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Richard Galliano

Richard Galliano started studying piano and accordion at the age of 4 with his father Lucien Galliano, accordionist and teacher. Particularly gifted and invested, he quickly entered the Nice Conservatory, directed at that time by organist Pierre Cochereau, and followed courses in harmony, counterpoint and trombone. He won first prize in 1969 with trombone.

He arrived in Paris in 1975 and met Claude Nougaro, becoming his friend, his accordionist and conductor until 1983. The author and composer had found each other. They got along beautifully. From this close collaboration many songs that are part of the heritage of French music, such as Allée des brouillards, Des voiliers,Vie Violence were born.

The second decisive meeting took place in 1980, with the Argentinean composer and bandoneonist Astor Piazzolla. Astor strongly encouraged Richard to create the French “New Musette”, as he himself had previously invented the Argentinean “New Tango”.

During his long and prolific career, Richard Galliano has recorded more than 50 albums under his name. He has also collaborated with an impressive number of prestigious artists and musicians:

Jazz: Chet Baker, Eddy Louiss, Ron Carter, Wynton Marsalis, Charlie Haden, Gary Burton, Michel Portal, Toots Thielemans and Kurt Elling.

French songs: Serge Reggiani, Claude Nougaro, Barbara, Juliette Greco, Dick Annegarn, Georges Moustaki, Allain Leprest, Charles Aznavour, and Serge Gainsbourg.

He has also collaborated with Nigel Kennedy for his classical repertoire and a large number of orchestras.

During his world tours, he has performed in the most prestigious theatres: the Lincoln Center in New York, the Victoria Hall in Geneva, the Accademia Santa Cécilia in Rome, the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, the Théâtre Marinsky in Saint-Petersburg, as well as the New Philharmonies in Hamburg and Paris.

In 1997 Richard Galliano was awarded a “Victoire de la Musique Jazz” for his album New York Tango.

He won again in 1998 for his album Blow Up, recorded together with Michel Portal. In 2009, he was appointed Officer in the Order of Arts and Letters.

In 2010, he received the “SACEM Prize for the Best Pedagogical Work for the Accordion Method”, written by him and his father Lucien Galliano, for Lemoine Publishing.

He recorded a Bach album with Deutsche Grammophon in 2010. This album broke classic sales records with more than 70,000 copies sold.

He was named Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters in 2011.

He won the “Victoire de la Musique Classique” in 2014 and also received the “Best Composer of the Year 2014 Award”.

Increasing his classical repertoire recording, he recorded a new album in 2016, this time dedicated to the work of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

The year 2016 also saw the release of a new quartet album New Jazz Musette released under the Italian label Ponderosa music&art, thirty years after his 1985 album Spleen, which introduced the musical concept New Jazz Musette.

In 2016 he was promoted to Officer of the National Order of Merit by the French President, François Hollande.

In 2017 the album Aria was released, which was recorded as a duet in the Reformed Church of Bern (CH) with the organist Thierry Escaich at Jade-Universal. This album showcased the unexpected alliance between the organ and the accordion, made more sublime by the remarkable acoustics of the church and the quality of the organ.

A few weeks before his death, Michel Legrand entrusted Richard Galliano with the artistic direction of two “Tribute to Michel Legrand” concerts planned for April 2018 at the Grand Rex in Paris, together with Michel Portal, Ibrahim Maalouf and Natalie Dessay.

In May 4, 2018 Richard Galliano performed solo at the Tokyo International Forum. The album The Tokyo Concert was released in spring 2019 under the Jade-Universal label. This is the album of his maturity, greeted with great enthusiasm by the international press “Richard Galliano at summit of his art ”and by the ever larger audiences. He gave more than 60 accordion recitals, notably as part of the Festival de Saint-Germaindes-des-Près, the Montreal Jazz Festival and the La Roque d’Anthéron Festival.

