Jazz Articles about Peter Brötzmann

Peter Br: FMP 130

by Kurt Gottschalk
October 4, 2005

22 years hence, these European masters have pretty well cemented themselves in their own corners of the free improv universe: the fury, sometimes restrained, of Peter Brötzmann; the madness of Han Bennink; and the elegant wandering of Fred van Hove. But when they got together in Bremen on February 25, 1973, it was with a sense of discovery, a mutual wide-eyedness that made anything possible.The ten tracks on this 2003 release (originally put out on FMP vinyl) are ...

Peter Br: Signs

by John Kelman
May 2, 2005

Woodwind multi-instrumentalist Peter Brötzmann has never been one to shy away from extremes in a career that has spanned nearly forty years and nearly a hundred albums. He has been one of the strongest proponents to emerge from the Albert Ayler school of musical thought. While he's capable of extracting an incredible array of sounds from his instruments--often difficult to identify for all his extended techniques--he has also adhered to some semblance of organization, even within what might appear to ...

Peter Br: Still Quite Popular After All Those Years

by Alexander Vogel
April 22, 2005

It has been 24 years since these two musicians have engaged in a duo, or any other musical collaboration. The musical association of German multi-woodwind stalwart Peter Brötzmann with ever-eccentric Dutch drummer Han Bennink can be dated back to 1968, perhaps earlier. Together with Brötzman's octet, they would release one of the most overwhelming albums in jazz history: Machine Gun. They would then form a trio with the Belgian pianist from the octet, Fred Van Hove, continuing with the same ...

Br: Medicina

by Rex Butters
March 22, 2005

Medicina further documents Peter Brötzmann's volcanic creativity, here in a trio with veteran collaborators Peeter Uuskyla on drums and Peter Friis Nielsen on electric bass. While recent recordings have shown the Teutonic Tornado varying his attack with a relatively gentle touch, Medicina is pure balls-out Brötzmann, except for a ballad and his lyrical intro to “Hard Time Blues." He might as well be Thor, saxophone lightning launcher. Notably, each piece receives individual compositional credit. Whatever structures these guys erect are ...

Peter Br

by Clifford Allen
December 18, 2004

Peter Brötzmann is probably more famous (or infamous) for his lung power and ability to break a rib blowing a bass saxophone than for his ability to direct a truly cooperative group and extend a multitude of concepts over several bands. A contemporary of and heir to Frank Wright, power is not out of the question (Brötz did make appearances in the Center of the World group, after all), but if one traces the lineage of his music from caterwauling ...

Br: Medicina

by Alexander Vogel
December 2, 2004

Peter Brötzmann is a German saxophonist who has explored the intense and dissonant worlds of jazz. Many critics claim that his pinnacle recording was with his octet in the 1968 session Machine Gun, one of the loudest, most intense and just plain frightening jazz albums of all time. Even the loudest metal bands cannot match its cacophony. Brötzmann has recruited two Scandinavian musicians who share the same first name for this session, though the drummer has an alternate spelling. This ...

Br: Berlin Djungle

by Jerry D'Souza
November 23, 2004

Peter Brötzmann has that unique gift of getting together musicians who are compatriots in his mission to forge unusual permutations and sounds and continuously revitalise free music. His is an ongoing adventure that gets him to explore unusual avenues and, even where it seems that the path has been trodden in the past, he leaves behind a singular impress.

This 1984 recording marks another creative notch. The lineup has some of the best free thinkers and instant improvisers ...