Redtenbacher's Funkestra

What a ride! Our FUNKOPIA tour was a joy from start to finish — huge thanks to all the venues and their teams, promoters, agents, and of course the fantastic musicians who made it happen: Mike, Pete, Piers, Terry, Rich, Simon, Rob, Chris and James.

Most of all, heartfelt thanks to all our fans and friends who came out to support us — three sold-out shows (including London!) made it extra special. Your energy truly fuels us.

Grateful to everyone who took a limited-edition FUNKOPIA vinyl, CD, or T-shirt home — every bit of support keeps the Funkestra groove alive.

We’ll wrap up the year with one more FUNKOPIA show at Peggy’s Skylight, Nottingham – Thu Dec 5. Come join us for our final funk throwdown of 2025 and help us toast 30 years of the Funkestra!

#RedtenbachersFunkestra #FUNKOPIA #Funkestra30 #UKTour #Funk #JazzFunk #LiveMusic #PeggysSkylight #InstrumentalFunk #RSBRecords #MasterlinkSessions #ThankYou #VinylCommunity #SupportLiveMusic #IndependentMusic

3 weeks ago | [YT] | 6

Redtenbacher's Funkestra

Dear friends and Jazz Funk Fusion lovers,

The day has finally come – FUNKOPIA is out today on RSB Records.

This album marks a true milestone: 30 years since I first gathered the musicians who would become Redtenbacher’s Funkestra. Back in 1995 at Berklee, I could not have imagined that three decades later I’d still be working on this collective – writing, recording, and performing original funk-jazz music with such an incredible network of players. What started as a student recital has grown into a long-running band, a recording family, and a creative community.

FUNKOPIA is the latest chapter in that journey. Ten new originals, recorded with many of my long-standing collaborators. Every track reflects the spirit of collaboration that has kept this project alive all these years.

MUSICIANS ON FUNKOPIA
* Horn House: Nichol Thomson (trombone), Tom Walsh (trumpet), Graeme Blevins (saxophones), Andrew Ross (saxophones & flutes)
* Saxophones: Tucker Antell, Piers Green, Andreas See
* Guitars: Carter Arrington, Simon Peter King, Mike Outram, Nigel Price, Tony Rémy
* Keyboards: Joe Glossop, Dave Limina, Anders Olinder, Ross Stanley, Stevie Watts, Jim Watson
* Drums: Doug Harper, Mike Sturgis, Ian Thomas
* Percussion: Fergus Gerrand, Karl Vanden Bossche
* Bass: Stefan Redtenbacher

The album is available digitally on all platforms (incl. Bandcamp and SoundCloud) – and for those who prefer something to hold, we’ve pressed a limited edition 180g translucent red vinyl with printed inner sleeve and artwork by Neil J Hart, alongside photography by Rob Blackham. It’s a record that feels special not only musically but also as a physical object.

DIGITAL
artists.landr.com/FUNKOPIA
VINYL LP
funkifylife.com/products/funkopia-vinyl-lp-limited…

To mark the release, we’re taking the Funkestra on the road for a run of UK dates this autumn and winter. We’ll be bringing FUNKOPIA to life on stage, celebrating the new music while also looking back on three decades of funk, fusion, and friendship.

UK TOUR DATES
* PizzaExpress Live, Holborn (London) – October 7
* Dawkes Music (Maidenhead) – October 9
* The Civic, Trowbridge – October 17
* Loxwood Jazz Club, Billingshurst – October 21
* Ex Cellar, Kingston – October 24
* West End Centre, Aldershot – November 1
* Peggy’s Skylight, Nottingham – December 5

www.bandsintown.com/a/2091788

The FUNKOPIA YouTube video playlist:
youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZ...

I want to thank everyone who has supported this project so far – whether you’ve come to shows, bought vinyl, streamed our music, or shared it with friends. Every bit of encouragement has allowed me to keep creating and to grow the Funkestra into what it is today.

So, whether you’ve been following us since the early days or have just discovered our music, I invite you to dive into FUNKOPIA. Turn it up loud, enjoy the grooves, and celebrate 30 years of funk with us.
Listen on your favourite digital platform and if you’d like to support us even further, consider picking up the vinyl. It means a lot, and it all goes back into making more music.

With gratitude and funk, Stefan

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1 month ago (edited) | [YT] | 4

Redtenbacher's Funkestra

New single this Friday: ‘Crowbar’

This penultimate Funkestra single before the *FUNKOPIA* album (Oct 3) started life as ‘Jive Detector’ (a phrase from Dr John’s 'Under a Hoodoo Moon'), briefly morphed into ‘Major Arcana’, and finally became ‘Crowbar’ — a nickname from James Welch at Masterlink Productions.

🎶 A New Orleans-influenced funk track written by Stefan Redtenbacher, Nichol Thomson & Tom Walsh, featuring:

* Stefan Redtenbacher – bass
* Mike Sturgis – drums
* Tony Remy & Carter Arrington – guitars
* Ross Stanley – Hammond
* Karl Vanden Bossche – percussion
* Horn House – horns (Nichol Thomson - trombone, Tom Walsh - trumpet)

⚡ Expect raw energy, groove, a raucous guitar solo from Carter, fire from Ross on Hammond and plenty of customary oompf from Horn House.

