Gaston ("Gast") Waltzing (born 1956) is a Luxembourgian trumpeter and composer. He has created several jazz bands, including Largo and the Luxembourg National Jazz Orchestra, and has even composed music for films and television programs as well as operas combining classical music with jazz and rock. He goes by the nickname of piu. [1] [2]
Gast Waltzing was born in the city of Luxembourg on 13 August 1956. He began his music studies at the Conservatoire de Luxembourg when he was just 7 years old. He continued his classical training at the Brussels Royal Conservatoire, completing his studies at the Conservatoire de Paris. [3]
In 1982, he became professor of trumpet at the Luxembourg Conservatoire and in 1986 founded the school's Jazz Department, which he heads. He has recorded numerous albums covering classical, jazz and dance, with groups such as "Atmosphere", "Life's Circle" "Largo", all of which he created himself. As a composer, he has recorded music for the Luxembourg film A Wop Bop A Lop Bop (1989), as well as for television. The TV film The Way to Dusty Death provided an opportunity for him to compose his first orchestral movie score. Since then, he has continued to write for orchestra and has worked closely with the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra, for which he has conducted the "Pops At The Phil" programmes featuring singers such as Dionne Warwick, Maurane and James Morrison. [3] All in all, he has written over 150 scores for television and movies. [4]
Waltzing represented Luxembourg in the Eurovision Song Contest 1989 as part of the group Park Café with the song Monsieur, [5] placing 20th with eight points. [6]
In 2004, he founded WPR Records, which sets out to promote young musicians and has featured the Luxembourg National Jazz Orchestra. [4] In 2008, Waltzing was appointed jazz director at the Echternach International Music Festival. [3]
Maxwell Lemuel Roach was an American jazz drummer and composer. A pioneer of bebop, he worked in many other styles of music, and is generally considered one of the most important drummers in history. He worked with many famous jazz musicians, including Clifford Brown, Coleman Hawkins, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, Abbey Lincoln, Dinah Washington, Charles Mingus, Billy Eckstine, Stan Getz, Sonny Rollins, Eric Dolphy, and Booker Little. He also played with his daughter Maxine Roach, Grammy nominated Violist. He was inducted into the DownBeat Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 1992.
The Luxembourgish film industry is quite small. However, many films have been made in the country, both by native filmmakers and by people from other countries.
Angélique Kpasseloko Hinto Hounsinou Kandjo Manta Zogbin Kidjo is a Beninese-French singer-songwriter, actress and activist noted for her diverse musical influences and creative music videos. Kidjo was born into a family of performing artists. Her father was a musician, and her mother worked as a choreographer and theatre director. Kidjo has won five Grammy Awards. She is a 2023 Polar Music Prize laureate.
Luxemburger Andy Bausch studied painting and photography. Through interest in rock music he came into contact with cinema.
The Music of Luxembourg is an important component of the country's cultural life. The new Philharmonie concert hall provides a venue for orchestral concerts while opera is frequently presented in the theatres. Rock, pop and jazz are also popular with a number of successful performers. The wide general interest in music and musical activities in Luxembourg can be seen from the membership of the Union Grand-Duc Adolphe, the national music federation for choral societies, brass bands, music schools, theatrical societies, folklore associations and instrumental groups. Some 340 music groups and associations with over 17,000 individual members are currently represented by the organization.
Alan Barnes is a multi-award winning English jazz saxophone and clarinet player.
Raymond Lefèvre was a French easy listening orchestra leader, arranger and composer.
Vinicius Cantuária is a Brazilian singer, songwriter, guitarist, drummer, and percussionist. He is associated with bossa nova and Brazilian jazz.
Christof Unterberger is an Austrian cellist and film composer.
Grégoire Maret is a jazz harmonica player.
Ibrahim Maalouf is a French-Lebanese trumpeter, producer, arranger, and composer. In 2022, he became the first Lebanese instrumentalist nominated at the Grammy Awards for his album Queen of Sheba in collaboration with Angélique Kidjo.
Cobhams Asuquo is a Nigerian musician, producer, and songwriter. In 2005, Asuquo was signed on with Sony ATV London as a songwriter. After working as Head of Audio Productions at a local label, Questionmark Entertainment, he set up his own recording facility in 2006. He is the former CEO/Head of Productions of CAMP, which he co-managed with Bez Idakula and Stan Iyke. He was responsible for Aşa's highly acclaimed international album ASA and has been mentioned on many artists' sleeve credits as producer and writer. He is now the Founder/CEO of Vintage Grey Media.
Jean Muller is a Luxembourgian classical pianist. He has received several international awards, performed worldwide, and made several recordings.
Marcel Wengler is a Luxembourg composer and conductor. From 1972–1997, he headed the Conservatoire de Luxembourg. Since 2000, he has been director of the Luxembourg Music Information Centre. His compositions include symphonies, concertos, chamber music and musicals.
Ernie Hammes is a Luxembourger trumpet virtuoso, arranger, composer, and big band director who is prolific in both jazz and classical idioms. Notably in jazz, Hammes toured with Maynard Ferguson's Big Bop Nouveau band in 2005, alternating between the lead and jazz roles. Hammes has performed in more than twenty-five countries while simultaneously supporting the jazz scene in Luxembourg.
Emmanuel Séjourné is a French composer and percussionist, and head of percussion at the Conservatoire de Strasbourg. His music is influenced by Western classical music and by popular music.
Dominik Graf is a German film director. He studied film direction at University of Television and Film Munich, from where he graduated in 1975. While he has directed several theatrically released feature films since the 1980s, he more often finds work in television, focussing primarily on the genres police drama, thriller and crime mystery, although he has also made comedies, melodramas, documentaries and essay films. He is an active participant in public discourse about the values of genre film in Germany, through numerous articles, and interviews, some of which have been collected into a book.
Raymond Guiot is a French flautist, pianist and composer. He has also trained many flutists throughout the world.
Pedrito Martinez is a Cuban percussionist, drummer, singer, dancer, bandleader, songwriter, composer, and educator. He was born and raised in Havana, Cuba. He is a Cuban Conguero performing classic Cuban Rumbas, Afro-Cuban folkloric and religious music. He is a Santería priest. He came to the United States of America from Havana in 1998. He plays the Batá drum, conga, cajón, timbale, and bongo drums, among other percussion instruments. Pedrito learned his craft from the streets of Havana, Cuba. He has performed with Paquito D'Rivera, Arturo O'Farrill, Brian Lynch, and Bruce Springsteen. He settled in the New York City - New Jersey area in 1998.
Uwe Buschkötter is a German composer, music publisher, and owner of various companies, such as UBM Records, UBM Media, Largo Records, and the company Klangvision.
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