Nicolas Vatomanga
Encyclopedia
Nicolas Vatomanga Andrianaivo Rakotovao, known as Nicolas Vatomanga is a Malagasy
saxophonist
, flutist, bandleader
and composer
. His music combines elements of jazz
, blues
, and traditional musics of Madagascar
, including: the hira gasy of the Centre, the beko
from the South, and the salegy
from the North of the Great Island.
He is also recognized as one of the heirs of the malagsy flute sodina
tradition and of its last great master : Rakoto Frah
(Philibert Rabezoza Rakoto).
Nicolas Vatomanga has played and/or recorded in Europe, Africa (Senegal and Madagascar), or in the United States with: Miriam Makeba
, Rakoto Frah, Paco Sery
, Eric Le Lann
, Regis Gizavo
, Solorazaf
, Lionel Loueke
, Mokhtar Samba, Tony Rabeson, Serge Rahoerson, Linley Marthe, Idrissa Diop, Hanitra Ranaivo, Silo Andrianandraina, and Jaojoby Eusèbe.
He was invited by Joe Zawinul
to play at his concert at the Parc Floral Paris 2002, although he could not honor the invitation.
Since 2004, he has lived and performed in Madagascar, where he created his own band
, the 'Vatomanga Band' who appeared for the first time in a quartet
form during the Madajazzcar Festival 2005, and has gradually enlarged to a septet
since 2010. In 2011, the band took the name of MadaJazz.
Precocious child, he composed on the piano from age eight, and played frequently in classical concerts (NCCM, CGM) since his ten. His mother, he claimed, had a great influence on his tastes and his passion for music: classical music, blues, gospel and traditional malagasy music (such as the hira gasy, the Kalon'ny Fahiny, Ny Antsaly, Rakotozafy and Rakoto Frah in particular), she learned to play valiha
(the Malagasy bamboo zither
) when he started on flute.
saxophonist and flutist] of Caribbean
origin, TK Blue (Talib Kibwe). This experience was a revelation for him. Following the concert, he learned on the flute, from ear and by heart, the theme and the solo of "Pinnacle of Joy" of the album Egyptian Oasis (1987) of the American jazzmen. He, therefore, decided to learn the saxophone and this new form of expression for him: the improvised music. His Mentor
, Seta Ramaroson, also a jazz saxophonist tought him the basics of jazz, especially : harmonization of improvisation
.
Also encouraged by Silo Andrianandraina (also a young Malagasy jazzman), his great friend of the second class in high school, Vatomanga listened and explored the world of jazz fundamentals, particularly through the works of "" Bird "Charlie Parker
, Miles Davis
, George Shearing
, Oscar Peterson
, Sonny Rollins
, Stan Getz
, Bill Evans
, McCoy Tyner
, Herbie Hancock
, Wayne Shorter
, Joe Zawinul
, and John Coltrane
. This last will be of a great influence on his playing. Also sensitive to his African roots, he listened to the South African jazz, including: the singer Miriam Makeba
, the trumpeter and singer Hugh Masekela
and pianist Bheki Mseleku
.
At age fifteen, he began practicing for the first time the saxophone in a band with "Solomiral", a jazz fusion band of Antananarivo, then the "Toty Band" –yet informal at that time - and a more traditional playing music group from Southern Madagascar: "Tsimihole". In 1992, he participated – at age seventeen - to his first Madajazzcar Festival, accompanied by an informal group created for the occasion.
Bassist Olver "Toty" Andriamampianina will be the second Vatomanga Mentor. Seta and Toty provided him constant encouragements to pursue a musical career. Throughout the years of his BSc diploma, he attended the “Jazz Club of Mahamasina”, founded by Sammy Andriamanoro, a jazz pianist and composer. Sammy became his Mentor and taught him one year the art of standards.
His BSc in pocket in 1993, Vatomanga enrolled in Mathematics at the University of Aix-Marseille III
(France) and successfully completed courses for two years, while pationately continuing his daily practice of the saxophone. In 1994 he passed the entrance examination at the “Conservatoire d'Aix-en-Provence” where he studied jazz for a year, alongside his mathematical studies. During this period, he met Alain "Belain" Rabeson - cousin of drummer Tony Rabeson.
