Michel Petrucciani
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Michel Petrucciani (; ; 28 December 1962 – 6 January 1999) was a French
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 roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
pianist. From birth he had
osteogenesis imperfecta Osteogenesis imperfecta (; OI), colloquially known as brittle bone disease, is a group of genetic disorders that all result in bones that bone fracture, break easily. The range of symptoms—on the skeleton as well as on the body's other Or ...
, a genetic disease that causes brittle bones and, in his case, short stature. Despite his health condition and relatively short life, he became one of the most accomplished jazz pianists of his generation.


Biography


Early years

Michel Petrucciani's family had
Neapolitan Neapolitan means of or pertaining to Naples, a city in Italy; or to: Geography and history * Province of Naples, a province in the Campania region of southern Italy that includes the city * Duchy of Naples, in existence during the Early and High ...
heritage and lived in Montélimar, France, in the south of France. They were a musical family; his father, Tony, and his brother Philippe both played guitar, while his brother Louis played bass. Petrucciani was born in nearby
Orange, Vaucluse Orange (; Provençal dialect, Provençal: ''Aurenja'' or ''Aurenjo'' ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Vaucluse Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region in Southeastern France. It is ...
having
osteogenesis imperfecta Osteogenesis imperfecta (; OI), colloquially known as brittle bone disease, is a group of genetic disorders that all result in bones that bone fracture, break easily. The range of symptoms—on the skeleton as well as on the body's other Or ...
, a genetic disease that causes brittle bones and, in his case, short stature. It is also often linked to pulmonary ailments. The disease caused his bones to fracture over 100 times before he reached adolescence and gave him pain throughout his entire life. In Michel's early career, his father and brother occasionally carried him because he could not walk far on his own unaided. In certain respects he considered his disability an advantage, as it got rid of distractions like sports that other boys tended to become involved in. At an early age, Michel saw
Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...
on television and wished to become a pianist like him. When Michel was four, his father bought him a toy piano of his own, but Michel smashed the piano with a toy hammer. Soon after this, Michel's father bought him a real piano. From the beginning, Petrucciani had always been musical, reportedly humming
Wes Montgomery John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for his unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and for his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a ...
solos by the time he learned to speak. He began learning classical piano at the age of four, and was making music with his family by the age of nine. The musician who would prove most influential to Petrucciani was
Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 â€“ September 15, 1980) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, block chords, innovative chord voicings, a ...
, who he started listening to at around age ten. Petrucciani's layered harmonies, lyrical style, and articulation of melody would always be linked most strongly to his early exposure to Evans.


Music career in Paris

Petrucciani gave his first professional concert at the age of 13. At this age he was quite fragile and had to be carried to and from the piano. His hands were average in length, but his size meant that he required aids to reach the piano's pedals. Petrucciani felt he needed to move to Paris to begin his musical career, but found it difficult to leave home. His father was protective and constantly concerned for his son's well-being, hoping to protect him from danger. Petrucciani's drummer
Aldo Romano Aldo Romano (born 16 January 1941) is an Italian jazz drummer. He also founded a Rock and roll, rock group in 1971. Biography He was born in Belluno, Italy. Romano moved to France as a child and by the 1950s he was playing guitar and drums profe ...
took a less charitable view, thinking that Michel's father was jealous and just wanted to keep Petrucciani at home to serve as his own musical partner. After some difficulty, Romano prevailed and took Petrucciani—at age fifteen—to Paris for the first time. In Paris, Petrucciani started playing with
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 ...
in 1977 and
Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American Swing music, swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948â ...
in 1978. His breakthrough performance occurred at the Cliousclat jazz festival. Terry needed a pianist, and when Petrucciani was carried onto the stage and the trumpeter saw Petrucciani's stature, at first he thought it was a prank, only later revising the remark. Indeed Petrucciani astounded the festival with his prodigious talent and virtuosity. Drugs and encounters with unsavory women made Petrucciani's time in Paris a mixed experience, but musically and personally it was unequivocally transforming. Despite his considerable talent, his clownish attitude and odd behaviors were seen as immature and insecure. He was foul-mouthed, wore a yachtsman's cap and frequently acted pushy and tough, referring to people as "baby". Nevertheless, his work in Kenny Clarke's trio during his time in Paris set him on a clear path to stardom. After his stint in Paris, Petrucciani briefly returned home before beginning his professional life. Living with Romano, he was free of the protective presence of his father and began enjoying an independent lifestyle. He began recording for Owl Records and struck up a friendship with the company's owner, Jean-Jacques Pussiau. Pussiau felt that Petrucciani always seemed to be in a hurry to record, which he attributed to Petrucciani's own awareness that his life would be short. Before long, Petrucciani desired independence from Romano, too. Petrucciani travelled to the U.S., possibly stopping in New York on the way. As was the case throughout his life, exact details were hard to pin down when it came to Petrucciani:


