Louis Sclavis
Louis Sclavis (born 2 February 1953) is a French jazz musician. He performs on clarinet, bass clarinet, and soprano saxophone in a variety of contexts, including avant-garde jazz, free jazz, free improvisation and contemporary classical.
Louis Sclavis
Andy Newcombe Farnborough, UK · P1230125 · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Name
- Louis Sclavis
- Born
- 2 February 1953
- Birthplace
- Lyon, France
- Occupation
- Musician, songwriter, record producer
- Nationality
- France
- Fields
- jazz
- Education
- Regional Conservatory of Lyon
- Languages
- French
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Louis Sclavis (born 2 February 1953) is a French jazz musician. He performs on clarinet, bass clarinet, and soprano saxophone in a variety of contexts, including avant-garde jazz, free jazz, free improvisation and contemporary classical.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Louis Sclavis. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q1349883 · wikipedia · Louis Sclavis
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Louis Sclavis • Landscape — yes • Born — 2 February 1953 • Birthplace — Lyon, France • Instrument — Clarinet, bass clarinet, soprano saxophone • Genre — Jazz, Avant-garde jazz, free jazz, free improvisation, contemporary classical • Occupation — Musician, songwriter, record producer • Years Active — 1975–present • Label — ECM, Label Bleu, Clean Feed, FMP, Yolk Records • Associated Acts — Brotherhood of Breath, Henri Texier Quartet
Life and career
Life and career
He was born in Lyon, France. Sclavis played with the Henri Texier Quartet. He has won numerous awards, including: the PRIX DJANGO REINHARDT “best French jazz musician” (1988); First Prize in the Barcelona Biennale (1989); the British Jazz award at the Midem for “Best Foreign Artist” (1990/91); the DJANGO D’OR “Best French jazz record of the year” (1993); and the GRAND PRIX SACEM 2009. He was one of the first to combine jazz with French folk music, working most prominently with the hurdy-gurdy player Valentin Clastrier. His latest album India (Yolk Records, 2025) is a direct reference to the title of his 1987 album Chine. The nine compositions of him have been recorded in Novembre 2024 by the new Louis Sclavis Quintet: Sarah Murcia on double bass, Benjamin Moussay on piano, Olivier Laisney on trumpet and Christophe Lavergne on drums.
Filmography
Filmography
• 1999: It All Starts Today (Ça commence aujourd'hui) by Bertrand Tavernier (Sony Music France) • 2002: A Moment of Happiness by Antoine Santana • 2002: Dans la nuit by Charles Vanel (ECM) • 2002: Vivre me tue by Jean-Pierre Sinapi • 2007: After Him (Après lui) by Gaël Morel • 2009: Plus tard tu comprendras by Amos Gitaï • 2009: Portraits-autoportraits by Gilles Porte • 2011: Roses à crédit by Amos Gitaï • 2015: La porte d'Anna by Patrick Dumont & François Hébrard • 2017: La consolation by Magaly Richard-Serrano • 2019: Nicolas Philibert, hasard et nécessité by Jean-Louis Comolli • 2022: The Sixth Child by Léopold Legrand • 2024: Shikun by Amos Gitaï
Souillac en Jazz - édition 2006. Concert du vendredi 21 juillet, donné place Pierre Betz par le Michel Portal - Louis Sclavis Quintet (Michel Portal s, cl - Louis Sclavis s, cl - Bruno Chevillon b - Éric Échampard d - Bojan Zulfikarpasic p)
Marc Pivaudran · Self-photographed
Der Musiker Louis Sclavis mit Bassklarinette beim TFF Rudolstadt 2014
Harald Krichel
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 1 entries
1953
Louis Sclavis born at 4th arrondissement of Lyon.
Discography
• Ad Augusta Per Argustia (Nato, 1981) • Clarinettes (Label Bleu, 1985) • Chine (Ida, 1987) • Chamber Music (Ida, 1989) • Ellington on the Air (Ida, 1991) • Rouge (ECM, 1991) • Trio de Clarinettes: Live (FMP, 1991) • Acoustic Quartet (ECM, 1994) • Carnet de Routes (Label Bleu, 1995) • Ceux qui veillent la nuit (JMS, 1996) • Danses et Autres Scenes (JMS, 1998) • Les Violences de Rameau (ECM, 1996) • Suite Africaine (Label Bleu, 1999) • L'Affrontement des Prétendants (ECM, 1999) • Dans la Nuit (ECM, 2000) • Napoli's Walls (ECM, 2002) • Bow River Falls (Koch, 2004) • Roman, (2004); • African Flashback (Label Bleu, 2005) • L'Imparfait des Langues (ECM, 2007) • Lost on the Way (ECM, 2009) • Eldorado Trio (Clean Feed, 2010) • Sources (ECM, 2012) • Silk and Salt Melodies (ECM, 2014) • Characters On A Wall (ECM, 2019) • Les Cadances Du Monde (JMS-Cream, 2022) • Langues Et Lueurs (Yolk Records, 2023) avec Jean-Paul Delore & Sebastien Boisseau • Unfolding (ECM Records, 2023) Duo avec Benjamin Moussay • India (Yolk Records, 2025) avec Sarah Murcia, Benjamin Moussay, Olivier Laisney, Christophe Lavergne
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Music memorabilia
42,866 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Louis SaladinPerson
- Louis SchindelmeisserPerson
- Louis SchlösserPerson
- Louis Schwizgebel-WangPerson
- Louis SilversPerson
- Louis SmithPerson
- Louis SoutterPerson
- Louis SpohrPerson
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Louis Sclavis?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.