Derek Bailey was an English avant-garde guitarist and an important figure in the free improvisation movement. Bailey abandoned conventional performance techniques found in jazz, exploring atonality, noise, and whatever unusual sounds he could produce with the guitar. Much of his work was released on his own label Incus Records. In addition to solo work, Bailey collaborated frequently with other musicians and recorded with collectives such as Spontaneous Music Ensemble and Company.
Evan Shaw Parker is a British tenor and soprano saxophone player who plays free improvisation.
Tony Oxley was an English free improvising drummer and electronic musician.
Barry John Guy is an English composer and double bass player. His range of interests encompasses early music, contemporary composition, jazz and improvisation, and he has worked with a wide variety of orchestras in the UK and Europe. He studied at the Guildhall School of Music under Buxton Orr, and later taught there.
Paul William Rutherford was an English free improvising trombonist.
The Topography of the Lungs is an album by saxophonist Evan Parker, guitarist Derek Bailey and percussionist Han Bennink recorded in London on 13 July, 1970 and became the first release on the Incus label. It is considered a milestone of the free improvisation genre.
Philipp John Paul Wachsmann is an African avant-garde jazz/jazz fusion violinist born in Kampala, Uganda, probably better known for having founded his own group Chamberpot. He has worked with many musicians in the free jazz idiom, including Tony Oxley, Fred van Hove, Barry Guy, Derek Bailey and Paul Rutherford, among many others. Wachsmann is especially known for playing within the electronica idiom.
Paul Lytton is an English free jazz and free improvising percussionist.
John Howard Riley is an English pianist and composer, who worked in jazz and experimental music idioms.
Larry Stabbins is a British jazz saxophonist, flutist and composer.
Ode is an album by the London Jazz Composers' Orchestra composed by bassist Barry Guy and conducted by his teacher, Buxton Orr. It was recorded as part of the English Bach Festival at the Oxford Town Hall in 1972 and first released as a double album on the Incus label then as a double CD on Intakt in 1996 with additional material.
Song for Someone is the second album led by trumpeter and composer Kenny Wheeler which was recorded in 1973 and released on the Incus label. The album was rereleased on CD on Psi Records in 2004.
The Enchanted Messenger is a live album by a fifteen-piece ensemble called the Tony Oxley Celebration Orchestra, led by English percussionist Tony Oxley, and with trumpeter Bill Dixon appearing as a featured artist. It was recorded in November 1994 at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt on the last day of the Berlin Jazz Festival, and was released in 1995 by Soul Note. The album documents a realization of a 19-part graphic score by Oxley. The performance, which was preceded by two days of rehearsal, was also broadcast on Berlin radio and television.
The Tony Oxley Quartet is an album by the group of the same name, led by percussionist Tony Oxley, and featuring guitarist Derek Bailey, keyboardist Pat Thomas, and electronic musician Matt Wand. It was recorded on April 8, 1992, at WDR, Cologne, and was released in 1993 by Incus Records.
Ichnos is an album by English musician Tony Oxley. Released in 1971 by RCA Victor, it features Oxley on percussion, Evan Parker on saxophone, Kenny Wheeler on trumpet and flugelhorn, Paul Rutherford on trombone, Derek Bailey on electric guitar, and Barry Guy on double bass. The musicians are heard in varying combinations: two sextets, two quartets, and a percussion solo.
Floating Phantoms is a live album by the B.I.M.P. Quartet, led by percussionist Tony Oxley, and featuring violinist Phil Wachsmann, keyboardist Pat Thomas, and electronic musician Matt Wand. It was recorded on November 5, 1999, at the "Total Music Meeting" in Berlin, and was issued in 2002 by the German label a/l/l, an imprint of FMP, as their inaugural release.
The Tony Oxley/Alan Davie Duo is an album by percussionist Tony Oxley and multi-instrumentalist Alan Davie. It was recorded during 1974 and 1975 at various live and studio locations, and was initially released on vinyl on Davie's ADMW label. In 2003, it was reissued on CD in remastered form with two bonus tracks by the German label a/l/l, an imprint of FMP.
A Birthday Tribute: 75 years is a live album by percussionist Tony Oxley released in celebration of his seventy-fifth birthday. The album begins with two quartet tracks recorded during 1993, on which Oxley is joined by guitarist Derek Bailey, keyboardist Pat Thomas, and electronic musician Matt Wand. The remaining three tracks were recorded during 1977, and feature Oxley in a duo with trombonist Paul Rutherford, a trio with violinist Philipp Wachsmann and guitarist Ian Brighton, and a solo percussion work with electronics. The album was released in 2013 by Incus Records.
Unreleased 1974–2016 is an album by drummer and electronic musician Tony Oxley. The first three tracks were recorded in 1974, and feature Oxley with trumpeter Dave Holdsworth, trombonist Paul Rutherford, pianist Howard Riley, and bassist Barry Guy. These tracks were remastered and edited into their final form in 2005, 2019, and 2020. Track four, recorded in 1981, is performed by Oxley, saxophonist Larry Stabbins, violinist Phil Wachsmann, pianist Howard Riley, and guitarist Hugh Metcalfe, while the fifth and final track, recorded in 2016, pairs Oxley with percussionist Stefan Hölker. Drawn from Oxley's personal archive of recordings, the album was released in 2022 by Discus Music.
The New World is an album by Tony Oxley. His final release, it was recorded during 2022 in Viersen, Germany, and was issued on CD and as a digital download in 2023 by Discus Music. On the album, Oxley, who is heard on percussion and electronics, is joined by percussionist Stefan Hölker, who was previously heard on Oxley's Beaming (2020) and Unreleased 1974–2016 (2022).
