Jerry Wigens

I was inspired to start playing in the late 60s/early 70s by British progressive bands such as Soft Machine and avant American jazzers and jazz rockers like Coltrane, Miles Davis and Chicago. Guitar has always been my main instrument but I have been involved in the London improvisation scene for nearly twenty years or so as a clarinetist in addition to playing guitar and mandolin. I worked my way through various bands in the 70s, 80s, 90s and 00s and now enjoy a varied and diverse range of musical activities from the free-jazz explorations of the band Glowering Figs (with Ivor Kallin (bass/vocals) and Dave Fowler (drums) to various stable combinations of improvisers, notably a trio with violinist Sylvia Hallett and flautist/vocalist Thomas Kumlehn, Esha Jotwe Teka. I also have a strong interest in composition and the possibilities of writing for freely improvising musicians using loosely structured forms which encourage performer freedom in a collaborative context.

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