Sometimes it is a matter of getting your hands on a certain piece of music that, if you didn’t get your chance, or didn’t give it one, may unjustly remain in obscurity it doesn’t really deserve, and often it has nothing to do with where you would classify such a piece of music.
This is where that often-used phrase better late than never comes into play with Unfolding, the album by Swiss multi-genre composer and instrumentalist Alf Jetzer (Armenian duduk, African UDU (percussion), framedrum, shakers, bordun, flutes, singing bowls), released in September 2025, remaining stuck with other instrumental releases without a specific description and waiting to be finally played or simply left to musical oblivion.
Luckily, it did get played, as the list of Jetzer’s instrumentation struck a similarity to that of a genre-crossing guitarist who did get recognition he deserved – Steve Tibbetts, sharing the aspect of using varied world music instrumentation in their compositions.
And yes, there are definite similarities in the sound between Tibbetts and Jetzer here, but the latter adds another touch to his guitar playing that also shares similarities with another landmark guitarist, krautrock master Michael Rother.
Jetzer’s music turns out to be a well-crafted, ambient combination of jazz, krautrock, and world music that sometimes can veer into the dreaded new age territory, but never touches it here.
