Swiss pianist, composer and band leader Nik Bärtsch is coming to Groningen with his successful Ronin project. Nik Bärtsch’s Ronin makes unique music in which body and mind come together. In fact, the group’s music goes in all directions: from jazz, minimalism and experimental elements to a hypnotic and tight sound experience. This autumn, the new album Moonday will be released and Nick Bärtsch’s Ronin will take you live into its labyrinth of sounds and textures on 4 December at De Oosterpoort.

Awase

The album Awase is equidistant from jazz, funk and contemporary composition. The term, which comes from Aikido, means “Moving together”, in the sense of coupled energies. An apt metaphor for Ronin’s dynamic precision, interwoven grooves and balletic minimalism. The music often starts with basic ideas, eventually building into a kind of polyrhythmic, polyphonic tapestry of sound that continues to surprise even the artists themselves.