List of free improvising musicians and groups

This is a list of musicians and groups who compose and play free music, or free improvisation. In alphabetical order:

Musicians

Susan Alcorn – pedal steel guitar
Jason Alder – clarinet, bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet
Thomas Ankersmit – saxophone, synthesizer
Albert Ayler – saxophone
Richard Barrett – electronics, sampler
Derek Bailey – guitar^[1]
Conny Bauer – trombone
Burkhard Beins – percussion
Samm Bennett – percussion, electronics
Han Bennink – percussion
Steve Beresford – piano
Jean-Jacques Birge – synthesizer
Jeb Bishop – trombone
Anthony Braxton – saxophones
John Wolf Brennan – piano, prepared piano, melodica, pipe organ
Olie Brice – double bass
Peter Brötzmann – saxophone, tárogató
Tony Buck – percussion
John Butcher – saxophone
Captain Beefheart – saxophone, clarinet, voice
Kent Carter – double bass
Graham Clark – violin
Ornette Coleman – saxophone^[2]
Tom Cora – cello, bass guitar, drums
Lol Coxhill – saxophone
Marilyn Crispell – piano
Stephen Crowe – guitar, electric guitar
Alvin Curran - electronics
Chris Cutler – percussion
Tobias Delius – saxophone
Poulomi Desai - modified sitars and electronics^[3]
Christy Doran – guitar
Mark Dresser – double bass
Kevin Drumm – guitar, synthesizer
Paul Dunmall – saxophone
Ellery Eskelin – tenor saxophone
Karlheinz Essl – electronics
Julia Feldman – voice
Simon H. Fell – double bass
Robert Fripp - guitar, mellotron
Fred Frith – guitar, violin
Cor Fuhler – piano, keyolin, synthesizer
Bernhard Gal – electronics
Joel Garten – piano
Charles Gayle – saxophone, piano, bass clarinet
Seppe Gebruers – the first improvised quartertone pianist
Richard Grayson – piano
Mats Gustafsson – saxophone, flutophone
Barry Guy – double bass
Keiji Haino – guitar, voice
Hans Hassler - accordion
Gerry Hemingway – drums
Zach Hill – drums
Killick Erik Hinds – h'arpeggione
Tim Hodgkinson – saxophone
Theo Joergensmann – basset clarinet
Ryan Jones – electric bass
Henry Kaiser – guitar
Leonel Kaplan – trumpet
Basil Kirchin – drums
Peter Kowald – double bass
Savina Yannatou – voice
Caroline Kraabel – saxophone
Steve Lacy – saxophone
Kathryn Ladano – bass clarinet
Yuri Landman – string instruments
Jeanne Lee – voice
Thomas Lehn – synthesizer
George E. Lewis – trombone, electronics
Joelle Leandre – double bass, vocals
Fred Lonberg-Holm – cello
Paul Lovens – drums
Paul Lytton – drums
Frederik Magle – organ
Radu Malfatti – trombone
Joe Maneri – saxophone, clarinet
Mario Mariani – piano, objects
Elio Martusciello – computer, guitar
Mattin
Guerino Mazzola – piano
Misha Mengelberg – piano, toys
Phil Minton – voice
Louis Moholo – drums
Gabriela Montero – piano
Michael Moore – saxophone, clarinet, bass clarinet
Thurston Moore – guitar
Butch Morris – cornet, conductor
Jamie Muir – percussion
Stephen Nachmanovitch – violin, electric violin, viola
Lauren Newton - voice
Maggie Nicols – voice
Mary Oliver – violin, viola
Tony Oxley – percussion
Sonia Paço-Rocchia – bassoon, found and invented instruments, live electronics
Evan Parker – saxophones
William Parker – double bass
Mike Patton – voice, piano, synthesizer
Barre Phillips – double bass
Andreas Paolo Perger – guitar
Pierre Pincemaille – organ
Eddie Prevost – percussion, drums
Sun Ra^[4] — Keyboards, piano, minimoog
Randy Raine-Reusch – zheng, khaen, sho, kayageum, ichigenkin
Lee Ranaldo – guitar
Marc Rebillet — electronics, keyboards, voice
Hans Reichel – guitar, daxophone^[1]
Ernst Reijseger – cello
Omar Rodriguez-Lopez – guitar
Keith Rowe – guitar^[1]
John Russell – guitar
Paul Rutherford – trombone
Frederic Rzewski
Carlos Sandoval – gloves with sensors
Giancarlo Schiaffini – trombone
Alexander von Schlippenbach – piano
Steven Schoenberg – piano
Irene Schweizer – piano
Matthew Shipp – piano
Gary Smith – guitar
John Stevens – percussion, trumpet
György Szabados – piano
Cecil Taylor – piano
Benedict Taylor – viola
Pat Thomas – piano, keyboards
John Tilbury – piano
Keith Tippett – piano
Julie Tippetts – voice
Tommy Vig – vibraphone, drums
Bernard Vitet – trumpet
Voice Crack – electronics
Philipp Wachsmann – violin
John Bruce Wallace – electric guitar
Jane Wang (composer and musician) – double bass
Trevor Watts – saxophone
Kenny Wheeler – trumpet
Wolter Wierbos – trombone
Wu Fei - guzheng
Otomo Yoshihide – guitar, turntable
Reynaldo Young – guitar, electronics
Carlos Zingaro – violin, electronics
John Zorn – saxophone
Frank Zappa – Guitar
Jerry Garcia – Guitar, Face Stealer
Bob Weir – Guitar
Phil Lesh – Bass Guitar
Bill Kreutzmann – Drums
Mickey Hart – Drums, Percussion
Ron "Pigpen" McKernan – Hammond organ, Harmonica
Keith Godchaux – Piano
Trey Anastasio – Guitar, Face Melter
Mike Gordon – Bass Guitar
Page McConnell – Piano, Keyboards
Jon Fishman – Drums

Groups

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Berendt, Joachim-Ernst; Huesmann, Gunther (2009). The Jazz Book: From Ragtime to the 21st Century (7 ed.). Chicago, Illinois: Lawrence Hill Books. p. 433. ISBN 978-1-55652820-0.
^ Bailey, C. Michael. "Ornette Coleman: Free Jazz". All About Jazz. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
^ "Poulomi Desai: The Oram Awards 2020". PRS for Music Foundation. Retrieved 2022-09-13.
^ Sun Ra Allaboutjazz.com 31 December 2022

[Berendt-1] Berendt, Joachim-Ernst; Huesmann, Gunther (2009). The Jazz Book: From Ragtime to the 21st Century (7 ed.). Chicago, Illinois: Lawrence Hill Books. p. 433. ISBN 978-1-55652820-0.

[2] Bailey, C. Michael. "Ornette Coleman: Free Jazz". All About Jazz. Retrieved 29 December 2022.

[3] "Poulomi Desai: The Oram Awards 2020". PRS for Music Foundation. Retrieved 2022-09-13.

[4] Sun Ra Allaboutjazz.com 31 December 2022

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