Hector Zazou
Encyclopedia
Hector Zazou was a prolific French composer and record producer who worked with, produced, and collaborated with an international array of recording artists. He worked on his own and other artists' albums, including Sandy Dillon
, Mimi Goese
, Barbara Gogan
, Sevara Nazarkhan
, Carlos Nuñez
, Italian group PGR
, Anne Grete Preus
, Laurence Revey, and Sainkho
since 1976.
Long-time collaborators include trumpeter Mark Isham
; guitarist Lone Kent; cellist and singer Caroline Lavelle
; trumpeter Christian Lechevretel, who has appeared on all of Zazou's albums after Sahara Blue; clarinetist and flutist Renaud Pion, who has appeared on all of Zazou's albums since Les Nouvelles Polyphonies Corses; drummer Bill Rieflin
; and Japanese recording artist Ryuichi Sakamoto
.
His discography demonstrates his affinity for cross-cultural collaborations, and incorporated modern techniques and sounds in re-recordings of traditional material. He was influenced by Peter Gabriel
's album Passion: Music for The Last Temptation of Christ
in his fusion of musical polarities (traditional and modern, electronic and acoustic) on his own album Les Nouvelles Polyphonies Corses.
His groundbreaking 1983 album Noir Et Blanc (recorded with Congolese singer Bony Bikaye) garnered a lot of international attention, and is widely recognized as one of the earliest and most impressive experiments in fusing African and electronic music.
Zazou regarded his work during the 1980s as his time of apprenticeship in the studio. On his 1986 album, Reivax au Bongo, he experimented with fusing classical vocals with an electronic backdrop. On his 1989 album, Géologies, he combined electronic music with a string quartet.
The albums that he has released under his own name from the 1990s onwards are usually concept album
s that draw from literary or folk sources and revolve around a specific theme. The collection of songs on each album assemble contributions from a diverse and global range of pop, folk
, world music
, avant-garde
, and classical recording acts.
Zazou's 1992 offering, Sahara Blue, was based on an idea by Jacques Pasquier. Pasquier suggested Zazou commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of author Arthur Rimbaud
by setting music to Rimbaud's poetry. Contributions included spoken word from Gérard Depardieu
, Dominique Dalcan
and music by Brendan Perry
and Lisa Gerrard
of Dead Can Dance
, Tim Simenon
, and David Sylvian
. He even adapted a traditional Ethiopian song.
In 1994, he released the album Chansons des mers froides
(called Songs from the Cold Seas for the anglophone
market). The album was based on ocean-themed traditional folk songs from northern countries, such as Canada, Finland, Iceland, and Japan. It featured vocals by pop and rock artists such as Björk
, Suzanne Vega
, John Cale
, Värttina
, Jane Siberry, and Siouxsie Sioux
in addition to recordings of shamanic incantations and lullabies from Ainu
, Nanai, Inuit
, and Yakut
singers. Musicians included Mark Isham, Brendan Perry, and the Balanescu Quartet
. A cameraman accompanied Zazou on the project and they shot and recorded in Alaska
, Canada, Greenland
, Japan, Scandinavia
, and Siberia
. The single "The Long Voyage" was the only song to be an original composition from Zazou. He wrote it in gratitude to his record company Sony
who gave him complete artistic liberty. Performed by Suzanne Vega and John Cale, it was released as a single in 1995. The single featured remixes by Mad Professor
as well as Zazou himself.
His 1998 album, Lights in the Dark, showcased ancient Celtic music
sung by Irish
singers.
Zazou's collaborative 2000 album 12 (Las Vegas is Cursed) with Sandy Dillon was regarded as a financial and critical failure. In the book "Sonora Portraits 2", which accompanies the CD Strong Currents, Zazou says that 12 (Las Vegas is Cursed) was his most elaborate album. He describes it as a work of black humour and regards his instrumental composition "Sombre" on the album as one of his best songs ever.
Strong Currents was released in 2003 and featured an all-female vocal cast which included Laurie Anderson
, Melanie Gabriel, Lori Carson
, Lisa Germano
, Irene Grandi
, Jane Birkin
, and Caroline Lavelle
. Musicians included Ryuichi Sakamoto
, Dennis Rea
, Bill Rieflin and Archaea Strings. The album took six years to complete.
