Early years

Ferlet began playing piano

Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...

 at the age of 7 and studied classical music at l’École Normale de Musique de Paris

École Normale de Musique de Paris

The École Normale de Musique de Paris is a leading conservatoire located in Paris, France. The school was founded by Auguste Mangeot and pianist Alfred Cortot in 1919...

, and later on at the Conservatoire regional. In the late eighties, he moved to Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

, US, and studied piano under renowned teachers: Herb Pomeroy

Herb Pomeroy

Irving Herbert "Herb" Pomeroy, III was an influential swing and bebop jazz trumpeter and educator...

, Hal Crook

Hal Crook

Hal Crook is a jazz trombonist. He has a degree from the Berklee College of Music and is considered to be a leading teacher and author in the field of jazz improvisation.- Discography :* Hello Heaven * Only Human...

, Ed Tomassi, Ray Santisi

Ray Santisi

Ray Santisi is an American jazz pianist and educator. He performed with people such as Charlie Parker, Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, Mel Torme, Irene Kral, Natalie Cole and many others. The Raleigh, N.C...

, Ed Bedner. In 1992, he graduated from the Berklee College of Music

Berklee College of Music

Berklee College of Music, located in Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known primarily as a school for jazz, rock and popular music, it also offers college-level courses in a wide range of contemporary and historic styles, including hip...

 in Jazz Composition and was awarded the Berklee jazz performance award.

Career

Back in France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, he worked as a composer for a variety of TV programs and gained a sound experience in the field thanks to the diversity of the commissions he had to face.
He rapidly recorded two albums under his name: Escale and Zazimut featuring key artists of the new European jazz generation: Médéric Collignon

Médéric Collignon

Médéric Collignon, born 6 July 1970 in Villers-Semeuse, Ardennes, is a French jazz vocalist, cornettist and saxhorn player.He learnt to play the trumpet at the age of five, became a pupil at the Conservatoire de Charleville-Mézières in 1984, and gained his diploma at the Conservatoire de Nancy in...

, Christophe Monniot, Simon Spang-Hanssen, Claus Stotter, François Verly, Gary Brunton.

In 2000, he met the bassist Jean-Philippe Viret with whom he recorded three albums in 6 years (Considérations, Étant Donnés and L’Indicible), as well as a DVD and a CD distributed exclusively in Japan. In a few years, this trio, under the label Sketch, was nominated for the Django d'or, les Victoires de la Musique

Victoires de la Musique

Victoires de la musique , is an annual French award ceremony that recognizes the best musical artists of the year.- Male artist of the year :*1985 : Michel Jonasz*1986 : Jean-Jacques Goldman*1987 : Johnny Hallyday...

 (French Grammy Awards) and obtained great critiques in the media.
At the same time, he continued to play with singers from various backgrounds: Mark Murphy

Mark Murphy (singer)

Mark Murphy is an American jazz singer based in New York. He is most noted for his definitive and unique vocalese and vocal improvisations with both melody and lyrics...

 in Jazz, Manda Djin in Gospel, Geoffrey Oryema

Geoffrey Oryema

Geoffrey Oryema is an internationally renowned Ugandan musician. In 1977, at the age of 24 and at the height of Idi Amin's power, Oryema was smuggled across the Ugandan border in the trunk of a car, after the death of his father, Erinayo Wilson Oryema, who was a cabinet minister, beginning a life...

 in World Music and Lambert Wilson

Lambert Wilson

Lambert Wilson is a French actor. He is internationally known for his portrayal of The Merovingian in The Matrix He was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, the son of Georges Wilson, who was an actor, theatrical manager and director of the Theatre National de Paris.Wilson screen tested for The...

 in cabaret.
He successfully conducted the musical direction for Julia Migenes

Julia Migenes

Julia Migenes is an American mezzo-soprano working primarily in musical theatre repertoire. She was born on the Lower East Side of New York to a family of Greek and Irish-Puerto Rican descent...

' show Alter Ego. This allowed him to tour all over the world: China, Canada, Germany, Spain, France. He received praise for his sensitivity and his artistic commitment during musical interludes.

Melisse

In 2006 Édouard Ferlet and Benjamin Gratton founded Melisse, a French contemporary jazz label. The label supports Ferlet’s and other innovative jazzmen's works who share the same musical vision, and has produced albums by Issam Krimi, the Jean-Philippe Viret Trio, François Raulin /Stéphan Oliva, as well as Édouard Ferlet himself.

Discography

• Réflections (1996), with Marc Buronfosse
• Escale (1997)
• Zazimut (1999)
• Considérations (2000), with Jean-Philippe Viret and Antoine Banville
• French Cricket (2002), with Brunt'Off (Gary Brunton's band)
• Étant Donnés (2002), with Jean-Philippe Viret and Antoine Banville
• Par Tous Les Temps (2004)
• L'Écharpe d'Iris (2007)

External links

• Ferlet's official website
• Ferlet's LastFM page
• Home Melisse. Retrieved 8 March 2009