PETER KOWALD

belonged to those musicians, who opened a new musical world for me. I was caught since my first concert of free improvised music (a Brötzmann - Solo!) and I was moved, I could not leave the music anymore.

... I didn't know if the ground opens below myself or if the sky falls on my head. There was only one idea:If I get up and leave now, it's finished. If I stay, my life will change.

y life changed. I wanted more music, I longed for more of this stuff, which presses you to the chair, which paralyses you and which creates the most intensive stories in your mind. I got a whole new world!

Peter Kowald belongs to this world.

I learned that he belongs to those german musicians, who started a european, independent way of jazz. I heard of interesting, fascinating concerts. But I never attended one of his concerts, I never listened to him on stage. My home city, Wiesbaden, was not the real place for this music.

But, as you know, Russia changed my life as well. And it was in Russia, that I first met him personally. My second trip to this country, in the cold february 1992, we met at the Festival Atkritaya Musica (= open music) in St. Petersburg. He had toured there quite a lot already, he had performed in Ekaterinburg, in Tuva, places, where I followed later. He presented me the red carnation, which are presented to musicians after the concert, and hurried to the train station.

We met quite often afterwards and I listened to his music very often. br>
Peter Kowald died September 21, 2002. He left us too early. He enriched the cultural life immensively. Therefore I am grateful.

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