In 2004 Zazou released a companion CD of sorts, L'absence, which included instrumentals, many of the same female vocalists that were featured on Strong Currents, and one male vocalist, French singer Edo.
Zazou was a member of the musical collective named Slow Music. The lineup also included Robert Fripp
and Peter Buck
on guitars, Fred Chalenor on bass, Matt Chamberlain on drums, and Bill Rieflin on keyboards and percussion. He contributed electronics to the group's music. At the same time, he was exploring other electronic music in other work, including a soundtrack for Carl Théodor Dreyer's silent film La Passion de Jeanne d’Arc and the multimedia collaboration released as a CD in 2006, Quadri+Chromies.
Zazou's last projects are documented on the Music Operator interactive multimedia web site, which graphically documents his collaborations while in the background his music plays. In January 2008 Hector Zazou released his Corps électriques album, featuring "one of the original riot grrrl
s" KatieJane Garside
, Bill Rieflin, Lone Kent and nu-jazz trumpeter Nils Petter Molvær
.
The last project he worked on is an album entitled In The House Of Mirrors, in which he offered a new take on classical Asian music, subtly reprocessed with a nod to some of the music produced in the '70s by Terry Riley
and Fripp & Eno. In The House of Mirrors was recorded in Mumbai with the collaboration of four outstanding instrumentalists from India and Uzbekistan, as well as guests such as Diego Amador and Nils Petter Molvaer. This album came out only a few weeks following his death in September 2008.
1993 Produced "Sorrow and Solitude" with vocalist Penta Leslee Swanon on ErdenKlang Musik
Sandy Dillon
Sandy Dillon is an American singer and songwriter.Born near Cape Cod, Sandy Dillon studied Orchestral Composition at Berklee College of Music in Boston, before moving to New York where she lived at the Chelsea Hotel. She played Janis Joplin on Broadway in ‘Rock n Roll: The First 5,000 Years’ where...
, Mimi Goese
Mimi Goese
Mimi Goese is the former vocalist for college rock band Hugo Largo. Two collaborations with Moby, Into the Blue and When It's Cold I'd Like to Die appear on the latter's album Everything Is Wrong...
, Barbara Gogan
The Passions
The Passions were a British band which formed in 1978, and disbanded in 1983. They were one-hit wonders with their misty song, "I'm in Love with a German Film Star". which was released in early 1981.-Career:...
, Sevara Nazarkhan
Sevara Nazarkhan
Sevara Nazarkhan is an Uzbek singer, songwriter, and musician. She was born 1978 in Andijan city, Uzbek SSR....
, Carlos Nuñez
Carlos Núñez
Carlos Núñez is a Galician musician who plays the gaita, the traditional Galician bagpipe.-Life and career:Nuñez was born in 1971 in Vigo, Galicia, Spain. He began playing the bagpipes when he was eight years old. In his early teens, he was invited to play with the Festival Orchestra of the...
, Italian group PGR
Per Grazia Ricevuta
Per Grazia Ricevuta, often abbreviated as PGR, is an Italian band led by Giovanni Lindo Ferretti.The band grew out of the ashes of his previous project Consorzio Suonatori Indipendenti, which disbanded following the departure of long-time collaborator Massimo Zamboni. Their name Per Grazia Ricevuta...
, Anne Grete Preus
Anne Grete Preus
Anne Grete Preus is a Norwegian singer. She was a rock artist in Norway in the 1980s and 1990s, first as member of the bands Veslefrikk and Can Can, and later as a solo artist...
, Laurence Revey, and Sainkho
Sainkho Namtchylak
Sainkho Namtchylak is a singer originally from Tuva, a small autonomous republic in the Russian Federation just north of Mongolia. She is known for her Tuvan throat singing or Khöömei.-Style:...
since 1976.
Biography
Zazou first came to international attention as part of the ZNR duo with Joseph Racaille, where both played electric keyboards. Their 1976 debut album Barricades 3 was notable for its "strong Satie influence, stripped to minimal essentials, everything counts".Long-time collaborators include trumpeter Mark Isham
Mark Isham
Mark Isham is an American trumpeter, synthesist, and film composer. He works in a variety of genres, including jazz, electronic, and film.-Life and career:...
