Sometimes less is more. Master guitarist Karl Ratzer can still race across the fretboard, but today he mostly limits himself to condensing notes, to the essence of a song. “That only comes with age; you can't do it before,” says Ratzer, who celebrates his 75th birthday on July 4, in an interview. Just in time for the anniversary, the formidable live album Vienna Red has been released, featuring a best-of selection of performances by his trio at Vienna's Porgy & Bess.

Christoph Huber's jazz club is a kind of home port for Ratzer, who, after ups and downs over the past 15 years, has achieved a remarkable renaissance: “For me, the magic of Porgy & Bess is the audience—there's an exchange with us.” The fine balance of his trio, with which he can be heard on July 4, is "a lot of work. You have to complement each other.“ His long-time companion Peter Herbert, ”a versatile artist,“ knows and can do this: ”Peter is not into faster, higher, louder at all, but exactly the opposite.“ Ratzer also has a musical soulmate in drummer Howard Curtis: ”When he plays the drums, you can hear the chord changes." (...)

Ratzer has long felt connected to Latin American music: “I used to tour with Brazilian trumpeter Claudio Roditi. And samba has always been guitar-friendly music.” Ratzer also loves Cuban music, picking up his guitar during our conversation and playing a solo piece by pianist Rúben Gonzáles (Buena Vista Social Club). Experts in this music showed him how it's done. It's a matter of give and take – and hard work.

This also applied to his eight years in the US in the 1970s, in New York and Atlanta: “I was in Georgia, and people came to me to learn, and I also learned from them. I taught at noon, practiced afterwards, and then played in two clubs, in the afternoon in a black club and in the evening in a white club.” Traces of this exchange can be heard in Ratzer's compositions.

With the support of his manager and wife Anna, Ratzer has long since freed himself from the expectations of others: “I want to keep my music sacred.” Instead of fame or greatness, it's all about intimacy. The former tour companion of Chet Baker transforms even small spaces such as the back room of a wine bar (which can be heard on the duo album Alone Together) or, currently, the Weinhaus Pfandler in Meidling into world-class jazz clubs.

In keeping with his deeply felt religiosity, Ratzer sees himself as an instrument and music as a purifying force. Regarding his moving, intimate singing, he says: “I'm not a singer, but I like to sing. Singing makes me happy and joyful.” Looking at his guitar, he laughs: “A chessboard of eternity.” We wish the birthday boy and ourselves that he will continue to sing and play for a long time to come. (Karl Gedlicka, July 2, 2025)