With Charles Lloyd in New York

In 1982, Petrucciani visited saxophonist Charles Lloyd in California. Lloyd had stopped playing when people began to view his sidemen as more fashionable than himself. After hearing Petrucciani play, Lloyd was so inspired that he agreed to come out of retirement and tour with him.documentary
at
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Petrucciani and Lloyd's tour of the
West Coast of the United States The West Coast of the United States, also known as the Pacific Coast and the Western Seaboard, is the coastline along which the Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean. The term typically refers to the Contiguous United States, contig ...
was a huge success and they continued internationally. On 22 February 1985, with Petrucciani cradled in his arms, Lloyd walked onto the stage at
Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...
in New York City and sat him on his piano stool for what would be an historic evening in jazz history: the filming of '' One Night with Blue Note''. The film's director John Charles Jopson would later recall in the reissued liner notes that the moment moved him to tears. Petrucciani and Lloyd's performance at the
Montreux Jazz Festival The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annu ...
was made into an album, and in 1982, they won the 1982 Prix d'Excellence. But Petrucciani expressed mostly disdain and frustration at the awards he felt were being heaped upon him, believing that he was receiving so many at least in part because people believed he was going to die young. Petrucciani moved to New York City in 1984 and spent the rest of his life there. This was the most productive period of his career. In 1986 he was recorded at the Montreux Jazz Festival with
Wayne Shorter Wayne Shorter (August 25, 1933 – March 2, 2023) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer and bandleader. Shorter came to mainstream prominence in 1959 upon joining Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, for whom he eventually became the primary comp ...
and Jim Hall, producing the trio album ''
Power of Three In mathematics, a power of three is a number of the form where is an integer, that is, the result of exponentiation with number 3, three as the Base (exponentiation), base and integer  as the exponent. The first seven non-negative powers ...
''. He also played with diverse figures in the U.S. jazz scene including
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 ...
. Throughout his career, Petrucciani also made a priority of recording solo piano:


Personal life

Petrucciani had five significant personal relationships: Erlinda Montano (marriage), Eugenia Morrison, Marie-Laure Roperch, the Italian pianist
Gilda Buttà Gilda Buttà (born July 29, 1959, in Patti, Sicily) is an Italian pianist. After studying piano at "Giuseppe Verdi" Conservatory in Milan, she won the Franz Liszt Prize in 1976, and started a concert pianist career. She has recorded several film s ...
(the marriage lasted three months and ended in divorce) and Isabelle Mailé (with whom he shares his grave). With Marie-Laure he fathered a son, Alexandre, who inherited his genetic disorder. He also had a stepson named Rachid Roperch. In 1994, he was granted the Order of the
Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...
in Paris. In the late 1990s, Petrucciani's lifestyle became increasingly taxing. He was overworked, performing over 100 times per year, and in 1998, the year before he died, he performed 140 times. He became too weak to use crutches and had to resort to a wheelchair. He was also recording, doing television appearances, and constantly doing interviews. In his later years Petrucciani was known to drink heavily. Petrucciani died from a pulmonary infection a week after his 36th birthday. He was interred in Le Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, one tomb away from
Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period who wrote primarily for Piano solo, solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown ...
. On 12 February 2009, the French music channel Mezzo broadcast a special event paying homage to Petrucciani close to the 10th anniversary of his death. The first two American albums featuring Petrucciani were produced by Gabreal Franklin. The first, '' 100 Hearts'', a solo album, was produced at the famous RCA Studio A, on the
Avenue of the Americas Sixth Avenue, also known as Avenue of the Americas, is a major thoroughfare in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The avenue is commercial for much of its length, and traffic runs northbound, or uptown. Sixth Avenue begins four blocks b ...
in New York City. The second was a trio album, recorded live at Max Gordon's old
Village Vanguard The Village Vanguard is a jazz club at Seventh Avenue South in Greenwich Village, New York City. The club was opened on February 22, 1935, by Max Gordon. Originally, the club presented folk music and beat poetry, but it became primarily a jaz ...
club in New York City. These were among the first albums to use digital recording technology, on Mitsubishi X80 recorders, so early on that the only manuals available were in Japanese; but Franklin and Tom Arrison managed to get them to function by trial and error. In 1985 a concert at the
Village Vanguard The Village Vanguard is a jazz club at Seventh Avenue South in Greenwich Village, New York City. The club was opened on February 22, 1935, by Max Gordon. Originally, the club presented folk music and beat poetry, but it became primarily a jaz ...
in New York was recorded on video.