; guitarist Lone Kent; cellist and singer Caroline Lavelle
Caroline Lavelle
Caroline Lavelle is a British singer-songwriter and cellist who has created three solo albums and contributed vocals, music, and production help to many other artists and bands.-Career:Lavelle studied at the Royal College of Music in London...
; trumpeter Christian Lechevretel, who has appeared on all of Zazou's albums after Sahara Blue; clarinetist and flutist Renaud Pion, who has appeared on all of Zazou's albums since Les Nouvelles Polyphonies Corses; drummer Bill Rieflin
William Rieflin
William "Bill" Rieflin is an American musician.In the past, Reiflin has worked with many notable groups in the industrial rock, experimental metal and related genres, including Ministry, the Revolting Cocks, Lard, KMFDM, Pigface, Swans, Chris Connelly, Nine Inch Nails, R.E.M., and many others...
; and Japanese recording artist Ryuichi Sakamoto
Ryuichi Sakamoto
After working as a session musician with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi in 1977, the trio formed the internationally successful electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra in 1978. Known for their seminal influence on electronic music, the group helped pioneer electronic genres such as...
.
His discography demonstrates his affinity for cross-cultural collaborations, and incorporated modern techniques and sounds in re-recordings of traditional material. He was influenced by Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
's album Passion: Music for The Last Temptation of Christ
Passion: Music for The Last Temptation of Christ
Passion: Music for The Last Temptation of Christ is a musical album released in 1989 by Peter Gabriel. It is his second soundtrack and eighth album overall...
in his fusion of musical polarities (traditional and modern, electronic and acoustic) on his own album Les Nouvelles Polyphonies Corses.
His groundbreaking 1983 album Noir Et Blanc (recorded with Congolese singer Bony Bikaye) garnered a lot of international attention, and is widely recognized as one of the earliest and most impressive experiments in fusing African and electronic music.
Zazou regarded his work during the 1980s as his time of apprenticeship in the studio. On his 1986 album, Reivax au Bongo, he experimented with fusing classical vocals with an electronic backdrop. On his 1989 album, Géologies, he combined electronic music with a string quartet.
The albums that he has released under his own name from the 1990s onwards are usually concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
s that draw from literary or folk sources and revolve around a specific theme. The collection of songs on each album assemble contributions from a diverse and global range of pop, folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, world music
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
, avant-garde
Avant-garde music
Avant-garde music is a term used to characterize music which is thought to be ahead of its time, i.e. containing innovative elements or fusing different genres....
, and classical recording acts.
Zazou's 1992 offering, Sahara Blue, was based on an idea by Jacques Pasquier. Pasquier suggested Zazou commemorate the 100th anniversary of the death of author Arthur Rimbaud
Arthur Rimbaud
Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud was a French poet. Born in Charleville, Ardennes, he produced his best known works while still in his late teens—Victor Hugo described him at the time as "an infant Shakespeare"—and he gave up creative writing altogether before the age of 21. As part of the decadent...
by setting music to Rimbaud's poetry. Contributions included spoken word from Gérard Depardieu
Gérard Depardieu
Gérard Xavier Marcel Depardieu is a French actor and filmmaker. He is a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur, Chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite and has twice won the César Award for Best Actor...
, Dominique Dalcan
Dominique Dalcan
Dominique Dalcan is a French electronic musician and film composer.He was born in 1964 in Beirut, Lebanon.He collaborated with French musician Hector Zazou on his "Sahara Blue" album, alongside Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto....
and music by Brendan Perry
Brendan Perry
Brendan Michael Perry is a singer and multi-instrumentalist best known for his work as the male half of the duo Dead Can Dance with Lisa Gerrard.-Early life:...
and Lisa Gerrard
Lisa Gerrard
Lisa Gerrard is an Australian musician, singer, and composer who rose to prominence as part of the music group Dead Can Dance with former music partner Brendan Perry....
of Dead Can Dance
Dead Can Dance
Dead Can Dance are an ethereal neoclassical duo formed in Melbourne, Australia, in August 1981, by Lisa Gerrard and Brendan Perry. The band relocated to London in May 1982 and disbanded in 1998. Their 1996 album Spiritchaser reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top World Music Albums Chart...
