Jean-Claude Petit (born 14 November 1943) is a French composer and arranger, born in

Vaires-sur-Marne Vaires-sur-Marne (; literally 'Vaires on Marne') is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region, north-central France. Vaires-sur-Marne is the Western end of the LGV Est, reaching Vendenheim (near Strasbourg). Vaires� ...

. After accompanying jazzmen in his childhood, Petit went to the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

, where he studied harmony and counterpoint. He did the string arrangements for

Mink DeVille Mink DeVille was a rock band founded in 1974, known for its association with early punk rock bands at New York's CBGB nightclub and for being a showcase for the music of Willy DeVille. The band recorded six albums in the years 1977 to 1985, afte ...

's ''

Le Chat Bleu ''Le Chat Bleu'' is the third album by the rock band Mink DeVille, released in 1980. The album received critical acclaim and elevated lead singer and composer Willy DeVille to star status. The ''Rolling Stone'' critics' poll ranked ''Le Chat Bleu ...

'' album, as well as orchestrating the backing parts to some French pop singles in the mid-to-late 1960s, including those of Erick Saint-Laurent and

yé-yé ''Yé-yé'' () (''yeyé'' in Spanish) was a style of pop music that emerged in Western-Southern Europe in the early 1960s. The French term "''yé-yé''" was derived from the English "yeah! yeah!", popularized by British beat music bands such as ...

girls Christine Pilzer and Monique Thubert. In 1973 he composed '' La leçon de Michette''. The song was popular in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

due to its use in the soundtrack of a well-known ''

Carosello ''Carosello'' () was an Italian television advertising show broadcast on RAI from 1957 to 1977. The series mainly showed short sketch comedy films using live action, various types of animation, and puppetry. It had an audience of about 20 milli ...

'' (the Italian TV spot broadcast) from 1973 to 1976. As a music ghostwriter for director

Michel Magne Michel Magne (20 March 1930 in Lisieux, Calvados, France – 19 December 1984 in Cergy-Pontoise, Val-d'Oise) was a French film and experimental music composer. Early life He was the fifth child in a family of eight. As young as age five, he ...

, Petit did not get credit for his film scores until he was 36. 1979 saw his first major film soundtrack commission ( Alexandro Jodorowsky's ''

Tusk Tusks are elongated, continuously growing front teeth that protrude well beyond the mouth of certain mammal species. They are most commonly canine teeth, as with pigs and walruses, or, in the case of elephants, elongated incisors. Tusks share ...

''), but he had been releasing solo records at least a decade earlier, including at least four for the Chappell Music Library, as well as his album ''Chez Jean-Claude Petit'', released in the early 1970s. In 1976 he collaborated with

Pierre Delanoë Pierre Delanoë (16 December 1918 – 27 December 2006), born Pierre Charles Marcel Napoléon Leroyer in Paris, France, was a French lyricist who wrote thousands of songs for dozens of singers, including Dalida, Edith Piaf, Charles Aznavour, Pet ...

Toto Cutugno Salvatore "Toto" Cutugno (; born 7 July 1943) is an Italian pop singer-songwriter and musician. He is best known for his worldwide hit song, "L'Italiano", released on his 1983 album of the same title. Cutugno also won the Eurovision Song Conte ...

, Vito Pallavicini in a very popular and funky music for

Mireille Mathieu Mireille Mathieu (; born 22 July 1946) is a French singer. She has recorded over 1200 songs in eleven languages, with more than 122 million records sold worldwide. Biography and career Early years Mireille Mathieu was born on 22 July 1946 in A ...

called Ciao Bambino, Sorry. In addition, he was a frequent collaborator with French film music composer Jack Arel: the pair's most well-known production, "Psychedelic Portrait", was featured in an episode of the cult TV series ''

The Prisoner ''The Prisoner'' is a 1967 British television series about an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a mysterious coastal village, where his captors designate him as Number Six and try to find out why he abruptl ...

''. His scores for ''

The Return of the Musketeers ''The Return of the Musketeers'' is a 1989 film adaptation loosely based on the novel ''Twenty Years After'' (1845) by Alexandre Dumas. It is the third Musketeers film directed by Richard Lester, following 1973's ''The Three Musketeers'' and 1 ...

'' (1989) and ''

Cyrano de Bergerac Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac ( , ; 6 March 1619 – 28 July 1655) was a French novelist, playwright, epistolarian, and duelist. A bold and innovative author, his work was part of the libertine literature of the first half of the 17th cen ...

'' (1990) remain perhaps his best known work internationally. In 1995 he was nominated for a Victoire de la Musique award in soundtrack of the year for ''L'Etudiante Etranger''. Jean Claude conducted and arranged for American Orchestra leader Billy Vaughn in the 1970s: At least two of Billy's Paramount LPs "An Old Fashioned Love Song" PAS 6025 and "Greatest Country Hits" give Jean Claude credit as arranged/conductor. The 'Greatest Country Hits' Lp Paramount PAS 6044 also includes a Jean Claude original "Walk A Country Mile".

Filmography

* 1979: ''

'' * 1982: ''Lively Social Life'' * 1985: ''

Tranches de vie ''Slices of Life'' (''Tranches de vie'') is a 1985 French comedy-sci fi film directed by François Leterrier. It is based on Gérard Lauzier's comic strip of the same name. Plot The film is a series of sketches Cast * Laura Antonelli as Mo ...

'' * 1985: ''Billy-Ze One-Kick'' * 1986: '' Jean de Florette'' * 1986: '' Manon des Sources'' * 1987: ''Fucking Fernand'' * 1988: ''Savannah'' * 1989: ''

'' * 1990: ''

(Colosseum CST 34.8046)'' * 1990: ''

Uranus Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun. Its name is a reference to the Greek god of the sky, Uranus ( Caelus), who, according to Greek mythology, was the great-grandfather of Ares (Mars), grandfather of Zeus (Jupiter) and father of ...

'' * 1991: ''Always Alone'' * 1991: ''

Mayrig ''Mayrig'' (''Mother'') is a 1991 semi-autobiographical film written and directed by French-Armenian filmmaker Henri Verneuil. The film's principal cast includes Claudia Cardinale and Omar Sharif as parents of Azad (Henri Verneuil depicted as child ...

'' * 1992: ''588, Street Paradises'' * 1992: ''The Zebra'' * 1992: '' The Playboys'' * 1993: ''Lady Chatterley'' * 1994: ''In Antonin Company Artaud'' * 1995: '' The Horseman on the Roof'' * 1996: ''Beaumarchais The Insolent One'' * 1997: '' Messieurs les enfants'' * 1998: ''Paddy'' * 2000: ''Lumumba'' * 2002: ''Like Your Father'' * 2004: ''Podium'' * 2007: ''Dance With Him''

References

External links

*
Jean-Claude Petit discography at Rateyourmusic.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Petit, Jean-Claude French film score composers French male film score composers 1943 births Living people People from Seine-et-Marne Eurovision Song Contest conductors 21st-century conductors (music) 21st-century French male musicians Best Original Music BAFTA Award winners