Mario Canonge

Born in 1960 in Fort-de-France, Martinique, Mario Canonge first developed his piano practice on the island before moving to Paris, where from the 1980s he established himself in a musical milieu that blended jazz, salsa, zouk and Antillean repertoires. In 1983 he co-founded Ultramarine with Nguyên Lê, a jazz-fusion group that marked his debut on the French scene and that also included Mokhtar Samba and Étienne Mbappé. His career alternates between collective projects and recordings under his own name, notably Retour aux sources (1991), Trait d’union (1993), Arômes Caraïbes (1995) and Mitan (2011). He also took part in Sakiyo alongside Tony Chasseur and Ralph Thamar, then in Sakesho from 2002 to 2006 with Michel Alibo, Jean-Philippe Fanfant and Andy Narell. His playing combines the vocabulary of modern jazz with Caribbean rhythms, bèlè, gwoka and the dance forms of the Antilles, with an approach firmly rooted in improvisation and collective dialogue. Long established on the Paris scene, he also maintains a regular duo with bassist Michel Zenino at Le Baiser Salé. More recently he released Kapital with Érik Pédurand in 2020, followed by Quint’Up II and Mario Canonge Trio in 2023.