Personality and musical style

Osteogenesis imperfecta Osteogenesis imperfecta (; OI), colloquially known as brittle bone disease, is a group of genetic disorders that all result in bones that bone fracture, break easily. The range of symptoms—on the skeleton as well as on the body's other Or ...
seemed to contribute greatly both to Petrucciani's personality and his playing style. By his own account, he was in almost constant physical pain. Yet, he was known for his cheerful, playful, even cavalier personality. He said, "I love humor; I love to laugh, I love jokes, I love silliness. I love that; I think it's great. I think laughter is worth a whole lot of medicine." Though he often exhibited arrogance and even womanizing tendencies in his adolescent years, the defining characteristic of Petrucciani was his confidence. Michael Zwerin recalled one example: "We were sitting there wondering what to play. It was kind of hot. And Michel said, 'anybody know "
Giant Steps ''Giant Steps'' is a studio album by the jazz musician John Coltrane. It was released in January or February 1960 through Atlantic Records. This was Coltrane's first album as leader for the label, with which he had signed a new contract the previ ...
?" Neither Louis nor I wanted to admit we didn't really know it. So there was this great silence. And Michel said, "Well, I do!" and he pounded into a solo version of it at a very fast clip, and it was really amazing. That to me is Michel—'Well, I do!' Man, a confidence you wouldn't believe." Petrucciani had a quirky side; in a Mezzo documentary, he can be heard saying in a humorous voice, "I am very short!" Pussiau, the owner of Owl Records, recalled when he used to carry Michel for convenience. "Sometimes, when I used to carry him, he would bite my ear. We'd walk into a restaurant, and he'd ''chomp''." During his last years in New York, it seemed Michel's general attitude of carelessness was magnified. He said to his manager, "I want to have at least five women at once, I want to make a million dollars in one night." In an interview, he said: "My handicap is not mortal. I won't die because of my handicap. It has nothing to do with that." He also said, "Eventually, when I get to be 75, I'll write a book on my deathbed." Yet other reliable sources assert that he was always aware of the potential effects of osteogenesis imperfecta. Petrucciani was fiercely determined to take all the joy and satisfaction from life that he could. "I'm a brat," he said. "My philosophy is to have a really good time and never let anything stop me from doing what I want to do. It's like driving a car, waiting for an accident. That's no way to drive a car. If you have an accident, you have an accident—''c'est la vie''." He certainly lived true to his maxim. Just one week before he died of a pulmonary infection, he was up all night celebrating the new year with his friends. Stylistically, Petrucciani is most frequently compared to
Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 â€“ September 15, 1980) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, block chords, innovative chord voicings, a ...
and
Keith Jarrett Keith Jarrett (born May 8, 1945) is an American pianist and composer. Jarrett started his career with Art Blakey and later moved on to play with Charles Lloyd (jazz musician), Charles Lloyd and Miles Davis. Since the early 1970s, he has also be ...
for his lyricism and
Oscar Peterson Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. As a virtuoso who is considered to be one of the greatest Jazz piano, jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordin ...
for his virtuosity. His playing was often quite dramatic; critics accuse him of over-indulgence and cheap showmanship, sometimes dismissing his music as being too accessible. Petrucciani was loose and playful in a rhythm section, and gave attention to a strong articulation of the melody. He sometimes paused at the peaks of his solo lines before descending again, as if in appreciation of his idea. Petrucciani distinguished himself most obviously from his primary inspiration in that he lacked Bill Evans's cerebral approach to the piano. His interest was primarily in simply playing; he spent little time reharmonizing or arranging: Despite this emphasis on performance, he disliked applause, calling it old-fashioned and a distraction. Regarding "mistakes" that occur in improvised jazz, Petrucciani complained that the clarity with which he crafts his solo lines has the disadvantage of also exposing the former more clearly. One fellow jazz giant summed up Michel Petrucciani's essential character and style:


