John Zorn is an American composer, conductor, saxophonist, arranger, multi-instrumentalist, producer and dedicated improviser that deliberately resists category. Zorn's 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 "Though Zorn has operated almost entirely outside the mainstream, he’s gradually asserted himself as one of the most influential musicians of our time".
Polly Bradfield is an American violinist from the New York City free improvisation scene of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Her closest musical associates were Eugene Chadbourne and John Zorn. She also played on records by William Parker and Frank Lowe. Her music career ended when she moved to California sometime in the 1980s. Her last appearance on record was on Zorn's The Big Gundown in 1986.
Lacrosse is a double album by John Zorn. It is made up of different takes of his early game piece, "Lacrosse". The first disc is from WKCR in June 1978 where Mark Abbott, Polly Bradfield, Eugene Chadbourne, and LaDonna Smith and Zorn recorded six different takes. Takes 3, 4 and 6 were originally released on the Parachute Records double LP School (1978). The second disc is the original recording of "Lacrosse" which was made by Eugene Chadbourne, Henry Kaiser, Bruce Ackley, and Zorn in San Francisco, California in June 1977.
Filmworks VII: Cynical Hysterie Hour is a 1989 album by John Zorn featuring music written for a series of Japanese animated shorts that were created by Kiriko Kubo. It features Zorn's first music for cartoons and was originally released on the Japanese Sony label in limited numbers. In late 1996 Zorn finally attained the rights for his music and remastered and re-released the album on his own label, Tzadik, in 1997.
IAO is an album by John Zorn released in 2002 on the Tzadik label. The album was inspired by Aleister Crowley and his follower, filmmaker Kenneth Anger and draws its title from the Kabbalistic identity of IAO, the initials of Isis, Apophis and Osiris, used as a magical formula in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and in Aleister Crowley's Gnostic Mass.
Music for Children is the first release in John Zorn's Music Romance Series and features three Naked City compositions performed by Zorn with the band Prelapse; a 20-minute composition for wind machines and controlled feedback systems dedicated to Edgar Varese, and a classical chamber music piece for violin, percussion and piano performed by the Abel-Steinberg-Winant Trio framed by a poly-rhythmic etude for percussion and celeste and a lullaby for music box.
Archery is an album by John Zorn featuring his early "game piece" composition of the same name. The album was released by Parachute Records in 1982.
Pool is an album by John Zorn featuring his early "game piece" composition of the same name which was first released on vinyl on Parachute Records in 1980 as a double album including the composition "Hockey". The album was released on CD on Tzadik Records with an additional bonus track featuring a test recording of Archery as part of The Parachute Years Box Set in 1997 and as a single CD in 2000. The album was the first released solely under Zorn's name following his collaboration with Eugene Chadbourne, School (1978).
The Classic Guide to Strategy is a compilation album by John Zorn featuring his two early solo records The Classic Guide to Strategy Volume One (1983), (tracks 1-2) and the Classic Guide to Strategy Volume Two (1986), (tracks 3-8). The albums were first released on vinyl on Lumina Records in and later re-released on Tzadik Records in 1996 as a single CD. The second track is inspired by the work of Carl Stalling and tracks 3-8 are named after avant-garde Japanese artists. The Classic Guide to Strategy Volume Two also contained the track "Yano Akiko" (5:20) which does not appear on the CD re-release.
Filmworks X: In the Mirror of Maya Deren features a score for film by John Zorn. The album was released on Zorn's own label, Tzadik Records, in 2001 and contains music that Zorn wrote and recorded for the documentary film In the Mirror of Maya Deren on the life and work of Maya Deren directed by Martina Kudlácek.
Filmworks XVIII: The Treatment features a score for film by John Zorn. The album was released on Zorn's own label, Tzadik Records, in 2006 and contains music that Zorn wrote and recorded for the romantic comedy, The Treatment (2006), directed by Oren Rudavsky.
Masada Anniversary Edition Vol. 5: Masada Rock is the fifth and final album in a series of five releases celebrating the 10th anniversary of John Zorn's Masada songbook project. It features 10 Masada songs performed by Jon Madof's Rashanim trio with Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz on bass and Mathias Kunzli on drums in addition to Madof's guitar with guest appearances from Marc Ribot on two tracks. It was released in 2005 on Zorn's Tzadik Records as part of the Radical Jewish Culture Series.
John Zorn's Cobra: Tokyo Operations '94 is a live performance of John Zorn's improvisational game piece, Cobra recorded in Tokyo in 1994 featuring Japanese musicians and instruments. The piece had been released in two previous versions on Hathut and the Knitting Factory and was subsequently released on Zorn's own label Tzadik Records in 2002.
Hemophiliac is a limited edition album of improvised experimental music by John Zorn, Ikue Mori and Mike Patton. The album was released as a limited edition 2-CD set of 2,500 copies, personally autographed by Zorn, Patton and Mori, on Zorn's Tzadik label.
Yankees is an album of improvised music by Derek Bailey, John Zorn & George Lewis. The album was released as an LP by Celluloid in 1983 and was reissued on CD by Celluloid and Charly. It is the first recorded meeting of John Zorn and Derek Bailey. The pair would later release the album, Harras, with William Parker in 1993. Zorn and Lewis would collaborate further on News for Lulu (1988) and More News for Lulu (1993) with Bill Frisell.
The Parachute Years: 1977-1981 is a compilation album 7-CD box set by John Zorn. It features recordings of Zorn's game pieces originally released as self-produced albums on the Parachute label as well as previously unreleased performances. All of the discs in this box set have been subsequently given their own releases on Zorn's Tzadik label.
Filmworks XXI: Belle de Nature/Rijksmuseum features a score for film by John Zorn. The album was released on Zorn's own label, Tzadik Records, in 2008 and contains music that Zorn wrote and recorded for film director Maria Beatty's Belle de Nature (2008) and a documentary on the renovation of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam.
In Search of the Miraculous is an album by composer John Zorn released as a part of Tzadik's Archival series in 2010.
Filmworks XXIV: The Nobel Prizewinner is a soundtrack album by American composer John Zorn released on Zorn's own label, Tzadik, in 2010 featuring music written and recorded for Dutch film director Timo Veltkamp's's De Nobelprijswinnaar (2010).
The Satyr's Play / Cerberus is an album composed by John Zorn which as recorded in New York City in January and April 2010 and released on the Tzadik label in April 2011. Zorn signed and numbered 666 copies of the CD and produced 66 copies of a limited edition book version which were individualised and hand bound in black goat skin.
