Thomas L'Etienne
Thomas L'Etienne (born April 8, 1956 in Hamburg ) is a German jazz musician ( clarinet , alto and tenor saxophone , arrangement , composition ) of Russian-French descent.
Live and act
L'Etienne became enthusiastic about music from an early age. He first learned guitar and balalaika . In 1971 he switched to the clarinet, which he learned as a self-taught ; a little later the saxophone was added. As a schoolboy he founded The Shepherds with Norbert Susemihl , a vocal quartet that mainly performed spiritual and gospel songs. In 1971, when the name changed to Papa Tom's Lamentation Jazzband , the focus was on traditional jazz. His first foreign tours with this band took him to Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands and Belgium.
In 1979 he first traveled to New Orleans. There he played with legends of New Orleans jazz such as Kid Thomas , Emanuel Sayles , Chester Zardis and James Booker . In 1982 l'Etienne broke off his doctoral studies in German literature to join the band of singer Lillian Boutté in 1983 for a six-month tour, whom he married the following year and with which he performed regularly until the turn of the millennium.
L'Etienne has also appeared as a soloist at the major jazz festivals in Europe, North America, Australia and Asia and has recorded albums with musicians such as the pianist Edward Frank , Lloyd Lambert , Smokey Johnson , Dr. John , Jeanette Kimball and Humphrey Lyttelton . He also performed with Snooks Eaglin , Clark Terry , Sweets Edison , Milt Hinton and others, but became increasingly interested in traditional Martinique music and Brazilian choro music.
Together with Uli Wunner he founded the Creole Clarinets , which developed a musical crossover between traditional New Orleans jazz and the Música Popular Brasileira .
Discographic notes
- Lillian Boutte & Thomas L'Etienne A Fine Romance (GHB 1987)
- Creole Clarinets Les deux jumeaux (Downtown Records 2006, with Uli Wunner, Mike Goetz , John Brunton, Norman Emberson, Bob Culverhouse)
- Burich - L'Etienne New Orleans Ensemble Salee Dame (2013, with Finn Burich, Hans Esbjerg, Torben Bøtker Bjørnskov, Espen Laub by Lillienskjold)
- Jan Luley & Thomas L'Etienne Boonoonoonous (2014)
- Creole Clarinets / Trio Perigoso Gumbo Carioca (2015, with Uli Wunner, Dom Oliveira, Rafael Mallmith, Ramon Murcia, Bebeto Sorriso, and Denise Gordon)
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | L'Etienne, Thomas |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German jazz musician (clarinet, saxophone, arrangement, composition) |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 8, 1956 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Hamburg |