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About us, the Band

*in Marion's words

MWQ was formed in late 2024, we are a contemporary jazz quartet from Austria.

Pianist Fabian Mang (AT), drummer Christoph Suttner (AT) and bassist Luka Dobnikar (SLO) have individually had my back since even before that - we met and played together in different formations prior to creating a fixed band. Each of us has their lives centered in different places at the moment, meaning that we as a band are not really based in a specific town. We met while studying music at the music-university in Klagenfurt, Carinthia, Austria - so if someone needed to, they could locally assign us there.

In September 2025 we released our first Album "Am Ondan End".

It was independently produced in Klagenfurt and presented at STEP in Völkermarkt in the following October. All of the Songs (except #7 which is Christoph's creation) were composed by myself, with each of the band members adding their individual touches here and there. This made it an inredibly delicate, refreshing and atmospheric piece of musical art - which I am very grateful for and proud of.

If you ask me personally what makes my quartet's sound distinctive compared to the sea of modern jazz quartets out there... I will try to tell you short and crisp:
It is the interaction of Christoph's rather hard and percise style of drumming with Fabian's soft touch and melodious playing on the piano. It is Luka's bassplaying that reflects the kindness of his person which makes him fit right in between the other two. It is my ambition to look at details and understanding the importance of not moving on until certain things feel right. It is our shared interest in the technical aspects of music and the profound love and need for it in our lives. Singing in my native austrian dialect and playing the violin in a jazz context are probably more obvious qualities that distinct MWQ from other bands in the genre, but there you go.

Genre Placement

"With its poetic, topic-rich lyrics the Marion Wolf Quartett aims to pioneer a fresh new wave of austro-vocal-jazz."

We consider ourselves to be coming from a professional jazz-background, since that is what each of us has a music degree in.... but we would rather not have our musical creations put into strict boxes - it's just really not as simple as that. Yes, the band's program uses elements of genres such as latin, hip-hop, blues, pop, free-jazz and contemporary ECM.
In my newest compositions (eg. ZWILLING or DREIZACK) I can feel my music slowly but surely moving away from what most would consider the typical sound of the "Contemporary Jazz" genre - towards a more beat-heavy, crossover kind of vibe.

For this project I did write songs that are instrumental, no voice and therefore without lyrics aswell. I have also writtten songs which were voice-centered, no violin at hand (you will hear what I mean when you take the time to listen to our first album "Am Ondan End"). It took me some time trying out different setups, but I have now decided for myself that all my future releases with MWQ will, if possible, feature both my voice and violin-playing.

I just feel most at home doing both.

Skilfully finding and integrating my mother tongue (the Austrian dialect of the German language) in a modern jazz-context has become one of my priorities and biggest joys in life. I will never understand why barely any other vocalists with a background in jazz music write in Austrian. Sometimes you just have to fill out the niche you love, regardless of what everybody else or the market thinks about it.

The other niche that I am passionate about is jazz violin. There is just something about playing this wooden instrument that is so unlike playing anything else. It is frustratingly difficult to play it, regardless of the genre… but jazz music with its mathematical structures and improvisational aspects makes it even less welcoming for a (over)sensitive instrument like the violin – sometimes it feels almost impossible to fit it in. And that is what makes jazz violin so indispensable for me. It represents the hard contrary to singing and the intuitive performing of lyrics. Over the past years I have realised that in order to be a happy artist, I have to persue both. Thankfully, my amazing band has become experienced at making space for me walking this tightrope walk.