John Zorn

John Zorn is an American composer and saxophone player. He owns his own record company (called Tzadik), so he's free to do whatever he wants. He's used this freedom to write and record dozens of strange and beautiful albums. By the end of the 1990s, he was releasing at least six per year. He is inspired by other artists and different musical styles. He has a special attraction to underground artists and musical styles that are extremely loud, wild, or creative. These influences can lead to a single song, an album, or a series of albums. His interest in cartoon music, for example, has led him to compose a string quartet of cartoon themes, cartoon music for solo piano, and the soundtrack for an animated TV show. His other interests include Jewish music, improvisation, film soundtracks, and musical hybrids (combining more than one style in the same song). In some cases, he'll write a tribute to a specific artist, trying to capture the spirit of their work in a single song. Some of his work is very aggressive and abstract - he likes to use noise as an element in composing.