Irene Schweizer
Pianist
Improvisational free-jazz artist who gained great fame outside of her native Switzerland for her contributions as a female jazz pioneer.
She began playing piano when she was 12 and later took up the drums.
She was involved with the Feminist Improvising Group, which eventually changed its name to the less politically charged European Women's Improvising Group.
Her father ran a restaurant that doubled as a performance venue for dance bands.
She was greatly influenced by Ornette Coleman's free-jazz musicianship.