, Tim Simenon
Tim Simenon
Tim Simenon is a musician, composer, record producer, and label boss, most famous for his work as Bomb the Bass.-Debut:Tim Simenon's music career began aproper in the mid 1980s, DJing at London's Wag Club...
, and David Sylvian
David Sylvian
David Sylvian is an English singer-songwriter and musician who came to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead vocalist and main songwriter in the group Japan...
. He even adapted a traditional Ethiopian song.
In 1994, he released the album Chansons des mers froides
Chansons des mers froides
Chansons des mers froides is a 1994 album by French musician Hector Zazou.Zazou approached Sony Records with merely the title and the concept of songs from the Arctic. He was accompanied by cameraman Philippe Roméo as he recorded traditional folk songs in and from Alaska, Canada , Greenland,...
(called Songs from the Cold Seas for the anglophone
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
market). The album was based on ocean-themed traditional folk songs from northern countries, such as Canada, Finland, Iceland, and Japan. It featured vocals by pop and rock artists such as Björk
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
, Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Nadine Vega is an American songwriter and singer known for her eclectic folk-inspired music.Two of Vega's songs reached the top 10 of various international chart listings: "Luka" and "Tom's Diner"...
, John Cale
John Cale
John Davies Cale, OBE is a Welsh musician, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the experimental rock band The Velvet Underground....
, Värttina
Värttinä
Värttinä is a Finnish folk music band which was started as a project by Sari and Mari Kaasinen back in 1983 in the village of Rääkkylä, in Karelia, the southeastern region of Finland. Many transformations have taken place in the band since then...
, Jane Siberry, and Siouxsie Sioux
Siouxsie Sioux
Siouxsie Sioux is an English singer-songwriter. She is best known as the lead singer of the critically acclaimed rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees and of its splinter group The Creatures . The Banshees produced eleven studio albums and a string of hit singles including "Hong Kong Garden",...
in addition to recordings of shamanic incantations and lullabies from Ainu
Ainu people
The , also called Aynu, Aino , and in historical texts Ezo , are indigenous people or groups in Japan and Russia. Historically they spoke the Ainu language and related varieties and lived in Hokkaidō, the Kuril Islands, and much of Sakhalin...
, Nanai, Inuit
Inuit
The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...
, and Yakut
Yakut
Yakut may refer to:* Yakuts, the Turkic people associated with the Sakha Republic* Yakut language, a Turkic language also known as Sakha.* Ruby in Turkish language* Yakut , a breed from Russia*Yakut Pony, horse breed from Siberia, Russia...
singers. Musicians included Mark Isham, Brendan Perry, and the Balanescu Quartet
Balanescu Quartet
The Balanescu Quartet is an avant-garde string quartet founded in 1987 by Alexander Bălănescu that achieved fame through the release of several complex cover versions of songs by German experimental electronic music band Kraftwerk on their album "Possessed"....
. A cameraman accompanied Zazou on the project and they shot and recorded in Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, Canada, Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
, Japan, Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
, and Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. The single "The Long Voyage" was the only song to be an original composition from Zazou. He wrote it in gratitude to his record company Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
who gave him complete artistic liberty. Performed by Suzanne Vega and John Cale, it was released as a single in 1995. The single featured remixes by Mad Professor
Mad Professor
Mad Professor is a dub music producer and engineer known for his original productions and remix work. He is considered one of the leading producers of dub music’s second generation and was instrumental in transitioning dub into the digital age. He is a prolific producer, contributing to or...
as well as Zazou himself.
His 1998 album, Lights in the Dark, showcased ancient Celtic music
Celtic music
Celtic music is a term utilised by artists, record companies, music stores and music magazines to describe a broad grouping of musical genres that evolved out of the folk musical traditions of the Celtic people of Western Europe...
sung by Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
singers.
Zazou's collaborative 2000 album 12 (Las Vegas is Cursed) with Sandy Dillon was regarded as a financial and critical failure. In the book "Sonora Portraits 2", which accompanies the CD Strong Currents, Zazou says that 12 (Las Vegas is Cursed) was his most elaborate album. He describes it as a work of black humour and regards his instrumental composition "Sombre" on the album as one of his best songs ever.
Strong Currents was released in 2003 and featured an all-female vocal cast which included Laurie Anderson
Laurie Anderson
Laura Phillips "Laurie" Anderson is an American experimental performance artist, composer and musician who plays violin and keyboards and sings in a variety of experimental music and art rock styles. Initially trained as a sculptor, Anderson did her first performance-art piece in the late 1960s...
