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{{Short description|French jazz pianist (1946–2003)}}
{{Infobox musical artist
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Michel Graillier
| name = Michel Graillier
| image =
| image =
| birth_name =
| background = non_vocal_instrumentalist
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date|df=y|1946|10|18}}
⚫
| birth_place = [[Lens, Pas-de-Calais]], France
| birth_date = {{birth date|df=y|1946|10|18}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=y|2003|2|12|1946|10|18}}
⚫
| birth_place =[[Lens, Pas-de-Calais]], France
| death_place = Paris
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=y|2003|2|11|1946|10|18}}
| death_place = Paris
| genre = [[Jazz]]
| genre = [[Jazz]]
| occupation = Musician
| occupation = Musician
| instrument = Piano
| instrument = Piano
| years_active = 1960s–2000s
⚫
| label = [[Saravah]], [[Musica Records|Musica]], [[Le Chant du Monde]], [[EmArcy Records|EmArcy]], [[Marge Records|Marge]]
| years_active = 1960s–2000s
⚫
| label = [[Saravah]], [[Musica Records|Musica]], [[Le Chant du Monde]], [[EmArcy Records|EmArcy]]
| associated_acts = [[Jean-Luc Ponty]], [[Magma (band)|Magma]], [[Chet Baker]]
}}
}}


'''Michel Graillier''' (18 October 1946, [[Lens, Pas-de-Calais]], France – 11 February 2003, Paris) was a French jazz pianist.
'''Michel Graillier''' (18 October 1946, [[Lens, Pas-de-Calais]], France - February 2003, Paris)<ref>{{cite web |last1= |first1= |title=matchID - Michel Graillier |url=https://deces.matchid.io/id/jPIFoUPrkhna |website=[[Fichier des personnes décédées|Fichier des décès]] |publisher= |access-date=24 December 2023 |language=fr |date=}}</ref> was a French jazz pianist.


== Biography ==
== Biography ==
From the ages of four to eighteen, Grallier studied classical piano in Lens, France. During adolescence, he worked as a drummer with the amateur [[yéyé]] group, Les Chaps ("The Guys").<ref name="note1">{{cite web|url=http://graillier.free.fr/htm/life.html |title=Michel Graillier - Life |publisher=Graillier.free.fr |date= |accessdate=2013-09-09}}</ref>
From the ages of four to eighteen, Graillier studied classical piano in Lens, France. During adolescence, he worked as a drummer with the amateur [[yéyé]] group, Les Chaps ("The Guys").<ref name="note1">{{cite web|url=http://graillier.free.fr/htm/life.html |title=Michel Graillier - Life |publisher=Graillier.free.fr |date= |accessdate=2013-09-09}}</ref>


After some preparatory classes, he enrolled in the engineering school at the [[ISEN]] in [[Lille]], where he met the bassist [[Didier Levallet]] through whom he discovered jazz. In 1968, with a diploma in electrical engineering, he moved to Paris. He played in clubs, most notably at the Caméléon, in a trio with [[Aldo Romano]] and [[Jean-François Jenny-Clark]]. He made his first recording in 1969 with [[Steve Lacy]]. For three years, he accompanied violinist [[Jean-Luc Ponty]]. His first album for [[Agartha Records]] appeared in 1970, on which he was accompanied by [[Alby Cullaz]] and [[Bernard Lubat]]. During the same he year, he recorded ''Pianos Puzzle'' with [[Georges Arvanitas]], [[René Urtreger]], and [[Maurice Vander]]. Due to personal problems, he withdrew from performing for a period of time.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://graillier.free.fr/pdf/magazine/jazzmagazine_2000.pdf |title=Michel Graillier : 2000 |publisher=Graillier.free.fr |accessdate=2013-09-09}}</ref>
After some preparatory classes, he enrolled in the engineering school at the [[ISEN]] in [[Lille]], where he met the bassist [[Didier Levallet]] through whom he discovered jazz. In 1968, with a diploma in electrical engineering, he moved to Paris. He played in clubs, most notably at the Caméléon, in a trio with [[Aldo Romano]] and [[Jean-François Jenny-Clark]]. He made his first recording in 1969 with [[Steve Lacy (saxophonist)|Steve Lacy]]. For three years, he accompanied violinist [[Jean-Luc Ponty]]. His first album for Agartha Records appeared in 1970, on which he was accompanied by Alby Cullaz and [[Bernard Lubat]]. During the same year, he recorded ''Pianos Puzzle'' with [[Georges Arvanitas]], [[René Urtreger]], and [[Maurice Vander]]. Due to personal problems, he withdrew from performing for a period of time.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://graillier.free.fr/pdf/magazine/jazzmagazine_2000.pdf |title=Michel Graillier : 2000 |publisher=Graillier.free.fr |accessdate=2013-09-09}}</ref>


