Franck Avitabile

Franck Avitabile is a Pianiste French born with Lyon in 1971.

Franck Avitabile very early shows an attraction for the music and exalte quickly of the impressive predispositions. If he has fun, as of the four years age, to retranscribe the credits of the television programs, its first “serious” stage starts at the nine years age when his/her parents register it with the Conservatoire of Lyon. Its musical teaching is articulated exclusively around the traditional repertory and the young wonder swallows without reserve the partitions of Bach, Mozart, Brahms or Debussy.

At seventeen years, Franck Avitabile discovers new musical horizons (Keith Jarrett and Chick Corea), thus finding his training traditional too rigorous and where personal interpretations appear impossible to him. It is registered then in class of initiation to the improvisation with the pianist Mario Stanchev before integrating in 1990 the class of Jazz of same Stanchev. During four years, he listens to and plays to perfection the repertory of the Masters of the keyboard impressing even Benoît Sourisse, member of the jury of the academy. In 1994, it is found embarked in the adventure of the DRIVEN collective, a gathering of musicians mâconnais.

During the summer 1994, Franck Avitabile grows rich by a New Yorkean experiment three months, benefitting from a training course to realize for his schooling with the National university of Lyon (Franck is titular of a Control of discrete mathematics and a DEA of fundamental data processing). He Jamme frequently with the Blue Notes and with the Small' S, small club of the Village, takes courses with Fred Hersch and discovers the music of Bud Powell under the fingers of a young unknown pianist.

Its departure with the military service in 1996 was also a decisive stage for its course of musician. The spare time enables him to look further into its play and to prepare the contest of the Jazz department of the Conservatoire Higher National of Music of Paris. Making a success of this examination of entry, it gains two months later, the price of the Concours piano jazz of Vanves, chaired by Martial Solal. Two years later (1998), it will gain the second Grand Prix of the international Concours Martial Solal of the town of Paris as well as a first price of the Conservatoire of Paris.

Flirtant with excellence, it Franck misses its formation the experiment of the recording and the studio. It is made thing when Michel Petrucciani, which decides artistically to direct the album of a “beginner”, cracks under the prowesses of the young wonder. The Lyonese returns then in studio, surrounded by Luigi Bonafede with the battery and of Ricardo LED FRA with the Contrebasse (with as a guest Louis Petrucciani with the double bass), and leaves on Dreyfus jazz in tradition (1998).

This first album is immediately greeted by the critic and Franck Avitabile sees himself giving a Django d' Or in 1999 for this first work.

The success of this opus and the recognition by the specialists encourage it to proceed in this way. Thus, he reiterates the experiment of the studio while implying himself of advantage on personal compositions and his system of discrete reharmonisation. Surrounded by N.H.Ø.P. (double bass) and Roberto Gatto (battery), the pianist delivers its second album in 2000, on Dreyfus Jazz. The exit of this album then enables him to multiply the scenic experiments and to appear in particular with the prestigious Festival Jazz in Ramatuelle, with the Festival of Marciac invited by Wynton Marsalis, in Paris invited by Steve Grossman…

Faithful to the formula of the trio and the label Dreyfus Jazz, Franck Avitabile leaves a third opus Bemsha Swing to the autumn 2002 with the Flemish beater DRE Pallemærts and the double bass player virtuoso Remi Vignolo, his formation of round. This New Trio, made up from now on of a majority of original compositions as well as new system of horn the eye, is selected by the Adami to go to occur with the festivals of Montreal, Marciac, Nice, has the Villette…

A collaboration for the music of the film a cleaning lady follows, realized by Claude Berri, where Franck will improvise on a composition of Frederic Botton and another collaboration with Manu Katché and Pino Palladino for an exceptional concert with the festival of Maubeuge in January 2004. Franck is member of the group Manu Katché Tendances since his creation where he plays at the same time of the piano and the Northern Lead: more than one hundred of concerts in the world will follow.

Franck Avitabile New Trio receives the price Frank Ténot, revelation of the year, with the Victoires of the Jazz 2004.

For his fourth opus for the Dreyfus label, Franck records improvisations resulting from his compositions in piano solo. Left in March 2005, the album sobrement is sobrement entitled Just play . SHOCK of the magazine Jazzman for the first time, this album also receives very warm welcome in Japan and in Italy.

The fifth opus leaves in September 2006 and is entitled Short stories . It consists of a collection the instantaneous musical ones and gives to the listener the possibility of being able to penetrate in each of the eighteen parts, immediately, as by dividing into sheets a photo album. Noticed by Télérama (FF), Classica (R10), Jazzman (SHOCK), TSF (Must), the inrocks, FIP (disc jazz of the week), the academy Charles Cros (very favorite), Jazz Magazine (agitation of the year), the World (portrait of a full page!), this album, completely apart from the " modes" quickly will find its public.

Complete discography

Franck Avitabile - Shorts Stories (2006)
15 Years off Dreyfus Jazz (2007)
Food for Thought (2007)
Diamond Continuation (2006)
Franck Avitabile - Just Play (2005)
Apopsis Seven (2005)
Net off drunk, opus 2 (2005)
Jazz club - Duke of Lombards (2004)
has child is born (compilation, 2004)
Original soundtrack of the film a cleaning lady (2004)
Franck Avitabile - Bemsha Swing (2002)
DJ Cam Fillet present off Drunk (2002)
Franck Avitabile - Right Time (2000)
Talent Midem (2000)
Hello Four-bit byte - To Be gold Not to Bop (2000)
Paris Jazz Quintet (2000)
Collector Dreyfus Jazz (1999)
Franck Avitabile - In Tradition (1998)
Franck Avitabile - Lights (1997)
Franck Avitabile - Tribute to Bud Powell (1996)

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