John Zorn is an American composer, conductor, saxophonist, arranger and producer who "deliberately resists category". His avant-garde and experimental approaches to composition and improvisation are inclusive of jazz, rock, hardcore, classical, contemporary, surf, metal, soundtrack, ambient, and world music. In 2013, Down Beat described Zorn as "one of our most important composers" and in 2020 Rolling Stone noted that "[alt]hough Zorn has operated almost entirely outside the mainstream, he's gradually asserted himself as one of the most influential musicians of our time".
Masada is a musical group with rotating personnel led by American saxophonist and composer John Zorn since the early 1990s.
Painkiller is an avant-garde jazz and grindcore band that formed in 1991. Later albums incorporated elements of ambient and dub.
Step Across the Border is a 1990 avant-garde documentary film on English guitarist, composer and improviser Fred Frith. It was written and directed by Nicolas Humbert and Werner Penzel and released in Germany and Switzerland. The film was screened in cinemas in North America, South America, Europe and Japan, and on television in the United States, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and France. It was also released on VHS by RecRec Music (Switzerland) in 1990, and was later released on DVD by Winter & Winter Records (Germany) in 2003.
Tonic was a music venue located in New York City founded by Melissa Caruso Scott and John Scott. First opened in 1998, it described itself as supporting "avant garde, creative and experimental music" and known for its commitment to musical integrity. Tonic was a former kosher winery and after opening quickly became a focal point of the downtown avant-garde scene. The small and unassuming building provided a sense of intimacy by setting the performers within arms length of the audience. Tonic also doubled as a place for a variety of musicians to record live.
John Zorn appears on over 400 recordings as a composer or performer. This is a selection of recordings released under his name, bands he was/is part of, collaborations with other musicians, and significant albums to which he has contributed. The year indicates when the album was first released and any subsequent years if the following release included additional material.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 7 is a live album by Masada documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of John Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 4 is a live album by Electric Masada documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of John Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 9 is a live album by John Zorn featuring a solo performance at Tonic in September 2003 that was part of his month-long 50th Birthday Celebration concert series. It is a continuation of his solo work documented on The Classic Guide to Strategy Volumes 1 & 2.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 1 is a live album by the Masada String Trio documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of John Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration concert series.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 2 is a live album of improvised music by Milford Graves and John Zorn documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration concert series.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 3: Locus Solus is a live album of improvised music by Anton Fier, Arto Lindsay and John Zorn documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration concert series.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 6: Hemophiliac is a live album of improvised music by Mike Patton, Ikue Mori and John Zorn documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration concert series.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 8 is a live album of improvised music by Susie Ibarra, Wadada Leo Smith and John Zorn documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration concert series.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 10 is a live album of improvised music by Yamataka Eye and John Zorn documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of John Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration concert series. Guitarist Fred Frith also appears on one track.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 11 is a triple live album by the Bar Kokhba Sextet documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of John Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration.
50th Birthday Celebration Volume 12 is a live album by Painkiller documenting their performance at Tonic in September 2003 as part of John Zorn's month-long 50th Birthday Celebration concert series.
Xu Feng: John Zorn's Game Pieces Volume 1 is a studio album by American composer John Zorn consisting of game pieces. It features improvisations performed by an ensemble of pairs of musicians using the same instruments: Chris Brown and David Slusser on electronics; Fred Frith and John Schott on guitars; and Dave Lombardo and William Winant on drums and percussion. The album is titled after Xu Feng, a Taiwanese actress featured in many martial arts films who appears on the cover art, a still of Raining in the Mountain (1979).
Late Works is a studio album by John Zorn and Fred Frith. It is the fourth collaborative album by the duo, and their first studio album. It was recorded at East Side Sound in New York City on October 16, 2009, and was released by Tzadik Records in April 2010.
Dalaba Frith Glick Rieman Kihlstedt, also stylized as DalabaFrithGlickRiemanKihlstedt, is a 2003 studio album of improvised experimental music by Lesli Dalaba, Fred Frith, Eric Glick Rieman and Carla Kihlstedt. It was recorded at Guerrilla Recording in Oakland, California, and was released by Accretions Records in San Diego, California in 2003.
