Werner Lüdi (April 22, 1936 in

Poschiavo Poschiavo ( it, Poschiavo, lmo, Pusciaaf, german: Puschlav, rm, Puschlav) is a municipality in the Bernina Region in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. History Poschiavo is first mentioned in 824 as ''in Postclave'' though this comes from ...

, Graubünden – June 21, 2000 in Zurich) was a Swiss

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

musician ( alto- and

baritone saxophone The baritone saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of instruments, larger (and lower-pitched) than the tenor saxophone, but smaller (and higher-pitched) than the bass. It is the lowest-pitched saxophone in common use - the bass, contra ...

) and author.

Biography

Lüdi spent the early years of his life in

Val Poschiavo Val Poschiavo ( lmo, Pus'ciaf, german: Puschlav, ) is a valley in the southern, Italian-speaking part of the Swiss canton of Graubünden (Grisons). The main town is Poschiavo. Geography Val Poschiavo can be reached from the Upper Engadin valley i ...

and spent his youth in Landquart, where he played

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

in a band. He became familiar with

cool jazz Cool jazz is a style of modern jazz music that arose in the United States after World War II. It is characterized by relaxed tempos and lighter tone, in contrast to the fast and complex bebop style. Cool jazz often employs formal arrangements and ...

and played baritone saxophone in Tone Schädler's band. In 1958, he moved to

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, where he participated in

jam session A jam session is a relatively informal musical event, process, or activity where musicians, typically instrumentalists, play improvised solos and vamp over tunes, drones, songs, and chord progressions. To "jam" is to improvise music without exte ...

s. In jam sessions, he got to know

Peter Brötzmann Peter Brötzmann (born 6 March 1941) is a German saxophonist and clarinetist. Biography Early life Brötzmann was born in Remscheid, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He studied painting in Wuppertal and was involved with the Fluxus movement ...

, but he could not contact at first with a band of

modern jazz Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early-to-mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo, complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerous changes of key, instrumen ...

. In 1964, he made a tour as an alto saxophonist with

Gunter Hampel Gunter Hampel (born 31 August 1937) is a German jazz vibraphonist, clarinettist, saxophonist, flautist, pianist, and composer. He became dedicated to free jazz in the 1960s, developing a record label (Birth Records) and working with Jeanne Lee, ...

's band for one year and then, he went to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, where he made jam sessions with

Pierre Favre Peter Faber (french: Pierre Lefevre or Favre, la, Petrus Faver) (13 April 1506 – 1 August 1546) was a Jesuit priest and theologian, who was also a co-founder of the Society of Jesus, along with Ignatius of Loyola and Francis Xavier. Pope Fra ...

. Then, he came back to Switzerland in 1966 and started to work as a photographer in a

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. P ...

office and

copywriter Copywriting is the act or occupation of writing text for the purpose of advertising or other forms of marketing. The product, called copy or sales copy, is written content that aims to increase brand awareness and ultimately persuade a person or ...

in an

advertising agency An advertising agency, often referred to as a creative agency or an ad agency, is a business dedicated to creating, planning, and handling advertising and sometimes other forms of promotion and marketing for its clients. An ad agency is generally ...

. In 1981, Lüdi came again to jazz scene and founded the group Sunnymoon with

Stephan Wittwer Stephan Wittwer (born 1 March 1953 in Zurich) is a Swiss experimental musician, improvisor and composer. Earlier, his main instruments were electric and classical guitar, amplifier and recording studio, but at present, his instrument is computer. ...

Fredy Studer Fredy Studer (16 June 1948 – 22 August 2022) was a Swiss drummer and percussionist. Biography Fredy Studer was born in Lucerne, Switzerland on 16 June 1948. In 1972, he founded the jazz fusion quartet OM, with guitarist Christy Doran, sa ...

and Léon Francioli. In 1984,

Hans Koch Hans Koch (16 August 1893 – 24 April 1945) was a German lawyer, a member of the Confessional Church and a member of the German resistance against Nazism. Koch was born in Bartenstein, East Prussia (modern Bartoszyce, Poland), he graduated ...

, Martin Schütz, Timo Fleig and Lüdi played

free improvisation Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the logic or inclination of the musician(s) involved. The term can refer to both a technique (employed by any musician in any genre) and as a recognizable genre in its ...

in this group. Later, Koch, Schütz, Lüdi and

Paul Lovens Paul Lovens (born 6 June 1949) is a German musician. He plays drums, percussion, singing saw, and cymbals. He has performed with the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra and Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra. He was born in Aachen, Germany. In the early ...

performed together. At the end of 1980s, he played with

Mani Neumeier Mani Neumeier (Manfred Neumeier, born 31 December 1940 in Munich) is a German rock musician, free-jazz drummer, artist, and frontman (singer and drummer) of the German Krautrock-band Guru Guru. Probably best known for his work with Guru Guru, Neum ...

, Wädi Gysi and the trumpet player

Mich Gerber Mich or MICH may refer to: People * An abbreviation for Michelle (name) * Mich Dulce (born 1981), Filipina fashion designer, milliner, corsetiere, feminist activist, actress, artist and singer * Mich Matsudaira (1937–2019), American businessman ...

as the group ''Blauer Hirsch''. He has performed also with Brötzmann's ''Märzcombo'',

Butch Morris Lawrence Douglas "Butch" Morris (February 10, 1947 – January 29, 2013) was an American cornetist, composer and conductor. He was known for pioneering his structural improvisation method, ''Conduction'', which he utilized on many recordings. B ...

Sainkho Namtchylak Sainkho Namtchylak ( tyv, Сайын-Хөө Намчылак, russian: Сайнхо Намчылак, born 1957) is a singer originally from Tuva, an autonomous republic in the Russian Federation just north of Mongolia. She is known for her Tuvan ...

Peter Kowald Peter Kowald (21 April 1944 – 21 September 2002) was a German free jazz and free improvising double bassist and tubist. Career A member of the Globe Unity Orchestra, and a touring double-bass player, Kowald collaborated with many European ...

, William Parker, Saadet Türköz, Burhan Öçal, Peter Conradin Zumthor and Daniel Seiler.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lüdi, Werner Swiss jazz saxophonists People from Poschiavo 1936 births 2000 deaths 20th-century Swiss journalists Intakt Records artists