Peter Broetzmann: Free-Jazz, Revolution and the Politics of Improvisation

This book explores the heroic life and revolutionary music of the pioneering German saxophonist, alongside the radical social and political convictions that shaped them. Peter Broetzmann is the first ever full-length, English-language biography of one of the most fascinating and inspiring personalities in the history of Western improvised music, and a key artistic figure to emerge from the socio-cultural upheaval of the 1960s.

Drawing on extensive interviews with Broetzmann and his key associates, it traces the German saxophonist's crucial role as a pioneer of European free jazz, his restless travels and collaborations, and his eventual superstardom. The book examines the life and work of a fiercely uncompromising artist renowned for his gruff intensity and total commitment. Delving deep into the history and aesthetics of free jazz in Europe and beyond, it provides detailed analysis of music by Broetzmann and other major figures, while positioning Broetzmann's work — and the wider free jazz milieu — within the context of the revolutionary left-wing, humanist, and utopian ideals that inspired and underpinned it. Both intimate and wide-ranging, it tells the story of a man and a music that changed the world.