# Wandelweiser
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{{short description|Musicians collective}}
The '''Wandelweiser Group''' is a [collective](/source/composition_school) for composers and performers of [contemporary classical music](/source/contemporary_classical_music).{{sfn|Rutherford-Johnson|2017|p=45}} Inspired by the work of [John Cage](/source/John_Cage), the Wandelweiser Group writes [experimental music](/source/experimental_music), which is typically of a very quiet nature and often incorporates [performance art](/source/performance_art). The musicologist Tim Rutherford-Johnson describes them as a "significant feature of [art music in the 21st century](/source/21st-century_classical_music)."{{sfn|Rutherford-Johnson|2017|p=46}}
Based around the publisher '''Edition Wandelweiser''', they also have their own record label Wandelweiser Records. Prominent members of the group include [Jürg Frey](/source/J%C3%BCrg_Frey), [Taylan Susam](/source/Taylan_Susam) and [Mark So](/source/Mark_So).
==Overview==
The Wandelweiser Group was founded in 1992 by Dutch-born flautist [Antoine Beuger](/source/Antoine_Beuger) and German violinist [Burkhard Schlothauer](/source/Burkhard_Schlothauer). In 1993 Swiss clarinetist [Jürg Frey](/source/J%C3%BCrg_Frey)[{{Cite news |last=Ross |first=Alex |date=2019-10-29 |title=The Otherworldly Harmony of Jürg Frey |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-otherworldly-minimalism-of-jurg-frey |access-date=2026-05-15 |work=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}}] was invited to join, followed by American guitarist [Michael Pisaro](/source/Michael_Pisaro), Swiss pianist [Manfred Werder](/source/Manfred_Werder), then Austrian trombonist [Radu Malfatti](/source/Radu_Malfatti) the following year, then American trombonist [Craig Shepard](/source/Craig_Shepard), and others. The group runs its own publishing operation, '''Edition Wandelweiser''', and its own record label Wandelweiser Records.{{sfn|Rutherford-Johnson|2017|p=45}}
The music of the Wandelweiser collective is characterized by sparse, quiet, fragile soundscapes incorporating frequent silences.[{{cite web |last1=Ross |first1=Alex |author-link=Alex Ross (music critic) |title=The Composers of Quiet |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/09/05/silence-overtakes-sound-for-the-wandelweiser-collective |work=The New Yorker |access-date=2 July 2018}}] According to Radu Malfatti, Wandelweiser music is about "the evaluation and integration of silence(s) rather than an ongoing carpet of never-ending sounds." Michael Pisaro suggests that Wandelweiser works, which often involve extended durations of hours or longer,[{{Cite news |last=Molleson |first=Kate |date=2015-12-17 |title=Jürg Frey: Third String Quartet CD review – an audaciously fragile performance |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/dec/17/jurg-frey-third-string-quartet-bozzini-quartet-cd-review-jurg-frey |access-date=2026-05-15 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}]
* [Cristián Alvear](/source/Cristi%C3%A1n_Alvear)
==Composers==
* [Paul Beaudoin](/source/Paul_Beaudoin)
* [Antoine Beuger](/source/Antoine_Beuger)