Georg Graewe

by Joslyn Layne A German pianist and composer of exquisite technique, Georg Graewe has worked with some of the best performers in avant-garde jazz, contemporary, and improvised music from around the world; including British saxophonist Evan Parker, Swedish saxophonist Mats Gustafsson, American percussionist Gerry Hemingway, Dutch cellist Ernst Reijseger, and Italian trombonist Sebi Tramontana. Born in 1956 in Bochum, Germany, Graewe started out playing guitar in local rock bands while a teenager. He also got into jazz, and in 1974, formed the Georg Gräwe Quintet. Since, he has led groups ranging from chamber orchestra to trios. For 11 years, starting in 1982, Graewe directed the ten-piece chamber ensemble, GrubenKlangOrchester, which included such extraordinary musicians as Franz Koglmann and Theo Jorgensmann. Since 1989, he has had a trio with Gerry Hemingway and Ernst Reijseger that has toured Europe and the United States. Their first recording was released on the HatArt label that first year, followed by releases on the Music & Arts and Sound Aspects labels, and on Random Acoustics, a label that Georg Graewe created in 1993. He also performs on the FMP, Okka Disk, and Wobbly Rail labels, totaling over 30 recordings. Other new music artists Graewe has worked with include Anthony Braxton, Dave Douglas, Joelle Leandre, John Tchicai, Barre Phillips, Ken Vandermark, and many more. Graewe's work as a composer includes compositions for symphony orchestras, chamber music, and works for solo piano. The end of the 1990s found him leading a quartet with reedsman Frank Gratkowski, Chicago jazz percussionist Hamid Drake, and bassist Kent Kessler; performing in a group called Torque with Melvyn Poore and Peter van Bergen; and touring the U.S. with Reijseger and Hemingway.