Swiss jazz icon Irène Schweizer has died

Irène Schweizer, the grande dame of Swiss jazz, has died Keystone-SDA

The pianist and grande dame of Swiss jazz has died at the age of 83.

She died on Tuesday in Zurich, record label Intakt Records told news agency Keystone-SDA.

From Dixieland in her parents’ restaurant, Irène Schweizer moved on to free jazz, which she played on stages all over the world. The Swiss pianist and percussionist has won numerous awards.

Schweizer gave her last major public concert in July 2019 at the “Konfrontationen” festival in Nickelsdorf, Austria: a duet with American drummer Hamid Drake has since been released on CD (Intakt Records) under the title “Celebration”.

Born in Schaffhausen on June 2, 1941, Schweizer is one of the most outstanding Swiss figures in modern jazz, whose work has been recognised with the Swiss Grand Prix for Music in 2018. A pianist and percussionist, she began exploring the jazz scene in London and Zurich in the 1960s.

In 1968, in Zurich, she met drummer Pierre Favre from Neuchâtel, with whom she forged a long artistic partnership. Together, they made a major contribution to the development of free jazz and improvised piano music.

Schweizer has performed in concert all over the world, both as a soloist and with various groups. She has also recorded numerous solo and duo albums (notably with Pierre Favre and Joey Baron). Her duets with drummers such as American Andrew Cyrille, Dutchman Han Bennink, German Günter Sommer and, more recently, American Hamid Drake are legendary.

A central figure in the feminist music movement in Europe (“Feminist Improvising Group”, “Les Diaboliques”), she is co-founder of the Taktlos festival, the “Werkstatt für Improvisierte Musik Zürich” (WIM), and the jazz label Intakt Records.

Despite her success abroad, Schweizer never abandoned the local scene. She continued to play alongside Swiss musicians such as saxophonist Co Streiff – Irène Schweizer often played drums with her – Omri Ziegele and Jürg Wickihalder.

Adapted from French by DeepL/ac

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