Joëlle Léandre solo & invités

The grande dame of the double bass, a product of France, is celebrating 50 years in the business this year and, as autumn begins, her 75th birthday!

Opening the evening and paying tribute to her

Xavière Fertin – clarinets

Chloé Bayens – violin

Louis Frères – bass

Tom Malmendier – drums

Joëlle Léandre, born in Aix-en-Provence in 1951, is a French double bassist specialising in contemporary music, improvised music and jazz. She is also a vocalist, very often complementing her instrumental improvisations with her voice.

In the field of contemporary music, Joëlle Léandre has worked with Merce Cunningham, Morton Feldman and John Cage. She has performed with the Ensemble InterContemporain and the 2E2M ensemble. The composers John Cage, Betsy Jolas¹ and Giacinto Scelsi² have written pieces for her.

Joëlle Léandre is also extremely active in the world of improvised music and jazz. She has collaborated notably with Derek Bailey, Anthony Braxton, George Lewis, Barre Phillips, Evan Parker, Irène Schweizer, Steve Lacy, Fred Frith, Carlos Zingaro, John Zorn, Susie Ibarra, J. D. Parran, Ernst Reijseger and Sylvie Courvoisier.

She has written extensively for dance (notably for Josef Nadj and Cécile Loyer) and theatre, and has staged several multidisciplinary performances. Her influence is international; her work as a composer and performer, both as a soloist and in ensembles, has taken her to the most prestigious venues in Europe, America and Asia. She has recorded over a hundred albums and currently teaches improvisation and composition in the United States.