Bassist, drummer and jazz teacher, Alain Rabeson invited him to play in his Bossa & Samba band and at the same time, he lavishes on numerous boards of both practical and theoretical. Accompanied on drums by "Belain", he succeeded in 1995 the entrance to Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional de Marseille – jazz section - where he studied for one year.
Always under the coaching of "Belain", he succeeded in 1996 the entrance to the American School of Modern Music of Paris
(appendix of Berklee College of Music
of Boston
, MA
) where he looped the course in three years instead of five, having skipped two grades. There, he deepened the art of composition
, of arrangement
, and conducting
. Out in the fifth year, he received a scholarship to pursue a final year at Berklee (Boston). He finally declinef the prize. It was at this school he met Lionel Loueke
, also a graduate of the American School. It was also at this period that he met the musicologist specializing in Madagascar: Victor Randrianary.
with whom he played for the first time in Duc des Lombards
in 1998. These exchanges with Tony Rabeson, his fifth mentor, round off his musical practice. During this same period, he often has occasion to make Jam Session
with Serge and Nivo Rahoerson in the restaurant's Jazz Club 'The Arbuci’ at St. Germain in the “Quartier Latin”. He also happened to play with bassist Sylvain Marc.
Following his musical studies, over a period of five years from 1999 and 2004, he pursued a sideman
career in various international world of jazz and world music.
In terms of world jazz, he met in Paris guitarist "Solorazaf" Solo Razafindrakoto
, then lead guitar
of Miriam Makeba
since 1986. Thus he accompanied the South African singer and attend his concert in the Olympia in 2000. He also worked with the Malagasy singer Hanitra, and accompanied her at the Jazz à Vannes 2000 Festival. He then became a sideman in the group Mossan of Mokhtar Samba with whom he performed at the Nice Jazz Festival
2001 and participated under the name "Nicolas Rakoto" in his album Dounia (released in 2005) along with Regis Gizavo.
In the field of world music, Vatomanga accompanied various international Malagasy and African leaders, such as Clement "Kilema" Randrianantoandro-with whom he recorded the album Ka Malisa (1999), Justin Vali, Eric Manana, Regis Gizavo and Rakoto Frah. Along with it, he participated in a series of recordings that will lead to the albums Chants et Dances en Imerina (2000), and Madagascar: Pays Merina (2001). This work will be the last album recordings of Rakoto Frah before his death in 2001. Vatomanga went, then, with the Senegalese singer Idrissa Diop during a tour in Dakar by whom he discovered the Senegal
and its music. He also appears in the album Fanamby (2001) of valiha player Germain "Rajery" Randrianarisoa. Finally, Vatomanga is, along with bassist Julio Rakotonanahary, one of the founding members of the group Wa Zimba with whom he recorded the album Mande Wazy (2003).
Open to all forms of artistic expression, he made friends in Paris with the renowned sculptor and composer Jonny "R'afa" Andriamanankoavy, with whom he recorded some of the compositions of the latter - the same way he became acquainted with the writer Michèle Rakotoson
with whom he also often collaborated.
During his numerous inland travels, Vatomanga has, so far, played and recorded with musicians and groups such as diverse as: Silo Andrianandraina (jazz & world jazz), Jaojoby Eusèbe (salegy
) that he had accompanied on the albumAza Arianao (2001), Ghomy Rahamefy (free jazz
), Solo Andrianasolo (jazz & world jazz), Fanja Andriamanantena (jazz & world jazz), Jackie Ralph (world jazz), "Hajazz" Haja Rasolomahatratra (world jazz), Fanaiky Rasolomahatratra (world jazz) he accompanied in the album Melo Gasy (2008) and Goma (2011), Hazolahy (Music South East), or the Social Fusion Group (world jazz) and Rajery (world).
Nicolas Vatomanga also participated, along with a dozen Malagasy jazzmen, in the recording of the album Malagasy Jazz Social Club: Mada In Blue (2008) -initiated by Boussat and Arly Rajaobelina - in which he presented two of his compositions.
The band also has a role of developer and / or promoter of young talents, now recognized by the Malagasy musical scene: one can cite the example of young jazz pianist Mahatozo Ravelonjaka, who joined the group after winning the First National Jazz Contest organized by Malagasy Jazz Radio RLI in 2005 at age 23. The same goes for young jazz guitarist Joel “Rabesl” Rabesolo, who also attended the group after winning the same competition in 2006.
The band is, finally, for all his young members, a place for progressive development of their own musical style, allowing them to deepen their compositions and testing them in a constant dialogue with the public.
