François Boland (6 November 1929 – 12 August 2005) was a classically trained Belgian jazz composer and pianist. He first gained notice in 1949 and worked with Belgian jazz greats like

Bobby Jaspar Bobby Jaspar (20 February 1926 – 28 February 1963) was a Belgian cool jazz and hard bop saxophonist, flautist and composer. Early life Born in Liège, Belgium, Jaspar learned to play piano and clarinet at a young age. Later, he took up the ...

, and in 1955 he joined

Chet Baker Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool". Baker earned much attention and ...

's quintet. Moving to the US, he began arranging for

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

Benny Goodman Benjamin David Goodman (May 30, 1909 – June 13, 1986) was an American clarinetist and bandleader, known as the "King of Swing". His orchestra did well commercially. From 1936 until the mid-1940s, Goodman led one of the most popular swing bi ...

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roo ...

and

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( ; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improvisation, improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy El ...

, and set up an octet with drummer

Kenny Clarke Kenneth Clarke Spearman (January 9, 1914January 26, 1985), known professionally as Kenny Clarke and nicknamed Klook, was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. A major innovator of the bebop style of drumming, he pioneered the use of the ride ...

before returning to Europe and becoming

Kurt Edelhagen Kurt Edelhagen (; born 5 June 1920 – 8 February 1982) was a German big band leader. Biography Edelhagen was born in Herne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Edelhagen studied conducting and piano in Essen. In 1945, he started a trio, then a big ...

's chief arranger. In 1961, building from a rhythm section featuring

Clarke Clarke is a surname which means "clerk". The surname is of English and Irish origin and comes from the Latin . Variants include Clerk and Clark. Clarke is also uncommonly chosen as a given name. Irish surname origin Clarke is a common surname ...

Jimmy Woode James Bryant Woode (September 23, 1926 – April 23, 2005) was an American jazz bassist. He played and/or recorded in bands with Flip Phillips, Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Charlie Parker, Duke Ellington, Coleman Hawkins, Nat Pierce, Sidney B ...

and himself, he founded

The Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Big Band The Kenny Clarke/Francy Boland Big Band was a jazz big band co-led by American drummer Kenny Clarke and Belgian pianist François "Francy" Boland. They were one of the most noteworthy jazz big bands formed outside the United States, featuring top ...

, which rapidly became one of the most noted Big Bands assembled outside the United States. After it broke up in 1972 he concentrated on composing. He lived in Europe, primarily

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, from 1976 and did musical arrangements for

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (, March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer and pianist. Nicknamed "Sassy" and "List of nicknames of jazz musicians, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, ...

among others. He was also part of One World, One Peace, an effort involving

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

. He died in 2005. Francy Boland's song "Just Give Me Time" was covered by

Carola Carola is a female given name, the Latinized form of the Germanic given names Caroline or Carol. People named Carola include: Acting * Carola Braunbock (1924–1978), Czech-born East German actress * Carola Höhn (1910–2005), German actre ...

in 1966, first released on her album ''Carola & Heikki Sarmanto Trio'', reaching the Finnish Charts in 2004.

Discography

* ''Out of the Background'' (SABA, 1967) * ''Flirt and Dream'' (SABA, 1967) With

Johnny Griffin John Arnold Griffin III (April 24, 1928 – July 25, 2008) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Nicknamed "the Little Giant" for his short stature and forceful playing, Griffin's career began in the mid-1940s and continued until the month of ...

*''

Night Lady ''Night Lady'' is an album by saxophonist Johnny Griffin recorded in West Germany in 1963. Originally released on the Philips label, ''Night Lady'' was later released on EmArcy Records.Tough Tenors Again 'n' Again ''Tough Tenors Again 'n' Again'' is an album by saxophonists Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis and Johnny Griffin recorded in West Germany in 1970 and released on the MPS label.

'' (MPS, 1970) – with

Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis Edward F. Davis (March 2, 1922 – November 3, 1986), known professionally as Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. It is unclear how he acquired the moniker "Lockjaw" (later shortened to "Jaws"): it is either said that ...

Kenny Clarke / Francy Boland Big Band (1962-1971) *''see the discography section of The Kenny Clarke-Francy Boland Big Band'' With Mark Murphy * ''

Midnight Mood ''Midnight Mood'' is a 1967 studio album by Mark Murphy. ''Midnight Mood'' is the 10th album by American jazz vocalist Mark Murphy. It was recorded when Murphy was 35 years old and released by the SABA/ MPS Records label in Germany in 1968. Th ...

'' (MPS, 1968) With

Sahib Shihab Sahib Shihab (born Edmund Gregory; June 23, 1925 – October 24, 1989) was an American jazz and hard bop saxophonist (baritone, alto, and soprano) and flautist. He variously worked with Luther Henderson, Thelonious Monk, Fletcher Henderson, Tad ...

*''

Summer Dawn ''Summer Dawn'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist/flautist Sahib Shihab recorded in 1964 for the Argo label.Edwards, D. & Callahan, MArgo Album Discography, Part 1: Jazz Series (1956-1965)accessed May 2, 2016 Reception The AllMusic site ...

'' (Argo, 1964) *''

Seeds In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds are the ...

'' (

Vogue Schallplatten Disques Vogue was a jazz record company founded in France by Léon Cabat and Charles Delaunay in 1947, the year after the American Vogue label ceased. They originally specialized in jazz, featuring American performers such as Sidney Bechet, D ...

, 1968) *''

Companionship In social psychology, an interpersonal relation (or interpersonal relationship) describes a social association, connection, or affiliation between two or more people. It overlaps significantly with the concept of social relations, which are ...

'' (Vogue Schallplatten, 1964-70

971 Year 971 ( CMLXXI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Battle of Dorostolon: A Byzantine expeditionary army (possibly 30–40,000 men) attacks the Bulgarian frontier, perso ...

References

External links

* *
Francy Boland
biography and discography at www.jazzinbelgium.com
Francy Boland
obituary in

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

Belgian jazz composers 20th-century Belgian composers 1929 births 2005 deaths Belgian jazz pianists Belgian jazz bandleaders Belgian big band bandleaders 20th-century Belgian pianists Kenny Clarke/Francy Boland Big Band members Black Lion Records artists People from Namur (province) {{Jazz-pianist-stub