Anthony Braxton - Creative Orchestra (Köln) 1978 (2009)

Anthony Braxton – Creative Orchestra (Köln) 1978 is a monumental live document of large-scale avant-garde jazz composition and improvisation, recorded at Großer Sendesaal WDR Köln in 1978 and released in 2009 on hatOLOGY. The album showcases Braxton’s unique approach to structured free improvisation, where written compositions serve as frameworks for collective exploration rather than fixed arrangements. Conducting a large ensemble of leading voices in contemporary and free jazz, Braxton creates dense, shifting sound environments that move between notated passages, open improvisation, and textural experimentation.

The performance highlights his “Language Music” system, where instrumental voices interact in constantly evolving configurations of density, silence, and explosive energy. Across extended works such as “Composition 55,” “Composition 59,” and “Composition 51,” the orchestra explores a wide spectrum of sonic possibilities, from tightly controlled ensemble writing to chaotic, multi-layered improvisational clusters. The inclusion of musicians such as Kenny Wheeler, Leo Smith, Marilyn Crispell, George Lewis, and others ensures a rich diversity of individual styles contributing to the collective sound.

Creative Orchestra (Köln) 1978 stands as one of the most important large-ensemble recordings in Anthony Braxton’s catalog, capturing the full scope of his compositional vision and his ability to merge avant-garde structure with real-time creative freedom.

Tracklist:
CD 1:
1. Language Improvisations (14:34)
2. Composition 55 (12:26)
3. Composition 45 (25:21)

CD 2:
1. Composition 59 (21:45)
2. Composition 51 (17:19)
3. Composition 58 (12:53)

Personnel:
Anthony Braxton - composer & conductor
Dwight Andrews, Marty Ehrlich, Vinny Golia, J. D. Parran, Ned Rothenberg - saxophones, clarinets, flutes, piccolo, nagaswaram, ocarina
Rob Howard, Michael Mossman, Leo Smith, Kenny Wheeler - trumpets, flugelhorn
Ray Anderson, George Lewis, James King Roosa - trombone, tuba
Marilyn Crispell - piano
Birgit Taubhorn - accordion
Bobby Naughton - vibraphone
James Emery - electric guitar
John Lindberg, Brian Smith - basses
Thurman Barker - percussion, marimba
Robert Ostertag - synthesizer