In 2011, Vatomanga and his group, in collaboration with the writer Michèle Rakotoson, were actively involved in the creation of the "Slam Jazz Project ", a new art form which combines improvised poem (Slam
) with the improvised music (Jazz). The same year, the Vatomanga Septet took the new name of MadaJazz.
With Mokhtar Samba
With Julio Rakotonanahary
With Fanaiky Rasolomahatratra
With Fanja Andriamanantena
With Silo Andrianandraina
Opus unprecedented
Public Records
With Jaojoby Eusèbe
With Kilema
With Rajery
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
saxophonist
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
, flutist, bandleader
Bandleader
A bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....
and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
. His music combines elements of 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...
, blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
, and traditional musics of Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
, including: the hira gasy of the Centre, the beko
Beko
Beko is a domestic appliance and electronics brand of Arçelik A.Ş., owned by Koç Holding of Turkey.The company's products include washing machines, TV sets and laptop computers...
from the South, and the salegy
Salegy
Salegy is a popular music genre from Madagascar. This Sub-Saharan African folk music originated in the northwestern coastal areas of Madagascar, an island in the Indian Ocean near the southeastern coast of Africa. Salegy is the genre of Malagasy music that has gained the widest recognition and...
from the North of the Great Island.
He is also recognized as one of the heirs of the malagsy flute sodina
Sodina
A Sodina is a woodwind instrument commonly played in Malagasy music and a member of the aerophone family of instruments. Similar in structure and sound to a flute, the sodina is made out of bamboo, lightwood, plastic, or reed and varies in size depending upon the region it is being played...
tradition and of its last great master : Rakoto Frah
Rakoto Frah
Philibert Rabezaoza Rakoto "Frah" was a flutist and composer of traditional Malagasy music. He was born in 1932 in the region of Antananarivo in Madagascar. He was recognized as the greatest flute player sodina during his lifetime and was an ambassador for the music of the highlands of Madagascar....
(Philibert Rabezoza Rakoto).
Nicolas Vatomanga has played and/or recorded in Europe, Africa (Senegal and Madagascar), or in the United States with: Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba , nicknamed Mama Africa, was a Grammy Award winning South African singer and civil rights activist....
, Rakoto Frah, Paco Sery
Paco Sery
Paco Sery is a world music and jazz fusion drummer. He has played with Joe Zawinul and Eddy Louiss. He also has his own band, releasing his first solo album, Voyages, in 2000.-With Sixun:*2008 Palabre...
, Eric Le Lann
Éric Le Lann
Éric Le Lann is a French jazz trumpeter.He moved to Paris in 1977 where he had his professional debut and gained notice in 1980. He has worked with Aldo Romano, Henri Salvador, and others. He also did music for films including those of Bertrand Tavernier...
, Regis Gizavo
Régis Gizavo
Régis Gizavo is a Malagasy accordionist.He was born in Tuléar, Madagascar and began playing the accordion at a young age. In 1990 he won the Radio France Internationale "Prix découvertes"....
, Solorazaf
Solorazaf
Solo Razafindrakoto known as Solorazaf is a French-Malagasy guitarist born in Montpellier in 1956. His roots are both situated in France and in Madagascar...
, Lionel Loueke
Lionel Loueke
Lionel Loueke is a guitarist born in the west African country of Benin. He moved to Ivory Coast in 1990 to study at the National Institute of Art. He attended the American School of Modern Music in Paris, France from 1994-1998...
, Mokhtar Samba, Tony Rabeson, Serge Rahoerson, Linley Marthe, Idrissa Diop, Hanitra Ranaivo, Silo Andrianandraina, and Jaojoby Eusèbe.
He was invited by Joe Zawinul
Joe Zawinul
Josef Erich Zawinul was an Austrian-American jazz keyboardist and composer.First coming to prominence with saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, Zawinul went on to play with trumpeter Miles Davis, and to become one of the creators of jazz fusion, an innovative musical genre that combined jazz with...
to play at his concert at the Parc Floral Paris 2002, although he could not honor the invitation.
Since 2004, he has lived and performed in Madagascar, where he created his own band
Band
- Clothing, jewelry, and accessories :* Bands , two pieces of cloth fitted around the neck as part of formal clothing for clergy, academics and lawyers* Bandolier or bandoleer, an ammunition belt* Belt * Wedding ring or wedding band...