Following the death of his friend Michel Legrand, Richard Galliano wanted pay tribute to him with an album, Tribute to Michel Legrand, recorded at the České Budějovice Philharmonic in Prague, in June 2019 with the Prague String Quintet. (Jade-Sony)

His next creation was an oratorio Les Chemins Noirs, based on the novel by René Frégni. The first performance took place at The Musical Scene of Boulogne Billancourt on January 30, 2020.

In 2020, Richard Galliano will celebrate his 50th anniversary in more than 15 countries

The year will end on December 12, his 70th birthday and the anniversary of 50 years of his musical career, on stage at the Salle Gaveau in Paris.

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Ron Carter: An Evening With Ron Carter, Richard Galliano (Live At The Theaterstübchen, Kassel)

Read "An Evening With Ron Carter, Richard Galliano (Live At The Theaterstübchen, Kassel)" reviewed by Richard J Salvucci

by Richard J Salvucci
October 28, 2023

The odds are that most readers are not intimately familiar with jazz accordion. Undoubtedly, that is because there are not very many of them; someone might list Art Van Damme, Tommy Gumina, Angelo di Pippo, and Mat Mathews, none of them a household name. The Franco-Italian Richard Galliano should probably hold contemporary pride of place among accordionists, although even he, remarkable a player that he is, will not move the needle much. That is not a good thing.Galliano ...

Liner Notes

Christian Howes & Richard Galliano: Southern Exposure

by Howard Mandel
July 27, 2023

Christian Howes wants you to know that Southern Exposure is not simply another violin and accordion record, some light-hearted evocation of Parisian café music. “It's deeper than that," Howes, the 40-year-old violinist who is also an educator and online entrepreneur, says of his 13th album (counting self-produced projects from the 1990s). “I think there's a lot of passion on the record. There's a sort of tragic feel to some of it. “It's distinguished by the fact ...

Play This!

Richard Galliano, Paolo Fresu and Jan Lundgren: The Windmills of Your Mind

by Michael Ricci
March 12, 2023

After reading the 200 Jazz Compositions Inspired By Don Quixote announcement and listening to the companion playlist I discovered the many jazz covers of Michel Legrand's “Windmills of Your Mind"--which won an Oscar for best song (The Thomas Crown Affair, 1968). A haunting beauty, this version by Richard Galliano, Paolo Fresu and Jan Lundgren's appears on Mare Nostrum III (ACT Music, 2019). ...

Album Review

Richard Galliano: New Jazz Musette

Read "New Jazz Musette" reviewed by Neri Pollastri

by Neri Pollastri
May 9, 2017

Certo spiace un po' vedere un musicista come Richard Galliano ripresentare, disco dopo disco, quella che è stata la propria luminosa e brillante carriera senza aggiungere a essa neppure una virgola di nuovo e originale. Succede ormai da qualche tempo e in questo ultimo, doppio CD, succede in modo particolarmente vistoso. Il fisarmonicista si presenta alla testa di un quartetto eccellente, ritmica con il fido André Ceccarelli alla batteria e Philippe Aerts al contrabbasso, più la chitarra di ...

Album Review

Richard Galliano: Sentimentale

Read "Sentimentale" reviewed by Neri Pollastri

by Neri Pollastri
May 21, 2015

Disco “quasi" di jazz per un Richard Galliano passato dalla musette al tango, da Ron Carter a Michel Portal, da Bach alla canzone d'autore, da Wynton Marsalis al trio con Larry Grenadier e Clarence Penn. Ma che qui, assieme ad altri due strumenti armonici--il pianoforte di Tamir Hendelman e la chitarra di Anthony Wilson, peraltro entrambi come lui avvezzi a suonare assieme a cantanti--si sposta sul versante melodico del jazz e ne offre una lettura appropriata alla sua sensibilità.