Discography


As leader

* ''Flash'' (Bingow, 1980) * ''Michel Petrucciani'' (Owl, 1981) * ''Date with Time'' (Celluloid, 1981) * ''
Estate Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representativ ...
'' (IRD, 1982) * ''Darn that Dream'' (Celluloid, 1982) * '' Toot Sweet'' with
Lee Konitz Leon "Lee" Konitz (October 13, 1927 – April 15, 2020) was an American jazz Alto saxophone, alto saxophonist and composer. He performed successfully in a wide range of jazz styles, including bebop, cool jazz, and avant-garde jazz. Konitz's ass ...
(Owl, 1982) – live * ''Oracle's Destiny'' (Owl, 1983) – rec. 1982 * '' 100 Hearts'' (Concord/The George Wein Collection, 1984) – rec. 1983 * ''Note'n Notes'' (Owl, 1984) * '' Live at the Village Vanguard'' (Concord, 1985) – live rec. 1984 * ''Cold Blues'' (Owl, 1985) * ''
Pianism ''Pianism'' is a jazz album by Michel Petrucciani. The album was recorded at RCA Studio "C", and was produced by Mike Berniker, engineer Mike Moran. The Blue Note catalogue number is CDP 7 46295 2. This was Petrucciani's first album recorded ...
'' (
Blue Note Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Capitol Music Group. Established in 1939 by German-Jewish emigrants Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it derived its name from the blue no ...
, 1986) – rec. 1985 * ''
Power of Three In mathematics, a power of three is a number of the form where is an integer, that is, the result of exponentiation with number 3, three as the Base (exponentiation), base and integer  as the exponent. The first seven non-negative powers ...
'' with
Wayne Shorter Wayne Shorter (August 25, 1933 – March 2, 2023) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer and bandleader. Shorter came to mainstream prominence in 1959 upon joining Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, for whom he eventually became the primary comp ...
and Jim Hall (Blue Note, 1987) – live rec. 1986 * ''
Michel plays Petrucciani ''Michel Plays Petrucciani'' is a jazz album by Michel Petrucciani, Blue Note catalogue number CDP 7 48679 2. It consists entirely of Petrucciani's own compositions. The album was recorded during two sets of sessions, with tracks 1-5 recorded ...
'' (Blue Note, 1988) – rec. 1987 * ''Music'' (Blue Note, 1989) * ''
Playground A playground, playpark, or play area is a place designed to provide an environment for children that facilitates play, typically outdoors. While a playground is usually designed for children, some are designed for other age groups, or people wi ...
'' (Blue Note, 1991) * ''Promenade with Duke'' (Blue Note, 1993) * ''Live'' (Blue Note, 1994) – live rec. 1991 at
Arsenal de Metz The Arsenal Concert Hall is a cultural venue dedicated specially to classical and art music and located near the Esplanade garden in Metz, capital of the Lorraine region, France. The Arsenal is home to the Orchestre National de Lorraine and a ...
* ''Marvellous'' (Dreyfus, 1994) * ''Conference De Presse'' with Eddy Louiss (Dreyfus, 1994) * ''Au Theatre Des Champs-Élysées'' (Dreyfus, 1994) – live * ''Flamingo'' with
Stéphane Grappelli Stéphane Grappelli (; 26 January 1908 – 1 December 1997) was a French jazz violinist. He is best known as a founder of the Quintette du Hot Club de France with guitarist Django Reinhardt in 1934. It was one of the first all-string jazz bands. ...
