Barney Wilen
Encyclopedia
Barney Wilen was a French
tenor
and soprano saxophonist
and jazz
composer.
Wilen was born in Nice
; his father was an American dentist turned inventor, and his mother was French. He began performing in clubs in Nice after being encouraged by Blaise Cendrars
who was a friend of his mother. His career was boosted in 1957 when he worked with Miles Davis
on the soundtrack Ascenseur pour l'Échafaud. In 1959, Wilen wrote his two soundtracks Un Témoin Dans la Ville and Jazz sur scène with Kenny Clarke
. He wrote a soundtrack for Roger Vadim
's film Les Liaisons Dangeureuse
two years later, working with Thelonious Monk
. Wilen returned to composing for French films in the 1980s and 1990s. In the mid to late 1960s he became interested in rock, and recorded an album dedicated to Timothy Leary
. He also worked with punk rock
ers before returning to jazz in the 1990s. Wilen played with modern jazz musicians until his death in 1996. He died of cancer
in Paris at the age 59.
In 1987, French comic book artist
Jacques de Loustal
and author Philippe Paringaux paid homage to Wilen in their "bande dessinée"
Barney et la note bleue ("Barney and the blue note").
& the Jazz Messengers :
With Miles Davis
:
With John Lewis
:
With Bud Powell
:
With Martial Solal
:
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...
tenor
Tenor saxophone
The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor, with the alto, are the two most common types of saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B, and written as a transposing instrument in the treble...
and soprano saxophonist
Soprano saxophone
The soprano saxophone is a variety of the saxophone, a woodwind instrument, invented in 1840. The soprano is the third smallest member of the saxophone family, which consists of the soprillo, sopranino, soprano, alto, tenor, baritone, bass, contrabass and tubax.A transposing instrument pitched in...
and jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
composer.
Wilen was born in Nice
Nice
Nice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of more than 955,000 on an area of...
; his father was an American dentist turned inventor, and his mother was French. He began performing in clubs in Nice after being encouraged by Blaise Cendrars
Blaise Cendrars
Frédéric Louis Sauser , better known as Blaise Cendrars, was a Swiss novelist and poet naturalized French in 1916. He was a writer of considerable influence in the modernist movement.-Early years:...
who was a friend of his mother. His career was boosted in 1957 when he worked with Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
on the soundtrack Ascenseur pour l'Échafaud. In 1959, Wilen wrote his two soundtracks Un Témoin Dans la Ville and Jazz sur scène with Kenny Clarke
Kenny Clarke
Kenny Clarke , born Kenneth Spearman Clarke, nicknamed "Klook" and later known as Liaqat Ali Salaam, was a jazz drummer and an early innovator of the bebop style of drumming...
. He wrote a soundtrack for Roger Vadim
Roger Vadim
Roger Vadim was a French screenwriter, director, and producer as well as a journalist, author and actor, who launched Brigitte Bardot's career in the film And God Created Woman.-Early life:...
's film Les Liaisons Dangeureuse
Les liaisons dangereuses (film)
Les liaisons dangereuses is a 1959 French-language film, based on the 1782 novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos. It was directed by Roger Vadim, and stars Jeanne Moreau, Gerard Phillipe, and Annette Vadim...
two years later, working with Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Sphere Monk was an American jazz pianist and composer considered "one of the giants of American music". Monk had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including "Epistrophy", "'Round Midnight", "Blue Monk", "Straight, No Chaser"...
. Wilen returned to composing for French films in the 1980s and 1990s. In the mid to late 1960s he became interested in rock, and recorded an album dedicated to Timothy Leary
Timothy Leary
Timothy Francis Leary was an American psychologist and writer, known for his advocacy of psychedelic drugs. During a time when drugs like LSD and psilocybin were legal, Leary conducted experiments at Harvard University under the Harvard Psilocybin Project, resulting in the Concord Prison...
. He also worked with punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
ers before returning to jazz in the 1990s. Wilen played with modern jazz musicians until his death in 1996. He died of cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
in Paris at the age 59.