, the 'Vatomanga Band' who appeared for the first time in a quartet
Quartet
In music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
form during the Madajazzcar Festival 2005, and has gradually enlarged to a septet
Septet
A septet is a formation containing exactly seven members. It is commonly associated with musical groups, but can be applied to any situation where seven similar or related objects are considered a single unit, such as a seven-line stanza of poetry....
since 2010. In 2011, the band took the name of MadaJazz.
Early life and musical education in Madagascar
Nicolas Vatomanga started with a classical music education from age four at the National Center for Music education (CNEM) in Antananarivo, Madagascar. He has been tought by Mrs Alisera and Seta Ramaroson Andrianary (flutist, saxophonist and composer), both nationally known to be excellent teachers. Having chosen the flute as his first instrument, Vatomanga continued deepening of this instrument with the same master, Seta, at the Cercle Germano-Malagasy (CGM) of Antananarivo.Precocious child, he composed on the piano from age eight, and played frequently in classical concerts (NCCM, CGM) since his ten. His mother, he claimed, had a great influence on his tastes and his passion for music: classical music, blues, gospel and traditional malagasy music (such as the hira gasy, the Kalon'ny Fahiny, Ny Antsaly, Rakotozafy and Rakoto Frah in particular), she learned to play valiha
Valiha
The valiha is a tube zither from Madagascar made from a species of local bamboo. It is played by plucking the strings, which may be made of metal or the bamboo skin which is pried up in long strands and propped up by small bridges made of pieces of dried gourd...
(the Malagasy bamboo zither
Zither
The zither is a musical string instrument, most commonly found in Slovenia, Austria, Hungary citera, northwestern Croatia, the southern regions of Germany, alpine Europe and East Asian cultures, including China...
) when he started on flute.
First steps in Jazz
At age fourteen, at the invitation of Seta Ramaroson, Vatomanga attended a concert given by the AmericanUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
saxophonist and flutist] of Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
origin, TK Blue (Talib Kibwe). This experience was a revelation for him. Following the concert, he learned on the flute, from ear and by heart, the theme and the solo of "Pinnacle of Joy" of the album Egyptian Oasis (1987) of the American jazzmen. He, therefore, decided to learn the saxophone and this new form of expression for him: the improvised music. His Mentor
Mentor
In Greek mythology, Mentor was the son of Alcimus or Anchialus. In his old age Mentor was a friend of Odysseus who placed Mentor and Odysseus' foster-brother Eumaeus in charge of his son Telemachus, and of Odysseus' palace, when Odysseus left for the Trojan War.When Athena visited Telemachus she...
, Seta Ramaroson, also a jazz saxophonist tought him the basics of jazz, especially : harmonization of improvisation
Improvisation
Improvisation is the practice of acting, singing, talking and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of one's immediate environment and inner feelings. This can result in the invention of new thought patterns, new practices, new structures or symbols, and/or...
.
Also encouraged by Silo Andrianandraina (also a young Malagasy jazzman), his great friend of the second class in high school, Vatomanga listened and explored the world of jazz fundamentals, particularly through the works of "" Bird "Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
, 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,...
, George Shearing
George Shearing
Sir George Shearing, OBE was an Anglo-American jazz pianist who for many years led a popular jazz group that recorded for MGM Records and Capitol Records. The composer of over 300 titles, he had multiple albums on the Billboard charts during the 1950s, 1960s, 1980s and 1990s...
, Oscar Peterson
Oscar Peterson
Oscar Emmanuel Peterson was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. He was called the "Maharaja of the keyboard" by Duke Ellington, "O.P." by his friends. He released over 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, and received other numerous awards and honours over the course of his career...
, Sonny Rollins
Sonny Rollins
Theodore Walter "Sonny" Rollins is a Grammy-winning American jazz tenor saxophonist. Rollins is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. A number of his compositions, including "St...
, Stan Getz
Stan Getz
Stanley Getz was an American jazz saxophone player. Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, his prime influence being the wispy, mellow timbre of his idol, Lester Young. Coming to prominence in the late 1940s with Woody Herman's big band, Getz is described by critic Scott...
, Bill Evans
Bill Evans
William John Evans, known as Bill Evans was an American jazz pianist. His use of impressionist harmony, inventive interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, and trademark rhythmically independent, "singing" melodic lines influenced a generation of pianists including: Chick Corea, Herbie...
