Paul William Rutherford (29 February 1940 – 5 August 2007) was an English free improvising trombonist.

Biography

Born in Greenwich, South East London, England, Rutherford initially played saxophone but switched to trombone. During the 1960s, he taught at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. In 1970, Rutherford, guitarist Derek Bailey and bassist Barry Guy formed the improvising group Iskra 1903, which lasted until 1973. The formation was documented on a double album from Incus, later reissued with much bonus material on the three-CD set Chapter One (Emanem, 2000). A film soundtrack was separately released as Buzz Soundtrack. Iskra 1903 was one of the earliest free improvising groups to omit a drummer/percussionist, permitting the players to explore a range of textures and dynamics which set it apart from such other contemporary improvising ensembles as SME and AMM. The group's unusual name is the Slavic word for "spark"; it was the title of the Iskra revolutionary newspaper edited by Lenin. The "1903" designation means "20th century music for trio"; occasionally Evan Parker played with the group (Iskra 1904) and Rutherford also at one point assembled a 12-piece ensemble called, inevitably, Iskra 1912. The group was later revived with Philipp Wachsmann replacing Bailey, a phase of the group's life that lasted from roughly 1977 to 1995; its earlier work is documented on Chapter Two (Emanem, 2006) and its final recordings were issued on Maya (Iskra 1903) and Emanem (Frankfurt 1991). Rutherford also played with Globe Unity Orchestra, London Jazz Composer's Orchestra, Centipede, the Mike Westbrook Orchestra, and the Orckestra, a merger of avant-rock group Henry Cow, the Mike Westbrook Brass Band and folk singer Frankie Armstrong. He also played a very small number of gigs with Soft Machine. He is perhaps most famous for solo trombone improvisations. Rutherford died of cirrhosis and a ruptured aorta on 5 August 2007, at the age of 67. In November 2007, a memorial concert for Rutherford took place at the Red Rose Club in North London, at which musician friends played free jazz. In recognition of Rutherford's strong attachment to Cuba, which dated back to a 1986 tour he had undertaken as part of the British Council-sponsored Siger Band, his family donated three trombones and a euphonium to the Music Fund for Cuba.

Discography

As leader

With Iskra 1903

As sideman

With Lol Coxhill With Elton Dean With Paul Dunmall With Globe Unity Orchestra With Barry Guy With George Haslam With Tony Oxley With Spontaneous Music Ensemble With John Stevens With Mike Westbrook With others