Nik Bärtsch is a keyboardist, composer, improviser, and bandleader whose recordings showcase his own highly architectural, original "ritual groove music" approach. It combines elements drawn from jazz, classical minimalism, funk, and rock. Bärtsch's music, showcased in bands of his own creation such as Ronin and Mobile, focused on interlocking rhythmic development in which bandmembers shift in and out as soloists and melody lead while the rest of the group weave together tightly knit, percussive structures that propel the pieces forward. Early recordings such as 2006's Stoa and 2008's Holon for ECM provided examples to wider European audiences. By the time issues of 2010's Llyria and 2011's Ronin Live appeared, his groups were selling out performances across the globe. After a hiatus, he reconvened Mobile and Ronin and released additional albums, and issued the solo piano outing Entendre in 2021. ~ Thom Jurek