In 1972, he was invited by drummer [[Christian Vander (musician)|Christian Vander]] to play piano in his group [[Magma (band)|Magma]], which he did for two years. Following that, he played with [[Christian Escoudé]], [[François Jeanneau]], and others. For several years, he was the regular pianist at the club Riverbop. Here he had the opportunity to play Americans in Paris who were on tour, such as [[Philly Joe Jones]] and [[Steve Grossman (saxophonist)|Steve Grossman]]. He performed at the club Dréher in Paris and at Magnetic Terrasse, usually in trio with [[Alby Cullaz]] and [[Christian Vander (musician)|Christian Vander]], but also with [[Barney Wilen]] or [[Jacques Pelzer]].
In 1972, he was invited by drummer [[Christian Vander (musician)|Christian Vander]] to play piano in his group [[Magma (band)|Magma]], which he did for two years. On some Magma albums Graillier is credited under his [[kobaian]] name ''Tsoï Menekaah''.<ref>Liner Notes CD: ''Archiw I-II'' (''[[Studio Zünd: 40 Ans d'Evolution|Sudio Zünd]]'' (2008)), p. 34.</ref> Following that, he played with [[Christian Escoudé]], [[François Jeanneau]], and others. For several years, he was the regular pianist at the club Riverbop. Here he had the opportunity to play with Americans in Paris who were on tour, such as [[Philly Joe Jones]] and [[Steve Grossman (saxophonist)|Steve Grossman]]. He performed at the club Dréher in Paris and at Magnetic Terrasse, usually in trio with Alby Cullaz and [[Christian Vander (musician)|Christian Vander]], but also with [[Barney Wilen]] or [[Jacques Pelzer]].


In 1977 saxophonist and flutist [[Jacques Pelzer]], whose daughter Micheline was married to Graillier, introduced him to [[Chet Baker]]. For the next ten years, Graillier accompanied Baker.
In 1977 saxophonist and flutist [[Jacques Pelzer]], whose daughter Micheline was married to Graillier, introduced him to [[Chet Baker]]. For the next ten years, Graillier accompanied Baker.


In addition, he played with [[Éric Le Lann]], [[Philip Catherine]], [[Jacques Thollot]], [[Richard Raux]], [[Jean-Pierre Debarbat]], [[Alain Jean-Marie]], [[Paolo Fresu]], and [[Pharoah Sanders]]. He appeared regularly in duo with bassist [[Riccardo Del Fra]] and in trio with [[Alby Cullaz]] and [[Simon Goubert]].
In addition, he played with [[Éric Le Lann]], [[Philip Catherine]], Jacques Thollot, Richard Raux, Jean-Pierre Debarbat, [[Alain Jean-Marie]], [[Paolo Fresu]], and [[Pharoah Sanders]]. He appeared regularly in duo with bassist [[Riccardo Del Fra]] and in trio with Alby Cullaz and Simon Goubert.


In the course of his career, he accompanied singers [[Julos Beaucarne]], [[Jacques Bertin]], [[Maxime le Forestier]], [[Eddy Mitchell]], [[Stéphanie Crawford]], [[Elisabeth Caumont]], and [[Stella Vander]].
In the course of his career, he accompanied singers [[Julos Beaucarne]], [[Jacques Bertin]], [[Maxime le Forestier]], [[Eddy Mitchell]], Stéphanie Crawford, Elisabeth Caumont, and [[Stella Vander]].


He died due to complications of a duodenal ulcer in February 2003.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lemonde.fr/archives/article/2003/02/17/deces-de-michel-graillier-pianiste-de-l-ouverture-et-de-l-aventure_309610_1819218.html|publisher=Le Monde|title=Décès de Michel Graillier, pianiste de l'ouverture et de l'aventure}}</ref>
He died in February 2003.


== Style ==
== Style ==
According to Graillier, he was influenced most by pianists [[Bud Powell]], [[Bill Evans]], and [[McCoy Tyner]], and somewhat later [[Herbie Hancock]] in the Miles Davis quintet.<ref name="note3">{{cite web|publisher=Jazz Magazine n°260 |date=December 1977|url=http://graillier.free.fr/pdf/magazine/jazzmagazine_1977.pdf|title=Jazz magazine article|accessdate=2013-09-09}}</ref>
According to Graillier, he was influenced most by pianists [[Bud Powell]], [[Bill Evans]], and [[McCoy Tyner]], and somewhat later [[Herbie Hancock]] in the Miles Davis quintet.<ref name="note3">{{cite web|publisher=Jazz Magazine n°260 |date=December 1977|url=http://graillier.free.fr/pdf/magazine/jazzmagazine_1977.pdf|title=Jazz magazine article|accessdate=2013-09-09}}</ref>


