Keith Jarrett’s legendary performance in January 1975 nearly didn’t happen. Based on a true story, Köln 75 follows how the concert was conceived and orchestrated by the efforts of a teenage up and coming concert promoter, Vera Brandes, played by German actress Mala Emde. Her enthusiasm set her to multitasking—from organizing the concert venue (the Cologne Opera House), promoting the event, and selling the tickets, to convincing Jarrett to perform when he almost dropped out. John Magaro (First Cow; Past Lives) plays Jarrett with stoic intensity, a sublime counterpoint to Brandes’ joyful and unstoppable enthusiasm at every situation she encounters. Köln 75 captures the compelling, entertaining and, until now, unknown story behind Jarrett’s one-hour, entirely improvised concert, which became the best-selling solo album in jazz history.
Köln 75
This film is part of the Sounds of Summer series.
This series is sponsored by:
The Lucille & Paul Maslin Foundation
Janet Maslin
Exclusive media partner:

Köln 75
2025. 112 m. Ido Fluk. Zeitgeist Films. Belgium/Germany/Poland. English/German with subtitles. Rated NR.
Tickets: $11 (members), $16 (nonmembers)
"Köln 75 is an enjoyably off-beat blend of biopic, historical pageant and music-geek lecture from US writer-director Ido Fluk."
"A vivid vehicle for a dynamic, often very funny Emde who, at 28, is convincing as a wide-eyed, sharp-mouthed teenage force of nature."
This film is part of the following initiatives:
This film is part of the Sounds of Summer series.
This series is sponsored by:
The Lucille & Paul Maslin Foundation
Janet Maslin
Exclusive media partner:

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