Mazad Café

I was born in Puteaux in 1963, and in 1968 my parents decided to leave the region of Paris – apparently they found the climate there « too warm » -and we moved to a part of France where it was more temperate: the Côtes d’Armor of Northern Britanny. It was there that I heard the bombard  for the first time, an instrument that I would later play alongside ROLAND BECKER (1975). Although I was quite a proficient tennis player, I decided to to give it all up and instead satisfy my greater thirst/desire which was to learn music. I attended the l’École National de Musique de St Brieuc (1977). until  1984 when I obtained the gold medal. I did not take up tennis again – one medal is quite enough ! I began teaching  music but the call of the stage and to create proved stronger.  Benefiting from all the different horizons i had  travelled, forming the band LES PIRES  became the obvious next step (1988-2000). 

Then followed many shows and encounters : JO PRIVAT, LÉON REDBONE, MANO NÉGRA, LES V.R.P. . .among others

It was with SÉBASTIEN LIBOLT (ex-member of LES V.R.P), that we were to compose and  perform  with Philippe DECOUFLÉ and come to found “LA TRABANT“ with which BERTRAND BELIN would produce the following :

• DÉCODEX (1995)
• MICHELINE (1996)
• MARGUERITE (1997)
• SHAZAM (1998- 2001)
• SOMBRERO (2007-2010)  music by BRIAN  ENO and  S. LIBOLT

Together with JACKY MOLARD, we founded the :

• JACKY MOLARD ACOUSTIQUE QUARTET (2003) with JANICK  MARTIN and HÉLÈNE LABARRIÈRE
• as well as N’DIALE in collaboration with FOUNE DIARRA and her trio from Mali. (2009)

I also worked with PHILIPPE OLLIVIER to create « OSTINATO » an electro-acoustic experience and « HIRISINN » for the company LE PTIT CIRK.

All is here : Biography

Born in 1975, he began to learn music at the age of seven, first the guitar and then the drums, which he went on to study at the Conservatoire de Brest.

Next he learned to play oriental and Indian drums with

Khalid Kouhen, and began to perform with various bands specialising in popular music from Maghreb and Eastern Europe.

In 2004, after a journey and musical encounters in the Balkans, he started to play the « tapan » – a double-headed bass drum.  Very soon he found himself attracted/fascinated both by its power of expression and by its rich repertoire, He travellled fequently to the Mediterranean region – Macedonia, Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria -in order to  learn from great musicians and teachers and thus develop/work on/improve his skill with this instrument.

At the same time he also became more proficient with other percussion instruments such as the derbuka, the daff, the riqq and various kinds of drums.

As he found more opportunities to meet and exchange with musicians, he took part in a great number of projects of varied artistic nature:  traditional music, contemporary music, jazz and improvisation, and he regularly collaborated in other art forms: dance, circus performance, theatre and film.

Being a musician who is also a listener, his compositions  are  full of sensitivity – and without borders – nourished and enriched by  all manner of experiences.

Some references:

• Slonovski Bal (France/Serbia),
• Bratsch,
• Gypsy Burek  (Breton/Macedonian creation),
• Dengekan (Kurdistani/Breton creation),
• Kazut de Tyr (Breton and oriental music),
• Lakhdar Hanou Ensemble (oriental music of Arabian/Andalusian inspiration),
• Mazad Café (contemporary music of popular inspiration),
• Le Bal des chevaux(equestrian circus performance),
• Cie les Cambrioleurs (Theatre),
• Cie A/Corps (dance).