French jazz legend dies, 97

French jazz legend dies, 97

RIP

norman lebrecht

December 13, 2024

Versailles yesterday witnessed the death of Martial Solal, an epic figure in French jazz and film.

A Jewish pianist from Algiers, he mingled in 1950s Paris with Django Reinhardt and Sydney Bechet, forming his own quartet. He began composing for film, most famously for Jean-Luc Godard’s 1960 debut, À bout de souffle.

Solal came to be regarded as the intello of French jazz, his reputation esoteric but cherished.

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