Friedrich
music austria - Michael Ternai
www.musicaustria.at/joerg-leichtfried-und-georg-wollmann-sind-friedrich
Jörg Leichtfried and Georg Wollmann are FRIEDRICH A jazzy sound with intertwining elements from many other genres, with plenty of groove and an unmistakably laid-back vibe – that's exactly what pianist Jörg Leichtfried and guitarist Georg Wollmann bring to life with their project FRIEDRICH. ... And as one might expect from such a constellation, here you get served a very special musical treat, one that combines many flavors and can be served in various variations. The adventurous duo doesn't worry much about what's possible or not. The sound that the two musicians present ranges widely, from playful modern jazz to progressively rocky tunes and bluesy melodies, to funky basslines and quirky hip-hop grooves. Add to that a very laid-back vibe that gives the music its own character, one that, despite all its musical finesse and instrumental prowess, develops a truly beautiful flow and a lot of mood.

Duo Fuss / Leichtfried
Mica review - Alexander Kochman
https://www.musicaustria.at/duo-fuss-leichtfried-little-tales-of-light-and-sorrow/
Domink Fuss and Jörg Leichtfried, two absolute top talents of the Austrian jazz and swing scene, have joined forces and released their debut album as a duo. Little Tales of Light and Sorrow (ART Records) impresses the listener with its reduced but still robust sound, a combination of old-school swing, classical, and more contemporary elements. The duo now presents a collaborative work wholly dedicated to melody and harmony.” Intimate, sparing and lyrical in its own way; that’s surely the best description of the basic tenor of Little Tales and Light and Sorrow. But that doesn’t mean that the pieces (mostly original compositions) aren’t able to surprise: the two musicians have the wonderful ability to strike – and hold – a delicate balance between lighthearted, uplifting emotion and dark, melancholy moments. Other than might be expected from two such outstanding instrumentalists, they consciously avoid long, soloistic flights of fancy, leaving ample space for their interplay to unfold. This lends the dreamy atmosphere a rare lightness and intensity.

Duo Fuss / Leichtfried
WIENER ZEITUNG - Christoph Irrgeher
https://www.wienerzeitung.at/nachrichten/kultur/pop-rock-jazz/2093461-Fuss-Leichtfried-Jazz-fuer-Regentage.html
Circumspect tones, open aural spaces, dense atmospherics: pianist Jörg Leichtfried and brass player Dominik Fuss are masters of the jazz ballad genre. The more slowly their original compositions unfold, the more their elegiac streams of sound sink into the ear. This is due partly to the broad melodic arcs of trumpet and flugelhorn, as well as to Leichtfried’s almost choral piano stylings, marked by incisive voicings and subtle phrasing, occasionally reminiscent of Chick Corea’s ballad playing. Jazz that’s comfortable with introversion, satisfied to listen to the stillness inside – and that occasionally finds joy in stretching out beyond the borders of tonality. Tailor-made for a contemplative, rainy day.

Duo Fuss / Leichtfried
JAZZREPORTAGEN - Wolfgang Fricke
www.jazzreportagen.com/duo-fuss-leichtfried-tales-of-light-and-sorrow/
Pairing par excellence: Tales of Light and Sorrow, the ambitious duo project from the artists Fuss and Leichtfried, tickles both heart and mind in equal measure and seduces the listener to pay close attention. Giving into this temptation means taking a little journey, not just into tranquil, balladesque realms of sound, but – yes – perhaps also a piece down the road to oneself. But beware: there may be a spot of rough weather along the way.

Duo Fuss / Leichtfried
BR-Klassik, Bayern 3 radio - Roland Spiegel
“Viennese Anthem”: A hymn, a tribute to Vienna. However you interpret it, the piece is fascinating. It’s a work by the pianist Jörg Leichtfried (b. 1984) and trumpeter Dominik Fuss (b. 1989). The exceptionally beautiful melodic lines of their new CD, Little Tales of Light and Sorrow, left a real impression. […] I heard a lot of light in this piece, but there are also more melancholy tracks on the album. All of them, though – mostly original compositions – emanate a winning, atmospheric power. The interplay between the two musicians is full of delicacy and awareness of one another. There are sharp-witted dialogues among the pieces, but also times when the two allow themselves to be carried along by waves of harmony.

Duo Fuss / Leichtfried
Xavier Plus - Austrian Broadcasting Corporation, ORF
Picture two playing cards leaning on one another to create a stable rhythmic and interactive construct – this is how pianist Jörg Leichtfried describes the duo project with trumpeter Dominik Fuss. Together they explore the borders between jazz tradition, classical and modern music. In the process they find their unique sound within their repertoire, consisting of originals and the occasional standard. Fuss and Leichtfried know each other from various exciting musical formations and genres, but this project unites their common passion for lyrical simplicity and intimacy. Their musical relationship thrives upon Fuss’ strong sense of melody and Leichtfried’s tasteful harmonic support, which both complement and build on each other in a sort of symbiosis. Fuss and Leichtfried approach the freedom that the duo presents with courage in the use of space. They orient themselves on the ideas of Kenny Wheeler and John Taylor rather than the musical ecstasy of an Oscar Peterson. An intimate musical experience that invites the listener to dream and sink into the space often lacking in the music of today.

