Episode
See Hear Episode 130 - Interview with Ido Fluk, director of Koln 75
- Podcast
- See Hear
- Published
- Oct 17, 2025
- Duration seconds
- 4781
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Summary
History is full of famous tales that are told from one perspective. As we all know, everyone has their own version of how something went down....even if it doesn't contradict the popular narrative, there's always something that happened in the background whose importance is diluted or not told at all. Welcome to episode 130 of See Hear Podcast. In 1974, a German teenage jazz fan named Vera Brandes was inspired to book jazz pianist Keith Jarrett to perform at the Koln Opera House. This seemed like a gigantic task however you look at it. Vera had gained a little experience in helping touring musicians perform around Germany (already a big task) but getting one of the then new leading lights in jazz to perform a large venue like the Koln Opera House at the age of 18???? Adding to the degree of difficulty, Jarrett arrived in Koln to discover that there was only an out of tune, broken pedal baby grand with stuck keys. Things happened, the concert was recorded, and the resulting album sold more than any other solo piano jazz album in history. The thing is....everyone talks about Jarrett's ability to improvise on a (partly repaired) piano for an hour and create wonderful art. The part that is often missing or diluted from the story is how Vera Brandes made this happen at all. If she hadn't been so inspired to promote this show, the biggest selling piano jazz album ever, belongs to someone else. Director and writer Ido Fluk was so inspired by this story, he decided to make a film to tell it from Vera's side of the tale. Sure, Jarrett is a strong part of the filmed version of events, but make no mistake – this is Vera's story. She went on to be a successful album producer and music promoter, but this is the tale she wanted told. As the analogy is made in the film, sometimes you…