(Dreyfus, 1996) – rec. 1995 * ''Michel Petrucciani'' (Dreyfus, 1996) * ''Both Worlds'' (Dreyfus, 1997) * '' Solo Live in Germany'' (Dreyfus, 1998) – live rec. 1997 Posthumous releases * ''Trio in Tokyo'' with
Steve Gadd Stephen Kendall Gadd (born April 9, 1945) is an American jazz fusion drummer, percussionist, and session musician. Gadd is one of the best-known and most highly regarded session and studio drummers in the industry, recognized by his induction i ...
and Anthony Jackson (Dreyfus, 1999) – live rec. 1997 * ''Conversations With Michel'' with
Bob Malach Bob Malach (born August 23, 1954) is an American jazz saxophonist. Malach learned several reed instruments in his youth, and played with Philadelphia soul bands such as The Stylistics and The O'Jays while still a teenager. He played in the big ...
(Go Jazz, 2000) – rec. 1988–1989 * ''Conversation'' with Tony Petrucciani (Dreyfus, 2001) – rec. 1992 * ''Dreyfus Night in Paris'' with
Marcus Miller William Henry Marcus Miller Jr. (born June 14, 1959) is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He has worked with trumpeter Miles Davis, pianist Herbie Hancock, singer Luther Vandross, and saxophonists Wayne Shorter and David Sa ...
,
Biréli Lagrène Biréli Lagrène (born 4 September 1966) is a French jazz guitarist who came to prominence in the 1980s for his Django Reinhardt–influenced style. He often performs in swing, jazz fusion, and post-bop styles. Biography Lagrène was born in S ...
,
Kenny Garrett Kenny Garrett (born October 9, 1960) is an American post-bop jazz musician and composer who gained recognition in his youth as a member of the Duke Ellington Orchestra and for his time with Miles Davis's band. Garrett's primary instruments are ...
and
Lenny White Leonard White III (born December 19, 1949) is an American jazz fusion drummer who was a member of the band Return to Forever led by Chick Corea in the 1970s. White has been called "one of the founding fathers of jazz fusion". White has won thre ...
(Dreyfus, 2004) – live rec. 1994 * '' Piano Solo - The Complete Concert In Germany'' (Dreyfus, 2007) – live rec. 1997 * ''Michel Petrucciani & NHOP (Live)'' (Dreyfus, 2009) CD– live rec. 1994 * ''Both Worlds Live North Sea Jazz Festival'' (Dreyfus, 2016)
CD + DVD-Video The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. It employs the Compact Disc Digital Audio (CD-DA) standard and was capable of holding of uncompr ...
– live at
North Sea Jazz Festival The North Sea Jazz Festival is a festival held annually on the second weekend of July in the Netherlands at the Ahoy venue. The festival moved to Rotterdam in 2006 after the demolition of the Statenhal in The Hague where it was originally held. ...
plus bonus CD including live at
Montreux Jazz Festival The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annu ...
* ''One Night In Karlsruhe'' (Jazzhaus, 2019) – live rec. 1988 * ''Solo in Denmark'' (Storyville, 2022) – live rec. 1990, at the Silkeborg Riverboat Jazz Festival in Denmark Compilations * ''The Complete Recordings Of Michel Petrucciani: The Blue Note Years 1986-1994'' (Blue Note, 1998) * ''Concerts Inedits'' (Dreyfus, 1999) CD* ''Days of Wine and Roses: 1981-1985'' (Owl, 2000) CD* ''So What: Best of Michel Petrucciani'' (Dreyfus, 2004) * ''The Montreux Years'' (BMG/Montreux, 2023) D/2LP– rec. 1990–98