Jörg Leichtfried Trio
Ljubisa Tosic - DER STANDARD
derstandard.at/1397522644021/Gelassene-Klavierpoesie
..he, with his trio, Andreas Waelti playing the bass and  Klemens Marktl on the drums, is appearing calm and as an accentuated improvisor. Modest and relaxed he is sparkling through a harmonic landscape and yet is moving melodiously agile within the genuine mainstream tradition. …he seems interested in subtle overtones, is allowing them to breath amply and gives sufficient time for athmospheres to unfold. Those qualities can also be enjoyed while listening to his/their CDs: Magicians, Sounds and Other Beauties

Duo Fuss / Leichtfried
Jazz At Carthage Jazz Festival, Tunisia 2019
… Majestic ode to music, wonderfully sad Serenade, that sounds like a lost love. You can sense the special bond between the two musicians and an even bigger connection between the two instruments. It is as though a conversation was unfolding. A conversation of sorrow and solace.

Jörg Leichtfried Trio
Samir H. Köck - Die Presse
… he and his his well-rehearsed trio present six sublime original compositions and one cover version of a Krzysztof-Komeda piece. Silence is admitted generously, which encourages the melancholic melodies. To spread a little happiness, the sun doesn't always have to shine.

Trio Esja
Michael Ternai - Music Austria
Music Austria
The title of the album "Magicians, Sounds And Other Beauties" perfectly describes the new creation of the Jörg Leichtfried Trio. The songs full of magic moments, nestled in a sound that warms up one's heart, are revealing the most beautiful aspects of modern jazz.

Jörg Leichtfried Trio
Klaus Schulz - music editor / Jazz-Archiv Music Research GmbH
… The Leichtfried Trio avoids those clichès, it rather contributes occasional motive repetitions at a high creative level and accentuates the music in a permament flow ...Would the Austrian "Hans Koller-Prize" still exist for the "CD of the year", this production would deserve it for 2013.

ELEKTRO JIRSCHI
Michael Ternai - Music Austria
www.musicaustria.at/elektro-jirschi-misery-is-wasted-on-the-miserable/
Jazz meets hip-hop and funk, and that is a really easy going manner. Jörg Leichtfried shows us in „Misery Is Wasted On The Miserable“ (art records) - a new album of his project ELEKTRO JIRSCHI - what wonderful sounds this mix of styles can pro-duce. … In ELEKTRO JIRSCHI – „Misery Is Wasted On The Miserable“ , the pianist manages to bring various worlds of music together in a really fine way, so that a wonderfully functioning symbioses emerges. Besides the captivating light-footedness in playing the individual instruments, it is the sound of the album as a whole that stands out. … Jörg Leichtfried, who switches from piano to a Fender Rhodes with Elektro Jirschi, and together with his band members - the Bulgarian trumpeter Alexander Wladigeroff, the Swiss percussionist Daniel Aebi, and the Viennese bassist Georg Buxhofer - develops a sound that is really groovy but in an elegant, reserved way. … Bass lines, airy Fender-Rhodes melodies and accordion riffs, unobtrusive trumpet insets, and that’s it. Elektro Jirschi doesn’t need any more than that to light a musical fire.

Elektro Jirschi
Xavier Plus - skug Magazin
skug.at/elektro-jirschi-misery-is-wasted-on-the-miserable/
»Misery Is Wasted On The Miserable«
With his new formation “Elektro Jirschi”, Leichtfried devotes himself for the first time to amplifying sounds and takes up his Fender Rhodes for that. Daniel Aebi uses a minimalist drum set (a case of which even serves as the bass drum!), Alexander Wladigeroff takes up  the trumpet and French horn, while we can hear Georg Buxhofer on bass. Together these four devote themselves to a tradition of reduced and way laid-back hip-hop beats. … The e-piano, skilfully and coyly played, sets a relaxed, warm prevailing mood; the feeling of a live session in their own living room arises - indeed, in that ambience this EP was conceived. The vibes are strengthened by the sound of the recording, very earthy, sometimes even raw. The e-bass sounds unamplified, unpretentious; the drums nuzzle up to it comfortably. The melodies are - in spite of the weighty title of the recording - light as a feather and fall gracefully in the down-tempo of Wladigeroff’s horns. “Misery Is Wasted On The Miserable”:  the title is intenser than the music, as in the course of the album you come across such titles as Bill Withers’ trusting hopeful melody “Lovely Day”.

Trio Esja
press release
Lyrical, vibrant, and powerful - that's the sound of Esja. Jörg Leichtfried incorporates a wide, musical spectrum of jazz, while weaving a golden thread throughout the program. Upon hearing this Austrian trio, the listener is transported to the journey of each musician on the search for the most authentic performance.While Leichtfried and Bründlmayer have been collaborating for over ten years in a variety of bands and projects, Slovakian bassist Stefan Pista Bartus joined them in Vienna in the beginning of 2017. The bassist offers the trio the perfect musical aesthetic. Esja performs a program of originals but also re-imagines and presents familiar pieces from artists like Simon and Garfunkel or Hildegard Knef. Improvised music at it's finest.