, McCoy Tyner
McCoy Tyner
McCoy Tyner is a jazz pianist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, known for his work with the John Coltrane Quartet and a long solo career.-Early life:...
, Herbie Hancock
Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
, Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter
Wayne Shorter is an American jazz saxophonist and composer.He is generally acknowledged to be jazz's greatest living composer, and many of his compositions have become standards...
, Joe Zawinul
Joe Zawinul
Josef Erich Zawinul was an Austrian-American jazz keyboardist and composer.First coming to prominence with saxophonist Cannonball Adderley, Zawinul went on to play with trumpeter Miles Davis, and to become one of the creators of jazz fusion, an innovative musical genre that combined jazz with...
, and John Coltrane
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...
. This last will be of a great influence on his playing. Also sensitive to his African roots, he listened to the South African jazz, including: the singer Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba , nicknamed Mama Africa, was a Grammy Award winning South African singer and civil rights activist....
, the trumpeter and singer Hugh Masekela
Hugh Masekela
Hugh Ramopolo Masekela is a South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, composer, and singer.-Early life:Masekela was born in Kwa-Guqa Township, Witbank, South Africa. He began singing and playing piano as a child...
and pianist Bheki Mseleku
Bheki Mseleku
Bhekumuzi Hyacinth Mseleku, generally known as Bheki Mseleku was a jazz musician from South Africa. He was a pianist, saxophonist, guitarist, composer and arranger who was entirely self taught....
.
At age fifteen, he began practicing for the first time the saxophone in a band with "Solomiral", a jazz fusion band of Antananarivo, then the "Toty Band" –yet informal at that time - and a more traditional playing music group from Southern Madagascar: "Tsimihole". In 1992, he participated – at age seventeen - to his first Madajazzcar Festival, accompanied by an informal group created for the occasion.
Bassist Olver "Toty" Andriamampianina will be the second Vatomanga Mentor. Seta and Toty provided him constant encouragements to pursue a musical career. Throughout the years of his BSc diploma, he attended the “Jazz Club of Mahamasina”, founded by Sammy Andriamanoro, a jazz pianist and composer. Sammy became his Mentor and taught him one year the art of standards.
His BSc in pocket in 1993, Vatomanga enrolled in Mathematics at the University of Aix-Marseille III
University of Aix-Marseille III
Paul Cézanne University is a public research university located in the heart of Provence , in both Aix-en-Provence and Marseille...
(France) and successfully completed courses for two years, while pationately continuing his daily practice of the saxophone. In 1994 he passed the entrance examination at the “Conservatoire d'Aix-en-Provence” where he studied jazz for a year, alongside his mathematical studies. During this period, he met Alain "Belain" Rabeson - cousin of drummer Tony Rabeson.
Bassist, drummer and jazz teacher, Alain Rabeson invited him to play in his Bossa & Samba band and at the same time, he lavishes on numerous boards of both practical and theoretical. Accompanied on drums by "Belain", he succeeded in 1995 the entrance to Conservatoire à Rayonnement Régional de Marseille – jazz section - where he studied for one year.
Always under the coaching of "Belain", he succeeded in 1996 the entrance to the American School of Modern Music of Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
(appendix of 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...
of 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...
, MA
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
) where he looped the course in three years instead of five, having skipped two grades. There, he deepened the art of composition
Musical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...
, of arrangement
Arrangement
The American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
, and conducting
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
. Out in the fifth year, he received a scholarship to pursue a final year at Berklee (Boston). He finally declinef the prize. It was at this school he met Lionel Loueke
Lionel Loueke
Lionel Loueke is a guitarist born in the west African country of Benin. He moved to Ivory Coast in 1990 to study at the National Institute of Art. He attended the American School of Modern Music in Paris, France from 1994-1998...
, also a graduate of the American School. It was also at this period that he met the musicologist specializing in Madagascar: Victor Randrianary.
