Born 1951, guitar, live electronics, guitar synthesizer
musician and promoter of improvised, experimental and new music
Erhard Hirt started playing blues guitar when he was 16 and for the next ten years played with jazz-oriented groups, experimental rock bands, a free jazz combo (Jazzcomunity, in Leverkusen/ Köln), and toured with blues bands (Delta Blues Band and the Matt Walsh Bluesband).
In 1978 he performed his first improvised solo concerts, following this with his own quartet including players such as Martin Theurer, Hans Schneider, Thorsten Müller, Pinguin Moschner, and Wolfgang Fuchs.
In 1980 he organised the first Workshop Freie Musik in Münster.
In 1981 Hirt formed the String Quintet with Anne Le Baron (harp), Candice Natvig (violin), Thorsten Müller (cello) and Hans Schneider (bass) and the following year recorded his first solo guitar record as well as working in and recording with the Quartet, XPact: Wolfgang Fuchs, Hans Schneider and Paul Lytton (record on FMP-Uhklang), and a trio with Radu Malfatti and Schneider.
He founded the european improvising orchestra King Übü Orchestrü in 1984 along with Wolfgang Fuchs, Marc Charig, Guido Mazzon, Radu Malfatti, Phil Wachsmann, Alfred Zimmerlin, and others.
He has also organised a series of ‘Guitar Projects’ featuring Derek Bailey, Stephan Witwer, Davey Williams, John Russel, Uwe Kropinski, Joe Sachse, Mike Cooper, Kalle Laar, Lothar Fiedler, Eugene Chadbourne, Valery Dudkin, Reinbert Evers, Hans Reichel, Jean Marc Montera, Dave Draper a.o.
Hirt has appeared at most of the usual free music and jazz festivals - Moers, the Total Music Meeting in Berlin, Musique Action in Vandoeuvre, Free Music in Antwerp, LMC Festival London …
In the 90ties he formed a trio with Phil Minton and John Butcher (record: „two concerts“ on FMP-own), and worked in a Duo with Lol Coxhill.
Beside his own musical activities he became curator for several music and art events and international exchange projects. (see: www.cuba-cultur.de)
He has been involved with film projects with Martin Cihak and Martin Klapper and Harald Busch, dance performances with Fine Kwiatkowski, performances and installations with Stephan US and Jens Brand, multimedia and network concerts with Georg Hajdu …
His compositions there premiered by Ensemble Zeitkratzer, Ensemble WireWorks and saxophonist Ulrich Krieger.
New projects include collaborations with turntable artist Claus van Bebber (record: „TEFITON“ AufAbwegen) and the Xtended Guitars with Hans Tammen, Nick Didkowsky and Keith Rowe.
As a curator he works for new music festival “KlangZeit Münster” and “International Guitarfestival Münster”
www.erhardhirt.de
magyar