John Zorn

John Zorn
Zorn performing in 2006
Background information
Also known as	Dekoboko Hajime, Rav Tzizit
Born	September 2, 1953 (1953-09-02) (age 54)
Origin	New York City, U.S.
Genre(s)	Improvised music, Avant-garde, Noise, thrash metal, electronic, surf, contemporary classical music, world, punk jazz, downtown music
Occupation(s)	composer, producer
Instrument(s)	Alto saxophone, Keyboards
Years active	1973 – present
Label(s)	Tzadik, Avant, DIW, Elektra Nonesuch, Earache, Hat Hut, Shimmy-Disc, Eva, Toy's Factory, Nato, Lumina, Black Saint, Subharmonic, Parachute, Yukon, Rift
Associated acts	Naked City, Masada, Painkiller, Hemophiliac, Weird Little Boy
Website	www.tzadik.com
Notable instrument(s)
Clarinet, Piano, Theremin, Wind machine

John Zorn (born September 2, 1953 in Queens, New York City) is an American avant-garde composer, arranger, record producer, saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist. Zorn's recorded output is prolific with hundreds of album credits as a performer, composer, or producer. His work has touched on a wide range of musical genres, often within a single composition, but he is best-known for his avant-garde, jazz, improvised and contemporary classical music. Zorn has led the notable punk jazz band Naked City, the klezmer-influenced quartet Masada and composed the associated 'Masada Songbooks', written concert music for classical ensembles, and produced music for film and documentary. Zorn identifies that "I've got an incredibly short attention span. My music is jam-packed with information that is changing very fast."

After releasing albums on several independent US and European labels, Zorn signed with Elektra Nonesuch and attracted wide acclaim in 1985 when he released The Big Gundown with his interpretations of music composed by Ennio Morricone. This was followed by the album Spillane in 1987, and the first album by Naked City in 1990 which all attracted further worldwide attention. Zorn then recorded on the Japanese DIW and Avant labels before forming Tzadik Records in 1995, where he has been prolific, issuing several new recordings each year and releasing works by many other musicians.

Zorn established himself within the New York City downtown music movement in the early 1980s but has since composed and performed with a wide range of musicians working in diverse musical areas. By the early 1990s Zorn was working extensively in Japan, attracted by that culture's openness about borrowing and remixing ingredients from elsewhere, where he performed and recorded under the name Dekoboko Hajime, before returning to New York as a permanent base in the mid 1990's. Zorn has undertaken many tours of Europe, Asia, and the Middle East often performing at festivals with several different ensembles that display his diverse output.