East Vincent Courtois

• Arthur Honegger (1892 - 1955):
• 1 Honegger: Paduana 03:05
• Werner Henze (1926 - 2012): Serenade:
• 2 Henze: Serenade: I. Adagio rubato 01:03
• 3 Henze: Serenade: II. Un poco allegretto 00:59
• 4 Henze: Serenade: III. Pastorale 00:42
• 5 Henze: Serenade: IV. Andante con moto, rubato 00:41
• 6 Henze: Serenade: V. Vivace 00:41
• 7 Henze: Serenade: VI. Tango 01:08
• 8 Henze: Serenade: VII. Allegro marziale 00:48
• 9 Henze: Serenade: VIII. Allegretto 00:42
• 10 Henze: Serenade: IX. Menuett 01:14
• Krzysztof Penderecki (1933 - 2020):
• 11 Penderecki: Per Slava 06:33
• György Ligeti (1923 - 2006): Sonata for solo cello:
• 12 Ligeti: Sonata for solo cello: I. Dialogo 04:21
• 13 Ligeti: Sonata for solo cello: II. Capriccio 04:28
• Luciano Berio (1925 - 2003):
• 14 Berio: Les mots sont allés 03:20
• Paul Hindemith (1895 - 1963): Sonata for Cello, Op 25 No. 3:
• 15 Hindemith: Sonata for Cello, Op 25 No. 3: I. Lebhaft, Sehr Markiert 01:46
• 16 Hindemith: Sonata for Cello, Op. 25 No. 3: II. Mäßig Schnell, Gemächlich 01:24
• 17 Hindemith: Sonata for Cello, Op. 25 No. 3: III. Langsam 04:05
• 18 Hindemith: Sonata for Cello, Op. 25 No. 3: IV. Lebhafte Viertel 00:48
• 19 Hindemith: Sonata for Cello, Op. 25 No. 3: V. Mäßig Schnell 01:53
• Dominique Pifarely (b. 1957):
• 20 Pifarely: Litanie pour Fernando Pessoa 06:12
• Total Runtime 45:53

Info for East

«Early this year, a crazy idea came over me – an old longing, a somewhat hazy obsession, a dream well within my reach, yet never fulfilled: to go on a long beautiful journey. For a long time I’d been contemplating a bridge between two worlds: the music I make, improvisation – that so-called European jazz – and twentieth century classical music. A few great elders and friends had paved the way so, with my cello and a few bows, I set out to cross that bridge. But I immediately stumbled upon a seemingly unclimbable mountain: Penderecki! I considered walking back or sidestepping the obstacle. No way! At home, in hotels, backstage and even on airplanes, I persisted, taking my sweet time and eventually; once I’d reached the top, I spotted in the distance lovely, dark, deep woods: Ligeti. I rushed in headlong, scratching my face and hands on brambles, looking for a safe way. Then I came across a few clearings, sublime, pared down minatures by Hanz Werner Henze. My relentlessness and perfectionism started bearing their fruits: I finally found pleasure which I welcomed as an encouragement. Back in March, when lockdown first started, time stood still and suddenly I had all the time in the world. Every morning, in the early hours, I’d get going. I decided to start recording. Hindemith and his five-movement sonata thrilled and challenged me. My friend Dominique Pifarely shared with me a profound and organic Litanie. I discovered Honegger’s Paduana, an elegantly chiselled yet long-forgotten piece. When lockdown was finally lifted, and with Berio, The words were gone… Today, my stand disappears under the music by fascinating composers that I long to play – music that I know will nurture my own. In the end, it’s a whole world I discovered, a new place I love deeply, on the other side of the bridge I’m hopefully nowhere near done crossing.« (Vincent Courtois)

Vincent Courtois, cello

Vincent Courtois
was born in Paris in 1968 and began playing the cello when he was six years old .He took classical studies at the conservatory in Aubervilliers and Paris with Erwan Fauré, Xavier Gagnepain, Roland Pidoux and Fréderick Lodéon while discovering jazz and improvisation with Didier Levallet, Dominique Pifarely and Christian Escoudé.

Vincent Courtois began playing in various Parisian groups and his first CD as a leader, titled "Cello News", was released in 1990.Since then Vincent Courtois has recorded more than ten cd's‚ as a leader, among them: "Translucide" (with Michel Godard and Noel Akchoté) , "The Fitting Room" with (Dominique Pifarely and Marc Ducret) both for Enja Records , "What do you mean by silence?" (Le Triton), and " L'homme Avion" ( Chief Inspector).

Vincent played in several of Rabih Abou Khalil's bands ("Yara" and "The Cactus of Knowledge") and plays frequently with clarinetist Louis Sclavis ("L'affrontement des prétendants", "Dans la nuit" and "Napoli's walls" on ECM Records). Vincent also plays regularly with trombonist Yves Robert ( "In Touch" on ECM and "Inspirine" on Chief Inspector) and pianist Sylvie Courvoisier ("Lonelyville" on Intakt and "Asap" on CamJazz)

In the past twenty years Vincent Courtois has played or recorded with artists such as Pierre Favre, James Newton, Laurent de Wilde, Julien Lourau, Jim Black, Tomas Stanko, Dave Douglas, Renaud Garcia Fons, Tom Raney, Mark Nauseef, Joachim Kuhn, Michel Portal, Cyril Atef, Maxime Delpierre, Benoit Delbecq, Henri Texier, Dave Holland, François Corneloup, Wolfang Pouchnick, Mark Feldman , Médéric Collignon, Martial Solal, Michel Petrucciani, Gérard Marais, Rita mitsuko, John Greaves, Michelle Rabbia, Marilyn Crispell, Gerald Cleaver, Ikue Mori and many others great musicians...

Booklet for East