As a member

The Manhattan Project
(With
Wayne Shorter Wayne Shorter (August 25, 1933 – March 2, 2023) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer and bandleader. Shorter came to mainstream prominence in 1959 upon joining Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, for whom he eventually became the primary comp ...
,
Stanley Clarke Stanley Clarke (born June 30, 1951) is an American bassist, composer and founding member of Return to Forever, one of the first jazz fusion bands. Clarke gave the bass guitar a prominence it lacked in jazz-related music. He is the first jazz-fus ...
,
Lenny White Leonard White III (born December 19, 1949) is an American jazz fusion drummer who was a member of the band Return to Forever led by Chick Corea in the 1970s. White has been called "one of the founding fathers of jazz fusion". White has won thre ...
,
Gil Goldstein Gil Goldstein (born November 6, 1950, in Baltimore, Maryland) is an American jazz pianist and accordionist. He has won 5 Grammy Awards and he was nominated 8 times. Biography He began studying accordion at age 5 after noticing it in The Lawrence ...
and Pete Levin) * ''The Manhattan Project'' (Blue Note, 1990) – rec. 1989


As sideman

With Steve Grossman * ''Quartet'' (Dreyfus Jazz, 1999) – rec. 1998 With Charles Lloyd * '' Montreux 82'' (Elektra Musician, 1983) – live rec. 1982 at
Montreux Jazz Festival The Montreux Jazz Festival (formerly Festival de Jazz Montreux and Festival International de Jazz Montreux) is a music festival in Switzerland, held annually in early July in Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline. It is the second-largest annu ...
* '' A Night in Copenhagen'' (
Blue Note Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Capitol Music Group. Established in 1939 by German-Jewish emigrants Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it derived its name from the blue no ...
, 1985) – live rec. 1983 * '' One Night with Blue Note Volume 4'' (Blue Note, 1985) – live With
Joe Lovano Joseph Salvatore Lovano (born December 29, 1952)"Joe Lovano." ''Contemporary Musicians''. Vol. 13. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 1994. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, May 5, 2017. is an American jazz multi-instrumentalist. T ...
* ''
From the Soul ''From the Soul'' is a 1992 jazz album by American saxophonist and composer Joe Lovano, generally regarded as his masterpiece. It was recorded with a studio band rather than Lovano's working group; it is notable for his only encounter with Michel ...
'' (Blue Note, 1992) – rec. 1991 With Serge Forté Trio * '' Thanks for All'' - live, 2004. The one and only Piano duet Michel Petrucciani ever made


Tributes

*A
mosaic A mosaic () is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/Mortar (masonry), mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and ...
of a piano by Édouard Detmer in his honor was included on the Place Michel-Petrucciani in the
18th arrondissement of Paris The 18th arrondissement of Paris (''XVIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements, or administrative districts, of Paris, the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as '' ...
. *Michel recorded a piano solo on "Why Do You Do Things Like That?" on
Patrick Rondat Patrick Rondat (born 12 October 1960) is a French guitarist. He plays instrumental heavy metal associated with diverse influences such as new-age music, progressive metal, classical music and jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated ...
's '' On the Edge'', which was released the same year as Petrucciani's death. Patrick Rondat dedicated this album to him. *"Waltz For Michel Petrucciani", a song on the Finnish jazz
Trio Töykeät Trio Töykeät (founded in 1988) was a Finnish jazz trio. Their music ranges from humorous ragtimes to sentimental waltzes. Their playing style is often rhythmic, energetic and virtuosic. The group disbanded in 2008 Members * Iiro Rantala – ...
's album ''Kudos'', is dedicated to him. * Christian Jacob's ''Contradictions'' is a tribue album containing imaginative reinterpretions of eleven Petrucciani compositions. *"Simply Marvellous (Celebrating the Music of Michel Petrucciani)" is a Jazz album released in 2012 by Tommaso Starace featuring nine of Petrucciani's most celebrated compositions. *"To Mike P.", a composition by the Italian jazz pianist Nico Marziliano, is dedicated to him.


See also

*
French jazz Jazz music has been popular in France since the 1920s. Its international popularity peaked in the 1930s, and it has been continually enjoyed since. History Following World War I, a number of American expatriates settled in Paris and began to bu ...


References


Further reading

''Michel Petrucciani'' (2011) by pianist and musicologist Benjamin Halay by Editions Didier Carpentier (prefaced by Didier Lockwood and Alexandre Petrucciani).


External links

*
Michel Petrucciani
at the
National Jazz Archive The National Jazz Archive is a collection of materials pertaining to jazz and blues that is kept at the Loughton Library in Essex, England. The archive was founded by British trumpeter Digby Fairweather in 1998 and contains visual and print mater ...

Michel Petrucciani
interview in Jazz Magazine (in French)
Michel Petrucciani
documentary "Mezzo", with interviews, on
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Petrucciani, Michel 1962 births 1999 deaths People from Orange, Vaucluse Entertainers with dwarfism French jazz pianists French people of Italian descent Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery People with osteogenesis imperfecta 20th-century French pianists 20th-century French male musicians French male jazz pianists