SWR NEWJazz Meeting 2005

The idea behind the SWR NEWJazz Meeting is to bring together musicians who have never played together before for a few days of rehearsals and thus give new impetus to improvised music. Following a week’s rehearsals an eight-man group of musicians led by Richard Barrett will go on a short tour and give three concerts in the region, the first of which will be at the ZKM.

The British composer, Richard Barrett, who has already appeared as an improvising artist with Paul Obermeyer in the electronic duo called Furt, was commissioned by the SWR2 jazz department to devise a compositional concept for the concerts. One the one hand, fully noted passages provide a formal framework while, on the other, programmed electronic samples create an atmosphere that gives the improvisers all the scope they need for a spontaneous jam session. The SWR NEWJazz Meeting 2005 will feature the following international improvisation artists: Richard Barrett (electronics), Paul Obermayer (electronics), Wolfgang Mitterer (piano/electronics), Ute Wassermann (vocals), Phil Minton (vocals), John Butcher (saxophones), Rhodri Davies (harp), Paul Lovens (drums).