Jean-Michel Blais

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Jean-Michel Blais (* 1985 in Nicolet , Canada ) is a French-Canadian composer and pianist .

Life

Blais grew up in Québec, Canada . Through his parents' house he was influenced by French pop music, Québec folk music and traditional square dance and came into contact with classical music and jazz only late . At the age of nine he began to improvise on the home organ and took classical piano lessons as a result. After he had almost given up playing the piano at the age of 15, he discovered the instrument as a means of expression and a "musical diary". At 16 he attended the Music Conservatory in Trois-Rivières with the original goal of becoming a classical pianist. However, he found there that his place was not within the academic music world and broke off his training after two years.

It was only after long stays abroad in Berlin and South America that he found his way back to music at the age of 25, moved to Montreal and devoted himself to his first musical ideas there again. He worked as a special education teacher until his debut album was released .

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Blais' compositions are shaped by influences from classical music, jazz and experimental or electronic music . He relies on minimalist arrangements and a style of playing that is based on improvisation and seems spontaneous, in which for him the focus is not on technical precision, but on tonal variety and expression. In terms of composition, critics see above all cross-references to Romanticism and musical impressionism ( Chopin , Ravel ), but also to composers from the genre of minimal music such as Erik Satie , Philip Glass or Harold Budd .

The debut album II was recorded completely in the living room of his Montreal apartment, which can also be seen on the album cover. Apart from the inclusion of atmospheric ambient noises , he and the Montreal producer Bufflo largely avoided the use of overdubs during the recordings . The album reached number one on the Canadian Billboard Classical Charts . The Time magazine chose II of the ten best albums of the year 2016th

In 2017 Blais collaborated with Grammy- nominated producer Mike Silver ( aka CFCF ) on the joint album Cascades . The two Montreal-based musicians then combined the minimalist arrangements typical of Blais with the use of synthesizers and electronic sound elements. In addition to four new arrangements of their own titles, Blais and Silver tied in with the tonal characteristics of New Music with a reminiscence of John Cage's In a Landscape .

Albums

  • II , 2016 (Arts & Crafts)
  • Cascades , 2017 (Arts & Crafts)
  • Dans ma main , 2018 (Arts & Crafts)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Classical Beauty: Jean-Michel Blais And CFCF . In: MTV News . ( mtv.com [accessed September 7, 2017]).
  2. ↑ II - RED . In: RED . ( releases.red [accessed September 7, 2017]).
  3. ^ Jean-Michel Blais | Biography & History | AllMusic. Retrieved September 7, 2017 .
  4. ^ POP Montreal: Jean-Michel Blais embraces the neighborhood noise . In: Montreal Gazette . September 16, 2016 ( montrealgazette.com [accessed September 7, 2017]).
  5. ^ Avant pianist Jean-Michel Blais preps debut album II. In: FACT Magazine: Music News, New Music. February 16, 2016, accessed September 7, 2017 .
  6. ↑ II - RED . In: RED . ( releases.red [accessed September 7, 2017]).
  7. ↑ Jamieson Cox: The Top 10 Best Albums of 2016. In: TIME.com. Retrieved September 7, 2017 .


personal data
SURNAME Blais, Jean-Michel
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Franco-Canadian composer and pianist
DATE OF BIRTH 1985
PLACE OF BIRTH Nicolet , Canada