Peter Kowald

was born in 1944 in Thüringen, he lives in Wuppertal since 1945.

Peter Kowald in Wuppertal
photo: Nicole Aders/Wuppertal

Double-bass since 1960, also Tuba. With Peter Brötzmann since 1962. In 1966 European tour with Carla Bley / Michael Mantler, member of the Globe Unity Orchestra from 1966 to 1978.

Collaboration:
with Evan Parker since 1967, in different formations with Irène Schweizer and Pierre Favre 1968-69, with his own ensemble 1970 - 72, with Alexander von Schlippenbach 1973-78 and from 1979 to 1982 trio with the American trumpet player Leo Smith and Günter Baby Sommer, drummer from Dresden.

Performed and / or recorded with Rashied Ali, Derek Bailey, Billy Bang, Konrad and Hannes Bauer, Marion Brown, Marilyn Crispell, Danny Davis, Bill Dixon, Charles Gayle, Barry Guy, Jeanne Lee, Robin Kenyatta, Toshinori Kondo, Takehisa Kosugi, Frank Lowe, Jimmy Lyons, Albert Mangelsdorff, Barre Phillips, Manfred Schoof, John Tchicai, Keith Tippett, Fred van Hove, Marten van Regteren Altena, David S. Ware Trio (together with Beaver Harris) and with most of the European improvising musicians.

Member of the London Jazz Composers Orchestra from 1980 to 1985. Founded and / or performed with a great number of ensembles like, for instance, with Peter Brötzmann and Andrew Cyrille, "Trio Tartini" with the dancer Anne Martin (formerly Pina Bausch Ensemble) and french double-bass player Joëlle Léandre, "Music and Movement Improvisation" with American dancers Cheryl Banks (formerly Sun Ra Arkestra) and Arnette de Mille and cellist Muneer Abdul Fataah. Trios with Louis Moholo, drummer from South-Africa and American pianist Curtis Clark or Canadian saxophone player Yves Charuest. Quartett "Principle Life" with Jeanne Lee, Klaus Hovman and Marilyn Mazur, Trio "Pyrrichia" with Greek clarinettist Floros Floridis and Lyra - Player Ilias Papadopoulos, Duos (beside many others) with Julius Hemphill, Vincent Chancey, Jeanne Lee, Butch Morris (all from New York) and the sibirian singer Sainkho Namtchylak.

International Improvising Ensemble GLOBAL VILLAGE with musicians from differnent cultural regions of the world, like Japan, China, Sibiria, Near East, South Europe, America a.s.o.

Cooperation with writers and visual artists (A.R Penck, Nam June Paik), often with dancers like 90 years old creator of Butoh, Kazuo Ohno, and with Butoh Dancers of the second and third generation like Min Tanaka and Tadashi Endo, in the US with Maria Mitchell, Cheryl Banks, Arnette de Mille and Sally Silvers, also Sayonara Pereira (Brasil), Anastasia Lyra and Toula Limnäos (Greece), Christine Brunel (France) and with Jean Sasportes (Pina Bausch Wuppertaler Tanztheater).

Performances at numerous festivals in Europe and America (Sound Unity, Kool Jazz, Ruhrworks New York, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Victoriaville Canada), Panmusikfestival Tokyo, Olympic Games Han River Festival Seoul/ Korea, Concerts and tours in in Tunesia, West Afrika, India, New Zealand, Australia, Singapur, Indonesia, Korea, Japan, Georgia, Russia, Sibiria and nearly all european countries.

DAAD / Land NRW New York Fellowship 1984/85, Von der Heydt Award of the City of Wuppertal 1984, German JazzAward "Albert Mangelsdorff Preis" 1995.

Film "Rising Tones Cross" by Ebba Jahn New York 1984, TV feature "Gegen den Strich" WDR Köln 1986, cooperation at Pina Bausch's film "Die Klage der Kaiserin" 1989, film music with double-bass "Die vergessene Stadt" 1992 and with Orchestra (Ort- Ensemble Wuppertal) "Herr W. und Herr W." 1995, both by Thomas Schadt, live-music to silent movie "Sidewalk Stories", New York 1990, authorised by the director Regisseur Charles Lane 1995; film music for "Prinz Yussuf" by Helma Sanders-Brahms 1997.

Realisation of museum concerts Von der Heydt Museum Wuppertal 1972-75, Wuppertaler Free Jazz Workshop 1973-82, 360 ° - Spielraum für Ideen Wuppertal 1979-84, Festival "Grenzüberschreitungen" Wuppertal 1983 / 85 / 87 Sound Unity Festival and musicians cooperative New York 1984-87, "365 Tage am Ort" Wuppertal 1994/95, documentary book 1998 (Verlag der Buchhandlung Walter König, Köln)