, Melanie Gabriel, Lori Carson
Lori Carson
Lori Carson is a singer/songwriter. She has released several solo albums, appeared on many soundtracks, and collaborated with artists such as The Golden Palominos. She performed lead vocals on the song "In the Middle of the Night" on French producer Hector Zazou's album Strong Currents...
, Lisa Germano
Lisa Germano
Lisa Germano is an American singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who has released seven albums featuring her often-hushed vocal style, confessional lyrics, and distinctive violin. Her 1994 album Geek the Girl received widespread critical acclaim, including being featured as a top album of...
, Irene Grandi
Irene Grandi
-Biography:Irene Grandi was born in Florence.She debuted in the Sanremo Music Festival in the category New Proposed with "Fuori", in 1994, which was later won by Andrea Bocelli, who was also debuting the same year....
, Jane Birkin
Jane Birkin
Jane Mallory Birkin, OBE is an English-born actress and singer who lives in France. In recent years she has written her own album, directed a film and become an outspoken proponent of democracy in Burma.- Early life :...
, and Caroline Lavelle
Caroline Lavelle
Caroline Lavelle is a British singer-songwriter and cellist who has created three solo albums and contributed vocals, music, and production help to many other artists and bands.-Career:Lavelle studied at the Royal College of Music in London...
. Musicians included Ryuichi Sakamoto
Ryuichi Sakamoto
After working as a session musician with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi in 1977, the trio formed the internationally successful electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra in 1978. Known for their seminal influence on electronic music, the group helped pioneer electronic genres such as...
, Dennis Rea
Dennis Rea
Dennis Rea is an American guitarist, writer and music event organizer currently living in Seattle. Rea first came to prominence as a member of the electronic music group Earthstar in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He is probably best known in the West as a musician for his work with the quintet...
, Bill Rieflin and Archaea Strings. The album took six years to complete.
In 2004 Zazou released a companion CD of sorts, L'absence, which included instrumentals, many of the same female vocalists that were featured on Strong Currents, and one male vocalist, French singer Edo.
Zazou was a member of the musical collective named Slow Music. The lineup also included Robert Fripp
Robert Fripp
Robert Fripp is an English guitarist, composer and record producer. He was ranked 42nd on Rolling Stone magazine's 2003 list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" and #47 on Gibson.com’s "Top 50 Guitarists of All Time". Among rock guitarists, Fripp is a master of crosspicking, a technique...
and Peter Buck
Peter Buck
Peter Lawrence Buck , is an American rock guitarist who is best known for playing in and co-founding alternative rock band R.E.M....
on guitars, Fred Chalenor on bass, Matt Chamberlain on drums, and Bill Rieflin on keyboards and percussion. He contributed electronics to the group's music. At the same time, he was exploring other electronic music in other work, including a soundtrack for Carl Théodor Dreyer's silent film La Passion de Jeanne d’Arc and the multimedia collaboration released as a CD in 2006, Quadri+Chromies.
Zazou's last projects are documented on the Music Operator interactive multimedia web site, which graphically documents his collaborations while in the background his music plays. In January 2008 Hector Zazou released his Corps électriques album, featuring "one of the original riot grrrl
Riot grrrl
Riot grrrl was an underground feminist punk movement based in Washington, DC, Olympia, Washington, Portland, Oregon, and the greater Pacific Northwest which existed in the early to mid-1990s, and it is often associated with third-wave feminism...
s" KatieJane Garside
KatieJane Garside
KatieJane Garside is an English vocalist, lyricist, artist and writer who fronted the first incarnation of the '90s noise rock band Daisy Chainsaw and now fronts Queen Adreena, an independent rock band from London....
, Bill Rieflin, Lone Kent and nu-jazz trumpeter Nils Petter Molvær
Nils Petter Molvær
Nils Petter Molvær also known as NPM is a Norwegian jazz trumpeter, composer, and producer. Molvær is considered a pioneer in fusing jazz and electronic music, showcased on his best-selling album Khmer, released by the German record label ECM in October 1997 in Europe and early 1998 in North...
.
