A life with music

Illustration : The tong drum that was recently made for me by Anthony.

When I am 12 years old I live in a town near Lyon – France.
Today there is a concert by an Hungarian orchestra.
They play La Czardas de Vittorio Monti.
I cry.
The first time I heard this song I was in the womb of my mother.
And the violinist was my father.

My father is an amateur musician.
He has also a small banjo and an harmonica.
He had the opportunity to play much when he was a war prisoner – 1939-45.
I am not sure but, it is possible that I played some music before walking.

From the age of 4 to 11, I live in the area between Bordeaux & Cognac.
The small simple music school is in the beautiful castle build after the time of Joan of Arc.
When the boring course is finished we stay “Unter den Linden”.
With my recorder I can play hundred tunes by heart.
There are tunes from abroad.
From Greece, Portugal, Spain, Hispano-America, North-America, Russia, Germany, UK, Italy, Africa.
There are the new stars of the moment : Edith Piaf, Charles Aznavour, Jacques Brel, Georges Brassens.
Stars of the former generation.

I have learned the small banjo, the harmonica and the recorder by myself.
In the music school I learn the trumpet and then move to the big ones – euphonium and tuba.
In parallel, I learn the saxophone by myself and then the guitar.
My brother lends me his drums and I have a washboard too.

I am interested in various music styles – world, folk, blues, jazz, classical, contemporary music.
I play this music or this other up to the people I meet.
I am not interested in being a professional musician : liberty is my first priority.

In the 70’s I meet people with whom I sing protest songs.
Then I meet people from the Andean mountains and learn the flutes – quena & pinkillu.
Then I meet Celtic people and I learn the tin whistle & bombard.

All over my life I learn new instruments, new styles for instruments and voice.

I build instruments, for example drums with urban plastic tubes.