Rainer Rygalyk, award winning jazz photographer, journalist and friend for over 40 years, has passed away on May 1st 2022. I met Rainer for the first time while we were both studying journalism in the late 1970’s and our common passion for jazz immediately created a special bond and friendship. We as well both liked to play football and have a beer afterwards. In 1982 we had the idea, together with drummer Rudi Staeger, to start an Austrian Jazz Magazine and Juli 1983 saw the first issue of ‘Jazz Live’, which was about to last more than 15 years. It was a lot of fun doing the magazine together with Rainer, whose incredible photos we used and whose writing style was amazing. I can’t recall how many shows we went to and how many interviews we did, but remember somehow the jazz talk, long into the various nights. His outstanding eye created some classic photos, award winning and seen in exhibitions around the world. After I started in the music business he did a few covers for me, from a jazz compilation for Austrian Tabaco’s ‘Memphis’ brand to Terry Callier and a few others. When I moved to London and later to Madrid, Rainer was one of the few people that stayed in touch, came to visit and as always, we went out and talked music for hours. He had started making photos using digital tools and was extremely successful with these too. When I was in Vienna last in 2019, we saw each other as well, despite him struggling with health issues, which he dealt with in his typical way: with a unique and fine sense of humour, positive and exemplary. I am proud to have been able to call Rainer my friend for so many years, and I am immensely sad about his passing. His photographs will live on, so will the memory of this generous and wonderful human being. If you come to Vienna, please go to the jazz club ‘Porgy & Bess’ and have a look at the wall of photographs he created there, from the pictures he took of artists performing in the club – a 7-meter-long collage of 1200 musicians. My heart goes out to his family, Andrea and the kids, whose loss is tremendous. For me Rainer will always be part of my life and many records or artists will remind me of my wonderful friend. Rest In Peace!
Willi Resetarits, 1948 – 2022, was not only a natural and amazing singer, but a political activist, lover of human beings and part of the Austrian conscience. His death will be felt far beyond the music world of his home country. Willi could sing everything – political folk songs with the group ‘Schmetterlinge’, rock as ‘Kurti Ostbahn’, Jazz in a band with saxophonist Wolfgang Puschnig, Blues or Wiener Lied – and everything was great, as he did it with a smile and honest and because he simply enjoyed doing different things musically. His big success was performing as ‘Kurt Ostbahn’, a fictitious figure created by journalist Guenther Broedl, a kind of Austrian Springsteen – singing in the local dialect. As a person who couldn’t stand any injustice, he always spoke out and being famous helped him to get his message across. Some of the money he made he invested in the Viennese ‘House Of Integration’, which he had set up with some other activists for immigrants to have an initial home, get help, being teached German and generally tried to integrate them into the Austrian society. Willi had what is called Viennese ‘Schmäh’ – the local sense of humour, layered with fine irony and was often seen sitting with his fans talking about music long into the night. He was a truly open and warm guy, who would never turn anyone down. I met him first while playing football with him and then again in the mid 1980’s when we signed him to PolyGram Austria. A great human being, who influenced many people and who will be sorely missed. R.I.P.
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