The last project he worked on is an album entitled In The House Of Mirrors, in which he offered a new take on classical Asian music, subtly reprocessed with a nod to some of the music produced in the '70s by Terry Riley
Terry Riley
Terrence Mitchell Riley, is an American composer intrinsically associated with the minimalist school of Western classical music and was a pioneer of the movement...
and Fripp & Eno. In The House of Mirrors was recorded in Mumbai with the collaboration of four outstanding instrumentalists from India and Uzbekistan, as well as guests such as Diego Amador and Nils Petter Molvaer. This album came out only a few weeks following his death in September 2008.
Albums
- 1976 ZNR Barricades 3
- 1978 ZNR Traité de Mécanique Populaire
- 1979 La Perversita
- 1983 Zazou/Bikaye/CYI Noir & Blanc
- 1985 Zazou/Bikaye Mr. Manager
- 1985 Géographies
- 1986 Reivax au Bongo
- 1988 Zazou/Bikaye Guilty!
- 1989 Geologies
- 1989 Géographies/13 proverbes Africains
- 1990 Zazou/Bikaye/CYI Noir & Blanc (with extra tracks)
- 1991 Hector Zazou & Les Nouvelles Polyphonies Corses Les Nouvelles Polyphonies Corses
- 1992 Sahara Blue
- Lead vocalists: Samy Birnbach, Richard BohringerRichard BohringerRichard Bohringer is a French actor.-Personal life:Bohringer was born in Moulins, Allier. He is the father of actress Romane Bohringer, and has two other children, Richard and Lou.-Career:...
, John CaleJohn CaleJohn Davies Cale, OBE is a Welsh musician, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the experimental rock band The Velvet Underground....
, Dominique DalcanDominique DalcanDominique Dalcan is a French electronic musician and film composer.He was born in 1964 in Beirut, Lebanon.He collaborated with French musician Hector Zazou on his "Sahara Blue" album, alongside Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto....
, Sussan Deihim, Lisa Gerarrd and Brendan Perry of Dead Can DanceDead Can DanceDead Can Dance are an ethereal neoclassical duo formed in Melbourne, Australia, in August 1981, by Lisa Gerrard and Brendan Perry. The band relocated to London in May 1982 and disbanded in 1998. Their 1996 album Spiritchaser reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top World Music Albums Chart...
, Gérard Depardieu, Anneli Drecker, Barbara Gogan, KhaledKhaled (musician)Khaled Hadj Ibrahim , better known as Khaled, is a raï singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in Sidi El Houari in Oran Province of Algeria...
, Ketema Mekonn, Malka SpigelMalka SpigelMalka Spigel is a founding member of the Israeli rock band Minimal Compact. She has also worked as a solo artist, and as a visual artist, exhibiting in prominent venues such as The Irish Museum of Modern Art and the Royal Festival Hall... - Contributors: Kent Condon, Yuka Fujii, Kenji Jammer, Vincent KenisVincent KenisVincent Kenis is a Belgian musician and record producer. He was a member of the avant-garde group Aksak Maboul and of The Honeymoon Killers, an experimental rock band...
, Nabil Khalidi, Bill LaswellBill LaswellBill Laswell is an American bassist, producer and record label owner....
, Christian Lechevretel, Keith LeblancKeith LeblancKeith Leblanc is an American drummer and record producer, and is a member of the bands Little Axe and Tackhead.His record, "No Sell Out", was the first sample based record. His career started out on Sugar Hill Records recording with rap pioneers, Grandmaster Flash and Melle Melle...
, Lightwave, Gilles Martin, Denis Moulin, Renaud Pion, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Steve Shehan, Guy SigsworthGuy SigsworthGuy Sigsworth is a U.K. based composer, producer and songwriter. In his career to date he has worked with many famous artists, including Seal, Björk, Goldie, Madonna, Britney Spears, Kate Havnevik, Bebel Gilberto, Mozez, David Sylvian and Alanis Morissette...
, Tim SimenonTim SimenonTim Simenon is a musician, composer, record producer, and label boss, most famous for his work as Bomb the Bass.-Debut:Tim Simenon's music career began aproper in the mid 1980s, DJing at London's Wag Club...
, David SylvianDavid SylvianDavid Sylvian is an English singer-songwriter and musician who came to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead vocalist and main songwriter in the group Japan...
