Avant-garde music takes in almost all of the last's century's most daring trends, each stemming from a desire to break with tradition. Through the dodecaphonic explorations of Arnold Schoenberg, the free jazz of Ornette Coleman or the experimental performances of John Cage, the genre has forged an identity at once protean, rich and prolific. Among its chief protagonists today are the likes of John Zorn, Fred Frith and Montréal's very own Sam Shalabi.
More about the history of avant-garde music.
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