In 1987, French comic book artist
Comic Book Artist
Comic Book Artist was an American magazine founded by Jon B. Cooke devoted to anecdotal histories of American comic books, with emphasis on comics published since the 1960s...
Jacques de Loustal
Jacques de Loustal
Jacques de Loustal is a French comics artist who uses a painterly style reminiscent of David Hockney.-Biography:...
and author Philippe Paringaux paid homage to Wilen in their "bande dessinée"
Franco-Belgian comics
Franco-Belgian comics are comics that are created in Belgium and France. These countries have a long tradition in comics and comic books, where they are known as BDs, an abbreviation of bande dessinée in French and stripverhalen in Dutch...
Barney et la note bleue ("Barney and the blue note").
As leader
- 1957 : Tilt - Vogue Swing
- 1958 : Jazz sur Seine - Philips
- 1959 : Barney - RCA
- 1959 : Un témoin dans la ville - Fontana
- 1962 : Jazz Soundtrack From Mental Cruelty - Decca
- 1966 : Zodiac Suite - Vogue
- 1968 : Dear Prof. Leary - MPS
- 1968 : Auto Jazz: Tragic Destiny of Lorenzo Bandini - MPS
- 1972 : Moshi - Saravah
- 1975 : Free Jazz - Mouloudji
- 1986 : Flashback - Paris Jazz Corner
- 1987 : La note bleue - IDA
- 1987 : French Ballads - IDA
- 1989 : Wild Dogs of the Ruwenzori - IDA
- 1990 : Paris Moods - Alfa Jazz
- 1991 : Sanctuary - IDA
- 1991 : Modern nostalgie (Starbust Forever) - Alfa Jazz
- 1992 : Dream time - Deux
- 1992 : Aigre-douce - Alfa global
- 1993 : Essential Ballads - Alfa Jazz
- 1993 : Talisman - IDA
- 1993 : Inside nitty = Gritty - Venus
- 1994 : Barney Wilen Quartet, New York Romance - Venus
- 1994 : The Osaka concert - Trema
- 1995 : Passione - Venus
As sideman
With Art BlakeyArt Blakey
Arthur "Art" Blakey , known later as Abdullah Ibn Buhaina, was an American Grammy Award-winning jazz drummer and bandleader. He was a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community....
& the Jazz Messengers :
- 1959 : Les liaisons dangereuses - Fontana
- 1959 : Paris Jam SessionParis Jam SessionParis Jam Session is a live album by Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers with guest appearances by Bud Powell and Barney Wilen, recorded at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris on 18 December 1959...
- Fontana
With Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
:
- 1957 : Miles Davis And Barney Wilen QuartetAmsterdam ConcertAmsterdam Concert is a rare live Miles Davis recording from 1957.This album, one of the least-known recordings of Miles Davis, was recorded at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam on December 8, 1957, a couple of days after the recording of the movie soundtrack Ascenseur pour l'échafaud.On this concert,...
- Carlyne - 1958 : Ascenseur pour l'échafaud - Polygram/Fontana
With John Lewis
John Lewis (pianist)
John Aaron Lewis was an American jazz pianist and composer best known as the musical director of the Modern Jazz Quartet.- Early life:...
:
- 1956 : Afternoon in Paris - Atlantic
With Bud Powell
Bud Powell
Earl Rudolph "Bud" Powell was an American Jazz pianist. Powell has been described as one of "the two most significant pianists of the style of modern jazz that came to be known as bop", the other being his friend and contemporary Thelonious Monk...
:
- 1959 : Cookin' at Saint-Germain 57-59 - Mythic Sound
- 1961 : Pianology - Moon
With Martial Solal
Martial Solal
Martial Solal is a French jazz pianist and composer, who is probably most widely known for the music he wrote for Jean-Luc Godard's debut feature film À bout de souffle .-Biography:...
:
- 1958 : Martial Solal et son Grand Orchestre - Swing