Keith Jarrett’s accidental masterpiece
Shortly before midnight on the evening of Friday 24 January 1975, at Cologne Opera House on the banks of the Rhine, a wiry 29-year-old from Pennsylvania walked onto the stage in front of a crowd of 1,400 people and began to play the piano, alone. The 50th anniversary of what followed is being celebrated with a number of events and documentaries across the world this week. A recording of Keith Jarrett’s performance that night, released on 30 November 1975, went on to become the best-selling solo piano record of all time. The record was produced by ECM (Edition of Contemporary Music), a prog jazz label that was at its peak