But Graillier has also said of his influences, "Of course, the influences are there, but it is not worth talking about them, they are part of the normal evolution of any musician. A musician simply wants to play, regardless of his knowledge of the language. He is therefore obliged to learn the language that others have developed over decades and this language becomes more and more intelligible over time, just as a kid learns to write. Above all, the influence of the great pianists and musicians is mainly of value in showing one how to find one's own voice." <ref name="note3"/>
But Graillier has also said of his influences, "Of course, the influences are there, but it is not worth talking about them, they are part of the normal evolution of any musician. A musician simply wants to play, regardless of his knowledge of the language. He is therefore obliged to learn the language that others have developed over decades and this language becomes more and more intelligible over time, just as a kid learns to write. Above all, the influence of the great pianists and musicians is mainly of value in showing one how to find one's own voice."<ref name="note3"/>


In his short autobiography, ''Le Monde la Musique'' (''The World and its Music''), Graillier cited a phrase from Pascal Anquetil, "There floats through all his music, a dreamy and sweetly drifting mist. A climate of peace that restores one on a summer night without knowing exactly why."<ref name="note1"/>
In his short autobiography, ''Le Monde la Musique'' (''The World and its Music''), Graillier cited a phrase from Pascal Anquetil, "There floats through all his music, a dreamy and sweetly drifting mist. A climate of peace that restores one on a summer night without knowing exactly why."<ref name="note1"/>


Xavier Prévost wrote in the ''Dictionnaire du Jazz'', "Michel Graillier constructed an internal dialogue of breathing that knew how to make room for silence." <ref>Dictionnaire du Jazz, Bouquins, Robert Laffond, 2000</ref>
Xavier Prévost wrote in the ''Dictionnaire du Jazz'', "Michel Graillier constructed an internal dialogue of breathing that knew how to make room for silence."<ref>Dictionnaire du Jazz, Bouquins, Robert Laffond, 2000</ref>


== Awards==
== Awards==
* Prix Django Reinhardt Prize of the Académie du Jazz, 1978
* [[Prix Django Reinhardt]] Prize of the [[Académie du Jazz]], 1978
* [[Grand Prix de l'Académie Charles Cros]], jazz, 1983
* [[Grand Prix de l'Académie Charles Cros]], jazz, 1983
* [[Grand Prix du Disque]], 2000
* [[Grand Prix du Disque]], 2000
Line 56: Line 55:
* ''Toutes ces choses'' (Open, 1979)
* ''Toutes ces choses'' (Open, 1979)
* ''Dream Drops'' (Owl, 1981, 1992)
* ''Dream Drops'' (Owl, 1981, 1992)
* ''Oiseaux de nuit'' wth Alain Jean-Marie ([[Le Chant du Monde]], 1991, 2004)
* ''Oiseaux de nuit'' with Alain Jean-Marie ([[Le Chant du Monde]], 1991, 2004)
* ''Fairly – The Complete Session'' (Le Chant du Monde, 1991, reedited in 2005)
* ''Fairly – The Complete Session'' (Le Chant du Monde, 1991, reedited in 2005)
* ''Fairly'' (Le Chant du Monde, 1991)
* ''Fairly'' (Le Chant du Monde, 1991)
Line 68: Line 67:
*''[[Chet Baker Sings Again]]'' (Timeless, 1985)
*''[[Chet Baker Sings Again]]'' (Timeless, 1985)
* ''[[Candy (Chet Baker album)|Candy]]'' ([[Sonet Records|Sonet]], 1985)
* ''[[Candy (Chet Baker album)|Candy]]'' ([[Sonet Records|Sonet]], 1985)
* Live from the Moonlight (Philology, 1988)


==References==
==References==
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[[Category:2003 deaths]]
[[Category:2003 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Lens, Pas-de-Calais]]
[[Category:People from Lens, Pas-de-Calais]]
[[Category:20th-century pianists]]
[[Category:20th-century French pianists]]
[[Category:20th-century French musicians]]
[[Category:20th-century French male musicians]]
[[Category:French male jazz pianists]]

Latest revision as of 20:21, 8 November 2024

Michel Graillier
Born(1946-10-18)18 October 1946
Lens, Pas-de-Calais, France
Died12 February 2003(2003-02-12) (aged 56)
Paris
GenresJazz
OccupationMusician
InstrumentPiano
Years active1960s–2000s
LabelsSaravah, Musica, Le Chant du Monde, EmArcy, Marge

Michel Graillier (18 October 1946, Lens, Pas-de-Calais, France - February 2003, Paris)[1] was a French jazz pianist.