📽️ Production credits:
Filmed by Leo Mansell
Recorded & mixed by James Welch
Studio assistant – Tyler Davies
Mastered by Tim Debney
Artwork – Neil J Hart

👉 Watch the behind-the-scenes clapper board moment now and pre-save ‘Crowbar’ here:
artists.landr.com/crowbar-masterlink-sessions


#Crowbar #Funkestra #Funkopia #BehindTheScenes #StudioGroove #JazzFunk
#hornhouse

2 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 1

Redtenbacher's Funkestra

Out now. We took Chaka’s “Any Old Sunday” for a soulful spin—one take, no safety net. Jess Hayes up front; Ross Stanley preaching on Hammond; Chris Booth keeping it tasty; Doug Harper deep in the pocket; Stefan Redtenbacher on the low end. Lindsey Bonnick & Nora Anna on BVs—class. Big up the Masterlink Sessions team: James Welch (record/mix/master), Leo Mansell (film), Tyler Davies (assist).

#AnyOldSunday #ChakaKhanCover #JessHayes #MasterlinkSessions #RedtenbachersFunkestra #StefanRedtenbacher #UKSoul #SoulMusic #LiveSession #HammondOrgan #Bass #SurreyHills #BerkleeAlumni

3 months ago | [YT] | 1

Redtenbacher's Funkestra

OUT NOW!
‘Hi Länder’ collab between the Funkestra and Austrian saxophonist and long-term friend Andreas See.
What a banger of an instrumental Jazz Funk tune:

- Doug Harper on drums took the instruction ‘GO APE!’ really well
- Fergus Gerrand on percussion used at least 5% of his 1000+ percussion instruments with grace and taste, including
Unison Glockenspiel (he has some fast hands for sure!)
- Dave Limina playing those lush chords and 'expensive' voicings
both on Hammond and Rhodes.
- Carter Thomas Arrington didn’t only play an ueber jam funk guitar part he also laid down a tasteful yet powerful guitar solo.
- The bass - well someone had to play it - what was I thinking at this speed?
- And last but not very least, apart from co-writing this track with Andi he plays a cracker of a tenor sax solo and does what he does best - paints a melodic landscape with plenty of excitement and grit. No mean feat!
We hope you’ll like this one - we are super-proud and excited about it. We love the ‘near falling over’ feeling when listening to it!

BACKSTORY
redtenbachersfunkestra.com/2025/08/22/hi-laender-i…


41 Days to go until FUNKOPIA drops! Celebrating the Redtenbacher's Funkestra 30th birthday and this single does us proud for sure!

You can pre-order the vinyl here: funkifylife.com/products/funkopia-vinyl-lp-limited…

3 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 0

Redtenbacher's Funkestra

Coming soon—full release + pre-save link below. If you dig this vibe, tap 👍 and subscribe for the full session.
artists.landr.com/any-old-sunday-masterlink-sessio…

3 months ago | [YT] | 0

Redtenbacher's Funkestra

OUT NOW!
The full-length Masterlink Sessions video of “Humility with Style” by Mark Nevin is here.

A beautiful live-in-the-studio performance, captured in one take with the Masterlink Sessions Collective (aka Redtenbacher’s Funkestra).

🎥 Watch the full video here: https://youtu.be/LERELtUH3fk?si=LPJUw...
🎧 Stream the single everywhere: artists.landr.com/humility-with-style-masterlink-s…

If you enjoy it, drop a comment and let us know your favourite moment! 💬🙌

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3 months ago | [YT] | 3

Redtenbacher's Funkestra

Jazz Funk music lovers!

In a spirited return to their musical roots, Redtenbacher’s Funkestra joined forces with Horn House—a virtuosic horn section led by trombonist Nichol Thomson—to release the jazz‑funk single “Old Blood [Vinyl Cut].”

The collaboration marks a powerful reunion: Thom­son and bandleader Stefan Redtenbacher initially met as students at Berklee College of Music in the mid‑1990s.

After both establishing careers in London, they reunited some 25 years later for this track—a fitting “full‑circle” musical journey reflected in the title.

This is another slice from the forthcoming FUNKOPIA vinyl LP (dropping Oct 3 on RSB Records).

3 months ago | [YT] | 1

Redtenbacher's Funkestra

🎥 Something special is coming soon from the Masterlink Sessions…

Singer-songwriter Mark Nevin (yes, the man behind Perfect and Fairground Attraction) joined the Masterlink Sessions Collective to record a brand new live-in-the-studio version of his latest song ‘Humility with Style’ 🎶

Keep your eyes (and ears) peeled – full session dropping soon!

#MasterlinkSessions #MarkNevin #HumilityWithStyle #FairgroundAttraction #Perfect #LiveInTheStudio #NewMusic #StudioCollective #RedtenbachersFunkestra

3 months ago | [YT] | 1

Redtenbacher's Funkestra

JAN ROUNDUP! here are the four releases recorded here at the #masterlinksessions to keep an eye out for this month...

The best part - you can listen to the singles now, on streaming platforms by following the link in the bio 👉👉

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10 months ago | [YT] | 5