recording new material.

Reissue of The Rolf Kühn Group's funky 1975 fusion album Total Space, featuring Joachim Kühn, Philip Catherine, Gerd Dudek, Albert Mangelsdorff and Daniel Humair. For a German jazz musician to find international recognition as a major player has been and remains a rarity. Clarinettist Rolf Kühn belongs to this elite class. No one sounds like him on the clarinet; warm, round and masterful, his tone remains unmistakable no matter what style he may be playing at any given moment. His play resonates with a maturity and wisdom gathered from a long and rich life of musical experiences. At MPS, Rolf Kühn was allowed free rein to choose the team for the recordings and so he decided to get Wolfgang Hirschmann on board, one of the most interesting sound engineers in jazz at that time. Having a free jazz background, Kühn breaks out in a new direction towards jazz fusion with this album.

"My recordings for the MPS label always bene ted from an atmosphere of artistic freedom, something that I am still thankful for. MPS was the rst German record company that recorded solely jazz and was open for experiments and new elds of music. For "Total Space" I was allowed to try out new things like having two drummers, Daniel Humair and Kaspar Winding and to invite completely freethinking players like Albert Mangelsdorff or Gerd Dudek to the recording." - Rolf Kühn, 2019

Total Space

Music GB