, Elizabeth Valetti, Daniel Yvinec
- Lead vocalists: Samy Birnbach, Richard Bohringer
- 1992 Various artists Nunc Musics
- 1994 Sainkho Out of Tuva
- 1994 Various artists Sonora 4'94 (includes one outtake from Sahara Blue entitled Realeza)
1993 Produced "Sorrow and Solitude" with vocalist Penta Leslee Swanon on ErdenKlang Musik
- 1994 Chansons des mers froidesChansons des mers froidesChansons des mers froides is a 1994 album by French musician Hector Zazou.Zazou approached Sony Records with merely the title and the concept of songs from the Arctic. He was accompanied by cameraman Philippe Roméo as he recorded traditional folk songs in and from Alaska, Canada , Greenland,...
(Songs from the Cold Seas)- Lead vocalists: BjörkBjörkBjörk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
, John CaleJohn CaleJohn Davies Cale, OBE is a Welsh musician, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the experimental rock band The Velvet Underground....
, Tokiko KatoTokiko Kato, is a Japanese singer, composer, lyricist, and actress. She graduated from the University of Tokyo, and worked as a visiting professor at Josai International University.- Filmography :# Izakaya Chōji .... Shigeko...
, Lioudmila Khandi, Kilabuk & Nooveya, Catherine-Ann MacPhee, VärttinaVärttinäVärttinä is a Finnish folk music band which was started as a project by Sari and Mari Kaasinen back in 1983 in the village of Rääkkylä, in Karelia, the southeastern region of Finland. Many transformations have taken place in the band since then...
, Suzanne VegaSuzanne VegaSuzanne Nadine Vega is an American songwriter and singer known for her eclectic folk-inspired music.Two of Vega's songs reached the top 10 of various international chart listings: "Luka" and "Tom's Diner"...
, Wimme SaariWimme SaariWimme Saari is one of the best known Sami yoikers from Finland. Wimme Saari combines traditional Sami singing with his own improvisations, usually to a techno-ambient accompaniment by members of Finnish electronic group RinneRadio...
, Jane Siberry, Siouxsie SiouxSiouxsie SiouxSiouxsie Sioux is an English singer-songwriter. She is best known as the lead singer of the critically acclaimed rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees and of its splinter group The Creatures . The Banshees produced eleven studio albums and a string of hit singles including "Hong Kong Garden",...
, Lena WillemarkLena WillemarkLena Willemark is a Swedish traditional music fiddler, singer, and composer.For several decades Willemark has been widening her scope through collaborations with jazz musicians and other artists... - Contributors: Ainu Dancers of HokkaidōHokkaido, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
, Balanescu QuartetBalanescu QuartetThe Balanescu Quartet is an avant-garde string quartet founded in 1987 by Alexander Bălănescu that achieved fame through the release of several complex cover versions of songs by German experimental electronic music band Kraftwerk on their album "Possessed"....
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, Sakharine Percussion Group, Noriko Sanagi, Sissimut Dance Drummers, Angelin Tytot
- Lead vocalists: Björk
- 1995 Harold Budd/Hector Zazou Glyph
- Lead vocalist: Lian Amber
- 1997 Barbara Gogan Made on Earth
- 1998 Lights in the Dark
- Lead vocalists: Breda Mayock, Katie McMahon, and Lasairfhiona Ni Chonaola.
- Contributors: Kristen Noguez, Mark IshamMark IshamMark Isham is an American trumpeter, synthesist, and film composer. He works in a variety of genres, including jazz, electronic, and film.-Life and career:...
, Andre Compostel, Silap' (choir), Thierry Robin, Carlos Nunez, Pierre d'Aquin, Peter GabrielPeter GabrielPeter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
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, Daniel Yvinec, Ivan Tchekine, Richard Bourreau, Papa D'jabate, Noriko Sanagi, Lucie de Lisieu, Minna Raskinen, Didier Malherbe, Hossam Ramzay, and The Wiltshire Souls.
