Wolfgang Ambros & the No. 1 from the Vienna Woods

"WOLFGANG AMBROS & the No. 1 from Wienerwald" Best Of "The definition of "Best Of" speaks for itself, as Wolfgang Ambros' current live program naturally features classics from his stage career, which has now lasted for over 50 years. The titles to be played are not revealed by the artist, who states (quote): "They will remain a surprise. It will be an atmospheric program. Just recently, we made a significant redesign of the program. Of course, we can't play all the hits, but it will definitely be worth attending the concert." The remarkable career of Wolfgang Ambros - if we consider the release of "Da Hofa" in 1971 as its beginning, we are talking about 55 years! - lends itself well to listings and number games, but these alone do not truly capture the essence: the admittedly impressive sales figures, the impressive discography in terms of quality and quantity, the countless live performances and tours, the nearly endless kilometers traveled "on the road" in Germany, Austria, Switzerland... What we are talking about is the music itself. The (many) songs and the desire to play them, to share them with an audience, these songs and this music. In an often cynical media world like ours, one might not readily grant this to an "old hand," a household name like Wolfgang Ambros, but why else would he and his band, the No. 1 from Wienerwald, put themselves through the stress and work that inevitably come with such a tour?

And then there’s the No. 1 from Wienerwald! A phenomenon in itself, this band that has accompanied Wolfgang Ambros for so many years. Günther Dzikowski on keyboards, Dietmar Baumgartner on guitar, Erich Buchebner on bass, and Harry Stampfer on drums (not to forget the background singers Ursula Gerstbach and Gitti Recher) not only (almost) always find the right notes but also the tone, the sound for Wolfgang Ambros' voice, for his songs, and the stories he tells with them. Such a meaningful and lasting musical symbiosis that many have long since come to automatically associate these two terms - Ambros and the No. 1 from Wienerwald.

Now, let’s consider the material, the program itself. Let’s briefly remind ourselves that Wolfgang Ambros could actually play hundreds of songs thanks to the aforementioned discography. Hidden treasures, album tracks that may have faded into the background of the big hits, secret older live favorites that have slipped out of the program for one reason or another... Let us also allow the urge to play to come into its own, because the idea of playing this one song in such an arrangement, with a sound that presents the familiar lyrics in a new light and makes them resonate differently, has always been very tempting. There are also a few brand new songs... If we connect all of this, we can truly look forward to great evenings. Not least because Wolfgang Ambros knows his audience so well that amidst all the new material, the moments that have long since entered the pop musical subconscious of this country are not overlooked, the vital hits through which the singer still speaks to us from the soul, again and again.