Peter Broetzmann

Peter Broetzmann may be a name that does not ring a bell with most people, and he definitely is not one of the first to jump to mind when thinking of jazz. He is however one of the most experimental and energetic musicians I have heard to this day, and his explorations in free jazz push the boundaries of how we define music. Often a thick wall of sound will be given to us, and we will be tempted to listen for each individual instrument to see how they interact. While the interaction between musicians, especially in a form as improvisational as free jazz, is a key component of the music, the ultimate brilliance of the music is the combined result of the instruments. Almost always uneasy and extremely dissonant, the music demands our attention and makes us reconsider our preconceptions of what can be done with instruments. All that is needed is the will to approach our instruments without imposing limits upon ourselves regarding what we can do with them. I recommend his masterpiece "Machine Gun" for those not familiar with his work. Those who have only explore more standard be-bop based jazz may be more comfortable trying out John Coltrane's "Ascension" before immersing themselves in Broetzmann's work.

Several live clips
http://www.efi.group.shef.ac.uk/mbrotzm.html

Extensive discography
http://www.fmp-label.de/freemusicproduction/musiker/broetzmann.html