- 1998 Mimi Goese Soak (four tracks produced by Zazou)
- 1999 Carlos Nuñez Os Amores Libros
- 1999 Laurence Revey Le Creux Des Fees
- 2000 Sandy Dillon & Hector Zazou 12 (Las Vegas is Cursed)
- 2000 Bigazzi/Chianura/Henson Drop 6—The Wolf and the Moon
- 2000 Various artists Drop 5.1
- 2001 Anne Grete Preus Alfabet
- 2002 PGR Per Grazia Ricevuta
- 2003 Sevara Nazarkhan Yol Bolsin
- 2003 Strong Currents
- Lead vocalists: Laurie AndersonLaurie AndersonLaura Phillips "Laurie" Anderson is an American experimental performance artist, composer and musician who plays violin and keyboards and sings in a variety of experimental music and art rock styles. Initially trained as a sculptor, Anderson did her first performance-art piece in the late 1960s...
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, Lori CarsonLori CarsonLori Carson is a singer/songwriter. She has released several solo albums, appeared on many soundtracks, and collaborated with artists such as The Golden Palominos. She performed lead vocals on the song "In the Middle of the Night" on French producer Hector Zazou's album Strong Currents...
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, Nicola HitchcockNicola HitchcockNicola Hitchcock is a British singer and songwriter. She is best known for having been the singer of the band Mandalay...
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, Caroline LavelleCaroline LavelleCaroline Lavelle is a British singer-songwriter and cellist who has created three solo albums and contributed vocals, music, and production help to many other artists and bands.-Career:Lavelle studied at the Royal College of Music in London...
, Sarah Jane MorrisSarah Jane Morris (singer)Sarah Jane Morris , is a pop music, jazz, rock and R&B singer and songwriter.In 1982, Morris joined The Republic as lead singer. A London-based Afro-Caribbean-Latin band with leftish tendencies, they received enormous publicity from the music press including cover stories with NME and City Limits...
, Catherine RussellCatherine RussellCatherine Russell is a British stage, television and screen actress.-Personal:Catherine Russell is the daughter of actor Nicholas Smith and his wife Mary. She is married to film producer Richard Holmes and they have two children, Sam and Poppy...
, Emma Stow - Contributors: Archaea Strings, Carlos Nuñez, Ryuichi SakamotoRyuichi SakamotoAfter working as a session musician with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi in 1977, the trio formed the internationally successful electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra in 1978. Known for their seminal influence on electronic music, the group helped pioneer electronic genres such as...
, Stefano Bollani, Bill Rieflin, Lone Kent, Dennis ReaDennis ReaDennis Rea is an American guitarist, writer and music event organizer currently living in Seattle. Rea first came to prominence as a member of the electronic music group Earthstar in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He is probably best known in the West as a musician for his work with the quintet...
, Mathias Desmiers, Pierre Chaze, Renaud Pion
- Lead vocalists: Laurie Anderson
- 2004 L'absence
- 2006 Hector Zazou and Bernard Caillaud Quadri(+)Chromies
- 2008 Corps électriques
- Contributors: KatieJane GarsideKatieJane GarsideKatieJane Garside is an English vocalist, lyricist, artist and writer who fronted the first incarnation of the '90s noise rock band Daisy Chainsaw and now fronts Queen Adreena, an independent rock band from London....
, Bill Rieflin, Lone Kent and Nils Petter MolværNils Petter MolværNils Petter Molvær also known as NPM is a Norwegian jazz trumpeter, composer, and producer. Molvær is considered a pioneer in fusing jazz and electronic music, showcased on his best-selling album Khmer, released by the German record label ECM in October 1997 in Europe and early 1998 in North...
- Contributors: KatieJane Garside
- 2008 Hector Zazou & Swara In The House Of Mirrors
Singles
- 1983 Hector Zazou/Papa Wemba Malimba (12" single)
- 1984 Zazou/Bikaye/CYI M'Pasi Ya M'Pamba (12" single)
- 1985 Zazou/Bikaye Mr. Manager (7" and 12" singles)
- 1988 Zazou/Bikaye Guilty!/Na Kenda (12" single)
- 1990 Zazou/Bikaye Get Back (12" single)
- 1992 "I'll Strangle You" featuring Anneli Drecker and Gérard Depardieu
- 1995 "The Long Voyage" featuring John Cale and Suzanne Vega
External links
- Taktic Music bio
- Music Operator
- Sound on Sound
- Crammed Discs, the label on which Hector Zazou released 11 of his albums.
- Necrology for Hector Zazou
- Guardian obituary