Svenson – “Ride Away”
Sven Kuehbauch aka Svenson is an author, composer, performer and instructor who is currently teaching at the music school of Hansestadt Stralsund. Previously he also taught at the Beethoven music school of Bonn. An endorser for Music Man Guitars, Peavey and Ernie Ball Strings, Svenson performs worldwide and has appeared in Bangkok, Beijing, Monte Video, Shanghai, Seoul, Stockholm, as well as the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival. He has also written Svenson´s Guitar Workshop, a series done exclusively for the multi touch book format .iba (Apple iBooks) and available only on iBooks and iTunes. Guitar Workshop E Books are available at Amazon and Google Play, which include videos too.
Svenson who studied at the Jazz and Rock School in Freiburg, Breisgau, Germany – an official partner to the Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, U.S.A. – has attended master classes and workshops given by: Scott Henderson, Greg Howe, Pat Metheny and Joe Diorio, and has recorded with such greats as Jennifer Batten (Michael Jackson), Jerry Donahue (Hellecasters), Rhani Krija (Sting) and Lulo Reinhardt.
Recently Svenson released his “10th anniversary” album, containing 8 tracks which showcases his talents, marking 10 years of his solo instrumental work. It features Svenson at his best along with appearances from guitar legend Jerry Donahue (Hellecasters, Fairport Convention).
Throughout the recording, the German artist’s guitar playing is flawless and mesmerizing as the rest of the band feeds off his energy to assist in creating a transcendental euphoria of musical delight.
This emerges beautifully on the swinging upbeat “Yeehaw (Journey into Twang)” with Jerry Donahue, the funky fusion and jazz infused track, “Mr. Stern” (with Nikolaus Halfmann, Michael Koch, Jan Lange & Martin Tront), and is again evident on the slow burning “Blossomwhite” (with Michael Schwabe).
Moreover when Svenson takes matters into his own hands, by giving the band a break, as he does on the acoustic blues of “Farewell my Friend” and “T for Theia”, or the brief but brilliant reverberating electric soundscape of “Tears from the Sky (6505 Version)”, it’s an opportunity to prop up your feet, close your eyes, pour a glass of your favorite beverage and erase the stress of a busy day as you allow this music to sink into your soul. Svenson’s musical vision here, focuses on providing a recording for his fans to absorb and savor. A result he easily achieves.
Take some blues guitar, mix in liberal amounts of jazzy flavors, and a dash of funk, slap some six-string virtuosity on it and, voilà, Svenson’s “10th anniversary” album appears, fully formed and deliciously satisfying. Svenson’s breadth of talent and style is evident as his brand of restrained wizardry and his ability to put the groove above all else with creativity and impeccable precision purveys the album.
Throughout the album, performed with a sense of playful cunning, Sven Kuehbauch aka Svenson gives us a glimpse into the working mind of a guitarist who continues to discover new possibilities of creative thinking, without ever being pretentious or overwhelming.
