So Where To Today?

Laurent Coulondre was born in Nîmes (France) in 1989. At 4 years old, he began music playing drums and soon acquired a sense of rhythm that will never leave him. A few years later he definitely took up playing the piano. When Laurent turned 9, he discovered jazz with the pianist Stéphane Kochoyan and performed with the local big band opening for big names such as Marcus Miller, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Al Jarreau or Michel Legrand. In 2010, he graduated from the National Conservatory of Toulouse with a jazz DEM and became a bachelor in Musicology at Toulouse University. During these years of training, he made an Erasmus stay in Spain where he studied at the Superior Conservatory of Catalonia and developed a passion for organ playing over there. He also deepened his experience with the Jazz in Marciac Orchestra. Laurent recorded his first album and launched himself with his trio on tour. He is a prize soloist and winner of the European Contest Didier Lockwood, winner of the Jazz in Castello and Jazz en Baie Competition. The same year he discovered and experienced the life of Parisian jazzmen and recorded in 2013 his second album « Opus II ». Gradually recognized by the jazz community, he was called upon to play and record as a sideman with musicians such as Paul Jackson, Jesse Davis, Terrell Stafford.. Then he developed a new concept of reversible trio in which he now presents himself performing at the piano as well as the organ. The trio won the Defense National Jazz Competition. In addition Laurent was voted Spedidam Generation, Adami Jazz Talent and also Sacem Prizewinner. It was that same year that the album « Schizophrenia » projected the trio on the stages of major jazz festivals, for example opening for Sting at Jazz in Vienne (FR), Tokyo Jazz Fest (JP), London Jazz Fest (UK), Jazz in Marciac, Cully Jazz (CH), Paris Jazz Fest, … In 2016 Laurent won the prestigious « Best New Artist Award » at « Les Victoires de la Musique » (the French Grammy Awards) and was also a prizewinner of the Lagardère Foundation for his latest album « Gravity Zero ». With this new album he is now touring in major venues such as the Montreal International Jazz Fest (CA), North Sea Jazz Fest (NL), Ottawa Jazz Fest (CA), Winter Jazz Fest (US), Toronto Jazz Fest (CA)…