Early career in Europe in Africa: Jazz and World Music (1999-2004)
Along with his musical studies in Paris, the young saxophonist is invited to play in the trio of drummer Tony Rabeson and the trumpeter Eric Le LannÉric Le Lann
Éric Le Lann is a French jazz trumpeter.He moved to Paris in 1977 where he had his professional debut and gained notice in 1980. He has worked with Aldo Romano, Henri Salvador, and others. He also did music for films including those of Bertrand Tavernier...
with whom he played for the first time in Duc des Lombards
Le Duc des Lombards
Le Duc des Lombards is one of the main jazz clubs in Paris, France. It was founded in 1984 and is settled in the rue des Lombards which hosts several other famous jazz clubs such as Le Baiser Salé and the Sunset/Sunside. The Jazz club is located on the corner of the Rue des Lombards and...
in 1998. These exchanges with Tony Rabeson, his fifth mentor, round off his musical practice. During this same period, he often has occasion to make Jam Session
Jam session
Jam sessions are often used by musicians to develop new material, find suitable arrangements, or simply as a social gathering and communal practice session. Jam sessions may be based upon existing songs or forms, may be loosely based on an agreed chord progression or chart suggested by one...
with Serge and Nivo Rahoerson in the restaurant's Jazz Club 'The Arbuci’ at St. Germain in the “Quartier Latin”. He also happened to play with bassist Sylvain Marc.
Following his musical studies, over a period of five years from 1999 and 2004, he pursued a sideman
Sideman
A sideman is a professional musician who is hired to perform or record with a group of which he or she is not a regular member. They often tour with solo acts as well as bands and jazz ensembles. Sidemen are generally required to be adaptable to many different styles of music, and so able to fit...
career in various international world of jazz and world music.
In terms of world jazz, he met in Paris guitarist "Solorazaf" Solo Razafindrakoto
Solorazaf
Solo Razafindrakoto known as Solorazaf is a French-Malagasy guitarist born in Montpellier in 1956. His roots are both situated in France and in Madagascar...
, then lead guitar
Lead guitar
Lead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
of Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba , nicknamed Mama Africa, was a Grammy Award winning South African singer and civil rights activist....
since 1986. Thus he accompanied the South African singer and attend his concert in the Olympia in 2000. He also worked with the Malagasy singer Hanitra, and accompanied her at the Jazz à Vannes 2000 Festival. He then became a sideman in the group Mossan of Mokhtar Samba with whom he performed at the Nice Jazz Festival
Nice Jazz Festival
The Nice Jazz Festival, held annually since 1948 in Nice, on the French Riviera, is "the first jazz festival of international significance." At the inaugural festival, Louis Armstrong and his All Stars were the headliners...
2001 and participated under the name "Nicolas Rakoto" in his album Dounia (released in 2005) along with Regis Gizavo.
In the field of world music, Vatomanga accompanied various international Malagasy and African leaders, such as Clement "Kilema" Randrianantoandro-with whom he recorded the album Ka Malisa (1999), Justin Vali, Eric Manana, Regis Gizavo and Rakoto Frah. Along with it, he participated in a series of recordings that will lead to the albums Chants et Dances en Imerina (2000), and Madagascar: Pays Merina (2001). This work will be the last album recordings of Rakoto Frah before his death in 2001. Vatomanga went, then, with the Senegalese singer Idrissa Diop during a tour in Dakar by whom he discovered the Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
and its music. He also appears in the album Fanamby (2001) of valiha player Germain "Rajery" Randrianarisoa. Finally, Vatomanga is, along with bassist Julio Rakotonanahary, one of the founding members of the group Wa Zimba with whom he recorded the album Mande Wazy (2003).
Open to all forms of artistic expression, he made friends in Paris with the renowned sculptor and composer Jonny "R'afa" Andriamanankoavy, with whom he recorded some of the compositions of the latter - the same way he became acquainted with the writer Michèle Rakotoson
Michèle Rakotoson
Michèle Rakotoson is a writer, journalist, and film maker from Madagascar. Her novels include Dadabé. Since 1983, she has lived mainly in France.- Bibliography :From the collection of the Library of Congress, Washington, DC:...
with whom he also often collaborated.
Back to the Malagasy roots (2004 –today)
In 2004, motivated by the desire to live in the heart of the musical atmosphere of Madagascar, Vatomanga decided to move to Antananarivo. Since then, he visited all the music of the Great Island, from North to South, playing in numerous local bands of all genres, from traditional music to the merger, even variety, but never without denying his origins : the improvised music.During his numerous inland travels, Vatomanga has, so far, played and recorded with musicians and groups such as diverse as: Silo Andrianandraina (jazz & world jazz), Jaojoby Eusèbe (salegy
Salegy
Salegy is a popular music genre from Madagascar. This Sub-Saharan African folk music originated in the northwestern coastal areas of Madagascar, an island in the Indian Ocean near the southeastern coast of Africa. Salegy is the genre of Malagasy music that has gained the widest recognition and...