Biography

[edit]

From the ages of four to eighteen, Graillier studied classical piano in Lens, France. During adolescence, he worked as a drummer with the amateur yéyé group, Les Chaps ("The Guys").[2]

After some preparatory classes, he enrolled in the engineering school at the ISEN in Lille, where he met the bassist Didier Levallet through whom he discovered jazz. In 1968, with a diploma in electrical engineering, he moved to Paris. He played in clubs, most notably at the Caméléon, in a trio with Aldo Romano and Jean-François Jenny-Clark. He made his first recording in 1969 with Steve Lacy. For three years, he accompanied violinist Jean-Luc Ponty. His first album for Agartha Records appeared in 1970, on which he was accompanied by Alby Cullaz and Bernard Lubat. During the same year, he recorded Pianos Puzzle with Georges Arvanitas, René Urtreger, and Maurice Vander. Due to personal problems, he withdrew from performing for a period of time.[3]

In 1972, he was invited by drummer Christian Vander to play piano in his group Magma, which he did for two years. On some Magma albums Graillier is credited under his kobaian name Tsoï Menekaah.[4] Following that, he played with Christian Escoudé, François Jeanneau, and others. For several years, he was the regular pianist at the club Riverbop. Here he had the opportunity to play with Americans in Paris who were on tour, such as Philly Joe Jones and Steve Grossman. He performed at the club Dréher in Paris and at Magnetic Terrasse, usually in trio with Alby Cullaz and Christian Vander, but also with Barney Wilen or Jacques Pelzer.

In 1977 saxophonist and flutist Jacques Pelzer, whose daughter Micheline was married to Graillier, introduced him to Chet Baker. For the next ten years, Graillier accompanied Baker.

In addition, he played with Éric Le Lann, Philip Catherine, Jacques Thollot, Richard Raux, Jean-Pierre Debarbat, Alain Jean-Marie, Paolo Fresu, and Pharoah Sanders. He appeared regularly in duo with bassist Riccardo Del Fra and in trio with Alby Cullaz and Simon Goubert.

In the course of his career, he accompanied singers Julos Beaucarne, Jacques Bertin, Maxime le Forestier, Eddy Mitchell, Stéphanie Crawford, Elisabeth Caumont, and Stella Vander.

He died due to complications of a duodenal ulcer in February 2003.[5]

Style

[edit]

According to Graillier, he was influenced most by pianists Bud Powell, Bill Evans, and McCoy Tyner, and somewhat later Herbie Hancock in the Miles Davis quintet.[6]

But Graillier has also said of his influences, "Of course, the influences are there, but it is not worth talking about them, they are part of the normal evolution of any musician. A musician simply wants to play, regardless of his knowledge of the language. He is therefore obliged to learn the language that others have developed over decades and this language becomes more and more intelligible over time, just as a kid learns to write. Above all, the influence of the great pianists and musicians is mainly of value in showing one how to find one's own voice."[6]

In his short autobiography, Le Monde la Musique (The World and its Music), Graillier cited a phrase from Pascal Anquetil, "There floats through all his music, a dreamy and sweetly drifting mist. A climate of peace that restores one on a summer night without knowing exactly why."[2]

Xavier Prévost wrote in the Dictionnaire du Jazz, "Michel Graillier constructed an internal dialogue of breathing that knew how to make room for silence."[7]

Awards

[edit]

Discography[8]

[edit]
  • Pianos Puzzle (Saravah, 1970, 1991)
  • Agartha (Saravah, 1970)
  • Ad lib (Musica, 1976)
  • Libra, (1976)
  • In a Spring Way, (1978)
  • Toutes ces choses (Open, 1979)
  • Dream Drops (Owl, 1981, 1992)
  • Oiseaux de nuit with Alain Jean-Marie (Le Chant du Monde, 1991, 2004)
  • Fairly – The Complete Session (Le Chant du Monde, 1991, reedited in 2005)
  • Fairly (Le Chant du Monde, 1991)
  • Portrait in Black and White with Alain Jean-Marie (EmArcy, 1991, 2005)
  • Sweet Smile (1996; Sketch, 2006)
  • Soft Talk (Sketch, 2000)

With Chet Baker

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "matchID - Michel Graillier". Fichier des décès (in French). Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Michel Graillier - Life". Graillier.free.fr. Retrieved 2013-09-09.
  3. ^ "Michel Graillier : 2000" (PDF). Graillier.free.fr. Retrieved 2013-09-09.
  4. ^ Liner Notes CD: Archiw I-II (Sudio Zünd (2008)), p. 34.
  5. ^ "Décès de Michel Graillier, pianiste de l'ouverture et de l'aventure". Le Monde.
  6. ^ a b "Jazz magazine article" (PDF). Jazz Magazine n°260. December 1977. Retrieved 2013-09-09.
  7. ^ Dictionnaire du Jazz, Bouquins, Robert Laffond, 2000
  8. ^ "Michel Graillier - Works". Graillier.free.fr. 2013-02-17. Retrieved 2013-09-09.
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