Halftime Show Ilja Ruf, Hannes Pries, Niklas Müller

• 1 Average Boy 04:29
• 2 Tides 06:01
• 3 The Crows Fly Again 06:02
• 4 Seven Is Not Enough 04:07
• 5 Home 03:38
• 6 Green - Trio 08:39
• 7 Change My Mind 12:36
• 8 Halftime Show 03:30
• 9 La danse de la lune - Trio 08:36
• Total Runtime 57:38

Info for Halftime Show

If I was the one to build the world Then I made an extra day That is just for us and only us ‘Cause seven is not enough“ Ilja Ruf im Song „Seven Is Not Enough”

HALFTIME SHOW describes the attitude to life of the three young musicians as members of Gen Z in its touching and rousing songs, through musical depth and joyful virtuoso improvisations. The desire to get to know and love the world and its people drives Ilja Ruf to compose. Because he sees himself as part of the global community, Ilja writes lyrics in English - he learned songwriting at the renowned music college in Berklee/Boston. Special musical guests on the album are Nils Landgren, trombone, and Bernd Ruf, clarinet, on one track each.

ILJA RUF (23) is one of the most exciting and currently outstanding talents of his generation as an instrumentalist, singer and composer. Building on a classical education, he works in a wide stylistic field from jazz to pop, tango, klezmer, film and orchestral music to classical music. At a young age he won important jazz awards and nominations for record awards. He learned jazz piano from Richie Beirach and Joanne Brackeen, among others.

As a pianist, Ilja Ruf plays with the Swedish trombonist Nils Landgren, among others. His solo debut album "Ilja_19 - acoustic album" was nominated for the German Record Critics' Award in the Singer/Songwriter category in 2021. On the album "Utopia - Dialogues in Jazz With My Grandparents", released in November 2022, Ilja Ruf enters into a musical dialogue with the German jazz veteran, the saxophonist Bernd Konrad. Growing up in a musical family as the son of the Grammy-nominated conductor Bernd Ruf and brother of Ivo Ruf, deputy principal clarinetist of the SWR Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart, it was clear to Ilja Ruf as a child that he wanted to become a musician. During his school days, he studied in the pre-college of the Lübeck University of Music, then at the Popakademie Baden-Württemberg in Mannheim and in the 2023/24 academic year at the renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston.

Based on the traditional jazz trio line-up, the ILJA RUF TRIO plays a fresh, contemporary jazz sound. In Hannes Pries and Niklas Müller, Ilja Ruf found two like-minded people who are equally at home in jazz, pop, classical and world music. These influences can also be heard in Ilja Ruf's instrumental compositions and songs, which are inspired by a wide variety of genres.

Ilja Ruf is a multiple jazz award winner, including the IB.SH Jazz Award 2022. His debut album as a soloist "ILJA_19" was nominated for the German Record Critics' Award. With Niklas Müller and Hannes Pries, winners of the Lübeck Jazz Prize 2022, he expands his sound and creates a program in which musical depth, improvisation and entertainment flow harmoniously together in a special way.

"Ilja Ruf is nothing less than a small wonder. I have had the pleasure of following him since he made his very first steps in music and I have for sure noticed his amazing development. From a little boy with a wonderful shy smile, to a fully grown artist but still with the same charming appearance. Ilja has always been someone in constant progress and, he still is. He writes. He plays. He sings. It is a beautiful feeling to listen to Ilja's music thinking-I know him and, we are friends. Nils Landgren, Fellow Musician" (Nils Landgren)

Hannes Pries, drums, backing vocals
Ilja Ruf, piano, keyboards, vocals
Niklas Müller, bass
Guests:
Bernd Ruf, clarinet (track 5)
Nils Landgren, trombone (track 2)

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