Peter Brötzmann
Born Remscheid, Germany on 6 March 1941; soprano, alto, tenor, baritone and bass saxophones, a-clarinet, e-flat clarinet; bass clarinet, tarogato. Peter Brötzmann's early interest was in painting and he attended the art academy in Wuppertal. Being very dissatisfied with the gallery/exhibition situation in art he found greater satisfaction playing with semi-professional musicians, though continued to paint (as well as retaining a level of control over his own records, particularly in record sleeve/CD booklet design). In late 2005 he had a major retrospective exhibition jointly with Han Bennink - two separate buildings separated by an inter-connecting glass corridor - in Brötzmann's home town of Remscheid.
Self-taught on clarinets, he soon moved to saxophones and began playing swing/bebop, before meeting Peter Kowald. During 1962/63 Brötzmann, Kowald and various drummers played regularly - Mingus, Ornette Coleman, etc. - while experiencing freedoms from a different perspective via Stockhausen, Nam June Paik, David Tudor and John Cage. In the mid 1960s, he played with American musicians such as Don Cherry and Steve Lacy and, following a sojourn in Paris with Don Cherry, returned to Germany for his unorthodox approach to be accepted by local musicians like Alex von Schlippenbach and Manfred Schoof.
The trio of Peter Brötzmann, Peter Kowald and Sven-Ake Johansson began playing in 1965/66 and it was a combination of this and the Schoof/Schlippenbach Quintet that gave rise to the first Globe Unity Orchestra. Following the self-production of his first two LPs, For Adolphe Sax and Machine gun for his private label, BRO-, a recording for Manfred Eicher's 'Jazz by Post' (JAPO) [Nipples], and a number of concert recordings with different sized groups, Brötzmann worked with Jost Gebers and started the FMP label. He also began to work more regularly with Dutch musicians, forming a trio briefly with Willem Breuker and Han Bennink before the long-lasting group with Han Bennink and Fred Van Hove. As a trio, and augmented with other musicians who could stand the pace (e.g. Albert Mangelsdorff on, for example, The Berlin concert), this lasted until the mid-1970s though Brötzmann and Bennink continued to play and record as a duo, and in other combinations, after this time. A group with Harry Miller and Louis Moholo continued the trio format though was cut short by Miller's early death.
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Album Review
- The Catch Of A Ghost by Mark Corroto
- Tongue In A Bell by Mark Corroto
- Karacho! by Mark Corroto
- I Surrender Dear by Mark Corroto
- Live In Tel Aviv by Enrico Bettinello
- Ears Are Filled With Wonder by John Sharpe
- Risc by Mark Corroto
- Münster Bern by Mark Corroto
- Soulfood Available by Stefano Merighi
- Tales Out Of Time by Mark Corroto
June 04, 2014
Jazz This Week: Peter Brotzmann Trio, Peter Martin and Vivian Sessoms,...
May 28, 2014
Vision Festival 19 Celebrates Jeff Schlanger musicWitness Lifetime Of...
May 18, 2014
STLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Peter Brotzmann, William Parker and...
August 17, 2012
October 02, 2011
Peter Brotzmann and Andrew Cyrille - Andrew Cyrille Meets Peter...
June 13, 2011
Peter Brotzmann Honored With Lifetime Achievment Award at Vision...
June 07, 2011
Peter Brotzmann Rises and Shines on Wednesday at Vision Festival 16.
May 20, 2011
Brotzmann's Chicago Tentet, 2004, "Be Music, Night"
August 27, 2010
Peter Brotzmann - Machine Gun (1968)
May 13, 2010
Peter Brotzmann and Paal Nilssen-Love - Woodcuts (Smalltown Superjazz)
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