Co Streiff (Cornelia Streiff) (5 April 1959 in

Zurich Zurich (; ) is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 443,037 inhabitants, the urban area 1.315 mill ...

) is a Swiss

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

musician who combines the elements of

free jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians dur ...

with the

music of Africa Given the vastness of the African continent, its music is diverse, with regions and nations having many distinct musical traditions. African music includes the genres amapiano, Jùjú, Fuji, Afrobeat, Highlife, Makossa, Kizomba, and other ...

. She is a saxophonist and flutist. She was educated at a conservatory with the

transverse flute A transverse flute or side-blown flute is a flute which is held horizontally when played. The player blows across the embouchure hole, in a direction perpendicular to the flute's body length. Transverse flutes include the Western concert flut ...

as her main instrument and also at Jazz School St. Gallen with a saxophone. Then since 1983 she has lived as a freelance artist. Her first bands and projects were Kadesh and Tobende Ordnung (Raging Order). In 1986, she began her collaboration with

Irène Schweizer Irène Schweizer (born 2 June 1941) is a Swiss jazz and free improvising pianist. She was born in Schaffhausen, Switzerland. She has performed and recorded numerous solo piano performances as well as performing as part of the Feminist Improvis ...

. She appeared in the Canaille Festivals mostly with

Lindsay Cooper Lindsay Cooper (3 March 1951 – 18 September 2013) was an English bassoon and oboe player and composer. Best known for her work with the band Henry Cow, she was also a member of Comus, National Health, News from Babel and David Thomas an ...

and

Joëlle Léandre Joëlle Léandre (born 12 September 1951 in Aix-en-Provence, France) is a French double bassist, vocalist, and composer active in new music and free improvisation. In the field of contemporary music, she has performed with Pierre Boulez's Ens ...

. She took part in different projects of the

Vienna Art Orchestra The Vienna Art Orchestra was a European jazz group based in Vienna, Austria. Organized at different times as either a big band or as a smaller combo, it was regarded as one of the leading European jazz ensembles and was an official cultural ambas ...

from 1988 until 1995. They make several long workshop tours in non-European countries (

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the no ...

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the ea ...

). She has had an intensive collaboration with Kadash & The Nile Troup. Tommy Meier,

Russ Johnson William Russell Johnson (born February 22, 1973) is a former Major League Baseball infielder. He prepped at Denham Springs High School then went to Louisiana State University. He was drafted in the first round of the 1994 Major League Baseba ...

, Christian Weber and Fredi Flückiger belong to her sextet. She has performed with

Hilaria Kramer Hilaria Kramer (1 June 1967 in Frauenfeld) is a Swiss musician (trumpet, song, composition) in the modern jazz style. Biography Kramer began to play trumpet, when she was ten years old. From 1983, she attended the vocational school department o ...

Béatrice Graf Béatrice Graf (2 April 1964) is a Swiss percussionist, organist and keyboard player of jazz fusion and modern jazz. Biography Graf studied at the ''Conservatoire Populaire de Musique de Genève'' until 1989 and finished the workshop of Jack De ...

and Karoline Höfler in the quartet Ratruba. With Gabriela Friedli, she has led the quartet Objets Trouvés. This quartet published three albums until 2013.

Discography

* ''Canaille '91'' * Co Streiff Sextett: ''Qattara'' (

Intakt Records Intakt Records is an independent record label, based in Zürich. History The label was founded in 1986 by Patrik Landolt.Margasak, Peter (September 2013) "Intakt's Landolt Takes Long-Term Approach to Avant-Garde". ''Down Beat''. p. 16. In the ea ...

, 2002) * Co Streiff – Irène Schweizer: ''Twin Lines'' (Intakt Records 2002) * Friedli-Streiff-Schlegel-

Ulrich Ulrich (), is a German given name, derived from Old High German ''Uodalrich'', ''Odalric''. It is composed of the elements '' uodal-'' meaning "(noble) heritage" and ''-rich'' meaning "rich, powerful". Attested from the 8th century as the name of ...

: ''Objets Trouvés. Fragile'' (Intakt Records 2005) * Co Streiff Sextet: ''Loops, Holes & Angels'' (Inakt Records 2007) * Co Streiff – Russ Johnson Quartet ''In Circles'' (Inakt Records 2011)

External links

The Website of Co Streiff
{{DEFAULTSORT:Streiff, Co Swiss jazz musicians 1959 births Living people Musicians from Zürich Swiss saxophonists Swiss flautists 21st-century saxophonists Intakt Records artists 21st-century flautists