Getting to Know You...

There are musicians we go through our lives believing sound a certain way despite never having actually listened to them. Maybe it’s the fact they recorded on a particular label or played with a particular musician. The fact is we only imagine what they sound like because we have only words and/or pictures to go on. For me, Louis Sclavis was one such musician.

I was sure I had him pegged though I’d never heard a note. It was the fact I believed I knew his sound the kept me from ever giving him a chance. Then I heard this concert. Whoa, was I out in left field somewhere staring at the daisies…

Funny how, once I did hear him play, I began to spot his name on records I already owned – records I liked. Liked a lot!

Sclavis is a clarinet / sax player who possesses a full, fluid tone that compliments his snaking, angular solos. I love his passion. I love his inventiveness.

This concert was recorded at a jazz festival in Austria in 2001. Sclavis plays clarinet and soprano sax; Jean-Luc Capozzo plays trumpet; Vincent Courtois plays cello; Bruno Chevillon is on double bass; and Francois Merville is on drums.

The playlist is:
01 Hors les Murs (16:54)
02 Possibles (7:26)
03 Hommage a Lounes Matoub (18:23)
04 Contre Contre (5:41)
05 Le Temps d'Apres (10:05)
06 L'Affrontement des Pretendants (8:40)

Enjoy!