Dottendorfer Jazznacht is 100 – Interview with Herbert Kaupert

Dottendorf might be a small part of Bonn but it has become a big part of Jazz in the area. On 24 March the new Dottendorfer Jazznacht Season gets underway – for the 100th time! 3songsbonn took the opportunity to ask Festival organizer Herbert Kaupert his thoughts on the success of this excellent jazz venue’s history and future.

Hello Herbert. Congratulations on your 100th concert this year with Christine Corvisier. It must be hard work for you as I know that Music isn’t your day job, so how did you come to be involved in the music scene in Bonn?

That’s right, professionally I work as a lawyer in Bonn. Music is my great passion though and I’ve been playing piano in a Latin band myself for many years.

Who then are your favourite musicians?

My favourites are Stevie Wonder, George Benson and Stan Getz.

Torsten Goods at Dottendorfer jazznacht in 2018

How did bringing concerts to the Dottendorf Ortszentrum come about?

In 2011 I co-founded the Bürgerverein Dottendorf (with Burghard Mandt). We quickly came up with the idea of organizing jazz concerts in the small hall. Marcus Schinkel and Thomas Kimmerle supported us a lot at the beginning.

The first concert was actually given by Marcus Schinkel. It was very well received. The authenticity of the concerts was particularly praised.

Since then, we have continued to expand the hall. In particular, my son Niklas has helped me a lot, especially with the installation of new lighting. We have also just bought a new sound system and mixing console, so the sound is even better.

So the concert idea proved very popular?

Yes, over the years we booked more and more well-known artists from Germany and now the name Dottendorfer Jazznacht is known throughout Germany in the jazz scene and we regularly receive requests for concert performances by well-known jazz musicians.

Christine Corvisier will open this years Jazznacht season on 24 March – Here she is in 2019

There are now also concerts in the Kameha Grand Hotel.

The concerts at Kameha are not competition, but an attempt to appeal to an audience that does not usually go to jazz concerts.

Both series are to be continued side by side in the future.

There are not so many concerts booked for this season – Christine Corvisier (24 March), Maik Krahl (21 April), Lisa Bassenge (23 June) and Nighthawks (24 Nov)

Are there more to come?

At the moment I am in negotiations with some artists to play at the Dottendorfer Jazz Night in the course of the year. Yassmo, Simon Oslender and Torsten Goods will certainly be there.

You are also bringing events outside of the jazz spectrum to Dottendorf. I remember particularly a Blues evening with, amongst others, Michael Van Merwyck that was very enjoyable.

There will also be other concerts in the town centre under the separate label ‘DottKult’. Unfortunately, the Blues Festival we hosted was not so well received, so we probably won’t be continuing it. In any case, my focus remains jazz.