RETO WEBER
Born 1953 in Solothurn (Switzerland).Started to play drums in a band at school when he was 14.
Various beat, blues and jazz groups followed. Studied contemporary percussion in Basle. Commenced with solo concerts on a full drum set in 1973. This development towards becoming a multi percussionist lead him to tour many European countries, as well as to Asia, Africa as well as North and South America.
Concerts, tours, records, CDs (Reto can be heard on more than 45 records / CDs) radio/TV and countless festivals in,Accra, Niamey, Boston, Washington DC, New York, Addis Abeba, Montreux, Willisau, North Sea, Ougadougou, Dakar, Buenos Aires, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Mumbai, New Delhi, Khartoum, Tunis, Zurich, Frankfurt, Munich, Berlin, Baltimore, Milan, Eritrea, Havana, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Hanoi, Lisbon, Wellington, Pretoria, Johannesburg, Durban, Islamabad, Lahore, Port au Prince, Lagos etc. Overall he played concerts in more than 100 countries!
Performed and performs with musicians such as Dave Holland, Albert Mangelsdorff, Eberhard Weber, Lee Konitz, Chico Freeman, Charlie Mariano, Henri Texier, Marion Brown, Harry Beckett, Joe Mc Phee, Trevor Watts, Barre Phillips, Michael Riessler, Hans Koch, Bruno Spoerri, Christy Doran, Eberhard Weber, Aki Takase, Jiri Stivin, Rudolf Dasek, Lauren Newton,Toto Blanke, Corinna Curchellas, Gerd Dudek, Rob van Broeck, Ali Haurand, Harald Haerter, Franco Ambrosetti, Peter Kowald, Ernst Reijseger, Han Bennink, Ken Zuckerman, Rainer Brüninghaus, Urna Chahar-Tugchi, Paul Giger, Dom Um Romao, Antonio Farao, and more!
In 1978, establishment of the Percussion Orchestra with the late Ghanaian Nana Twum Nketia and the Iranian Djamchid Chemirani in 1995. Since 1991, the South Indian mridangam virtuoso Muthuswamy Balasubramoniam was part of the group. This group has a legendary status today! In 2003, after 25 years, the Percussion Orchestra played its last gig. Film and theatre music, teaching at the Swiss Jazz School in Berne, workshops and school concerts.
For many years Reto kept being voted into the percussionists’ winner polls (Jazz Forum). The significance of Weber’s music is pointed out in the «Grossen Jazzbuch» by Joachim Ernst Berendt, in Reclam’s Jazz Guide by Carlo Bohländer or in the book about Albert Mangelsdorff „Gespräche“ by Bruno Paulot. Further recommended reading: Martin Kunzler’s Jazzlexikon, published in 2003. After the death of the great fellow musician Albert Mangelsdorff in July 2005, with whom Reto had been on tour in a great number of constellations for 30 years, he often played with Eberhard Weber and Enrico Rava in a trio.
For quite some time now Reto is also to be found on classical stages, with a piece for symphonic orchestra and drums by the German composer Joerg Iwer. The design of the Hang, a hand percussion instrument looking like a UFO, can be traced back to Reto’s initial idea! (see Reto’s Hang). In 2004, establishment of his own band: with beatbox, guitar, bass, percussion and talented young musicians from the Swiss jazz scene: Reto Weber’s Squeezeband.
In 2009, the Squeezeband became international: now part of the group: Chico Freeman/ Jasper van’t Hof/ Michel Alibo/ Dominique Muzeau/ Nino G/ Dany Martinez/ Gianluca Petrella/ Gilad Atzmon and others.
2014 Exotica trio with Chico Freeman and Svante Henryson and/or Heiri Känzig.
2015 Chico Freeman Group in America with George Freeman, Ernie Adams, Kyle Swanson, Julius Tucker, Mike Allemana and others. 2022 “Most Valuable Band” (Chicago Tribune)
2023 Publication of the der monograph Reto Weber DRUMMIN’ Edition Clandestine publisher (www.edition-clandestine.ch) From 2023 onwards, Chico Freeman Unit with Karin Nakagawa, Svante Henryson and Reto Weber
Chico Freeman Group with Julius Tucker, Kyle Swanson, Christian Dillingham, Mike Allemana, and Reto Weber Reto
Webers Squeezeband with Chico Freeman, Nino G, Heiri Känzig, Dany Martinez, Michel Alibo, and others
Jasper van’t Hof – Reto Weber duo Solo concerts “World of Percussion”