Album Review

Richard Galliano: Sentimentale

Read "Sentimentale" reviewed by Hrayr Attarian

by Hrayr Attarian
December 16, 2014

Accordionist Richard Galliano is a true innovator of both the extemporized role of his instrument and of the fusion of French folk music with jazz. His breathtaking instrumental facility combined with a creative ingenuity makes his oeuvre, particularly the series of superb albums on Dreyfus Jazz, uniquely satisfying. In view of this, his release on the non-for-profit Resonance Label, Sentimentale is a bit of a letdown. A couple of Galliano compositions, and a few jazz, Bossa Nova and ...

338

Album Review

Richard Galliano: Tangaria

by Chris May
April 9, 2010

A little accordion can go a long way. Its sound is a knife edge away from a dolorous monotone, and stubbornly resists modulation. It is no accident that Argentinian tango, the style indelibly associated with the instrument, typically deals with loss and bad luck. Few accordionists are able to cast off this baggage, but Richard Galliano is one who can.

An inventive, virtuoso performer with solid jazz chops, Galliano is at home with a variety of atmospheres, including ...

372

Recording

Jazz Musician Wynton Marsalis and French Accordionist Richard Galliano Pay Tribute to Legendary Jazz Vocalists Billie Holiday and Edith Piaf

Source: Wynton Marsalis Enterprises, Inc.
June 3, 2010

The Wynton Marsalis Quintet & Richard Galliano From Billie Holiday to Edith Piaf: Live in Marciac

New Live Concert Recording and DVD Available June 22nd

In the summer of 2008 multiple Grammy award winning jazz artist Wynton Marsalis and his quintet teamed-up with French accordionist Richard Galliano at the annual Jazz in Marciac festival in southern France to pay tribute to the late jazz legends Billie Holiday and Edith Piaf.

The result is a live recording (CD/DVD deluxe ...
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235

Performance / Tour

Mega Concert "The 3 Accordions" - Richard Galliano - Frank Marocco - Coba

Source: All About Jazz
November 6, 2009

To mark the Ninetieth anniversary of Victoria Accordions there was a truly superlative concert held in Tokyo. A mega-event of no equal, for there were three of the most famous Accordionists in the world together on stage in the Megura Permission Hall, a 1200 seat Theater with excellent acoustics. Richard Galliano (France), Frank Marocco (USA) and Coba (Japan) enchanted the audience with a concert program lasting approximately 2 hours, during which each Artist had the opportunity to present their own ...
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105

Event

Origin Records Chicago Jazz Summit

Source: All About Jazz
September 1, 2008

Andy's Jazz Club 11 E. Hubbard St., Chicago, IL 60611 {map it} For tickets, call 312-642-6805 or visit andysjazzclub.com

To celebrate the thriving and ongoing relationship between Seattle's Origin Records and some of Chicago's top improvising musicians, Andy's Jazz Club presents 8 wide-ranging groups over 4 nights with artists from Chicago, Seattle, and various stops in between. Included in the week will be the debut of at least two new CDs and performances by groups ...
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181

Performance / Tour

Richard Galliano & Friends: MAY 1- 3

Source: All About Jazz

Phenomenal accordionist Richard Galliano, who regularly plays to enthusiastic European audiences, will make a rare New York appearance with bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Clarence Penn. Galliano is one of the most influential composers of modern works for accordion performing today. On Thursday, Friday and Saturday, May 1, 2 & 3, 2003 at 8pm in the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse, Galliano will present a revitalized musical tradition of European folk with a jazz sensibility. He succeeds in expanding the emotional ...
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241

Music Industry

Boxed Set (Concerts Inedits) from Michel Petrucciani and Richard Galliano

Source: All About Jazz

Dreyfus Records Presents Two New, Unprecedented 'Live' 3-CD Sets From Jazz Masters Michel Petrucciani and Richard Galliano

Renowned for its commitment to presenting musical artistry in full flower, Dreyfus Records proudly announces the release of two unprecedented 3-CD boxed sets, one each from late pianist Michel Petrucciani and accordion virtuoso Richard Galliano, and both entitled Boxed Set (Concerts Inedits), to be released September 12. The collections feature the jazz masters in three different contexts--performing solo, as part of a duo ...
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Richard Galliano

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