"The Key", the debut album of the Mauritian pianist Jerry Léonide is the key to a whole world; to the music and joie de vivre of an island paradise in the Indian Ocean. Léonide translates the irresistible, bouncingly danceable, clearly African influenced grooves and light and breezy crystal-clear melodies of his homeland into the vocabulary of jazz.
"The Key", the debut album of the Mauritian pianist now resident in France, Jerry Léonide, is the key to a whole world; to the music and joie de vivre of an island paradise 1,700 km from the coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean. Léonide translates the irresistible, bouncingly danceable, clearly African influenced grooves and light and breezy crystal-clear melodies of his homeland into the vocabulary of jazz. He himself says of his debut: "For me 'The Key' is the revelation of Mauritian music before the eyes of the world." His global piano playing enthralled the jury of the "Solo Piano Competition 2013" at the Montreux Jazz Festival so much that they awarded him first prize.Jerry Lénoide says of his home country: "The people there love music. Mauritius is a land of many different ethnic influences, so w...
line upJerry Léonide - piano
Gino Chantoiseau - double bass
Jhonny Joseph - drums & percussion
Sylvain Gontard - flugelhorn
Vincent Lê Quang - soprano saxophone
Guests:
Woz Kaly - vocals (on 03)
Benjamin Petit - alto saxophone (on 02)
Linley Marthe - electric bass (on 05 & 06)
Fred Grenade - electric bass (on 08)
Christophe Chretien - percussion (on 05 & 06)
Fannie Klein - background vocals (on 03 & 08)
Music composed and produced by Jerry Léonide
Recorded by Julien Basseres at Studio de Meudon (France), July 9 - 11, 2013
Mixed by Julien Basseres. Mastered by Klaus Scheuermann
Photo by Sebastien Boisset
Cover art by Philip Taaffe, Nephrodium Decompositium (1997), ACT Art Collection
