Grégory Privat

A pianist and composer from Martinique based in France, Grégory Privat situates his work in a language where contemporary jazz converses with the rhythms and melodies of the Caribbean. Born into a family of musicians and the son of pianist José Privat, he grew up between Paris and Martinique, developing early on a dual grounding in Caribbean tradition and the currents of European jazz. In the early 2010s he established himself on the French and then international scene through sustained work in a trio format, blending improvisation, Creole songs and harmonic structures drawn from both modern jazz and classical music. His ensembles alternate between acoustic and electro-acoustic settings, with particular attention to the rhythmic subtleties inherited from gwo ka, biguine and Antillean popular musics. Signed to the German label ACT Music, Grégory Privat tours clubs and festivals across Europe and the Caribbean, refining a writing style centered on melody, space and the dialogue between piano, bass and drums. He collaborates notably with Guadeloupean drummer Sonny Troupé as well as with various Caribbean and European musicians, exploring in each project the place of Creole identity within contemporary jazz.