) that he had accompanied on the albumAza Arianao (2001), Ghomy Rahamefy (free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
), Solo Andrianasolo (jazz & world jazz), Fanja Andriamanantena (jazz & world jazz), Jackie Ralph (world jazz), "Hajazz" Haja Rasolomahatratra (world jazz), Fanaiky Rasolomahatratra (world jazz) he accompanied in the album Melo Gasy (2008) and Goma (2011), Hazolahy (Music South East), or the Social Fusion Group (world jazz) and Rajery (world).
Nicolas Vatomanga also participated, along with a dozen Malagasy jazzmen, in the recording of the album Malagasy Jazz Social Club: Mada In Blue (2008) -initiated by Boussat and Arly Rajaobelina - in which he presented two of his compositions.
Vatomanga as bandleader
In 2005, Vatomanga created the "Vatomanga Band", with whom he appeared regularly in Jazz Clubs and, annually, at the Madajazzcar International Festival. Through his band, he has trained some very young Malagasy musicians to practice Jazz and modern music in general, advocating a completely open mind to all contemporary forms, while giving great importance to listening, writing and deepening of the traditional structures of the rich music of the Great Island.The band also has a role of developer and / or promoter of young talents, now recognized by the Malagasy musical scene: one can cite the example of young jazz pianist Mahatozo Ravelonjaka, who joined the group after winning the First National Jazz Contest organized by Malagasy Jazz Radio RLI in 2005 at age 23. The same goes for young jazz guitarist Joel “Rabesl” Rabesolo, who also attended the group after winning the same competition in 2006.
The band is, finally, for all his young members, a place for progressive development of their own musical style, allowing them to deepen their compositions and testing them in a constant dialogue with the public.
In 2011, Vatomanga and his group, in collaboration with the writer Michèle Rakotoson, were actively involved in the creation of the "Slam Jazz Project ", a new art form which combines improvised poem (Slam
SLAM
Slam or SLAM may refer to:In computer science:* Simultaneous localization and mapping, a technique used by robots and autonomous vehicles* SLAM project, a Microsoft Research project...
) with the improvised music (Jazz). The same year, the Vatomanga Septet took the new name of MadaJazz.
Members of the Vatomanga Band since 2005
- 2005 to 2007: "Vatomanga QuartetQuartetIn music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
" : Mahatozo Ravelonjaka (keyboard), Henintsoa Andriamasimanana (bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
), Miora Rabarisoa (drums) and Nicolas Vatomanga (soprano, alto, and tenor saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
; sodinaSodinaA Sodina is a woodwind instrument commonly played in Malagasy music and a member of the aerophone family of instruments. Similar in structure and sound to a flute, the sodina is made out of bamboo, lightwood, plastic, or reed and varies in size depending upon the region it is being played...
flute ). - 2008 to 2009: "Vatomanga QuintetQuintetA quintet is a group containing five members.It is commonly associated with musical groups, such as a string quintet, or a group of five singers, but can be applied to any situation where five similar or related objects are considered a single unit....
": Joel “Rabesl” Rabesolo (guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
), Mahatozo Ravelonjaka (keyboard), Miora Rabarisoa (drums), Henintsoa Andriamasimanana (bass), and Nicolas Vatomanga (soprano / alto / tenor sax, flute sodina) . - 2010: "Vatomanga SeptetSeptetA septet is a formation containing exactly seven members. It is commonly associated with musical groups, but can be applied to any situation where seven similar or related objects are considered a single unit, such as a seven-line stanza of poetry....
": Joel "Rabesl" Rabesolo (guitar), Mahatozo Ravelonjaka (keyboard), Miora Rabarisoa (drums), Henintsoa Andriamasimanana (bass), Ludovic (bass), Kim's (keyboard), Andriantiana "Nata" Andrianantenaina (trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
), and Nicolas Vatomanga (soprano / alto / tenor, flute sodina). - 2011: The Septet became "MadaJazz", with: Joël "Rabesl" Rabesolo (guitar), Miora Rabarisoa (drums), Mika "Kim's" Rajaonarivelo (bass), Ludovic "Dovs" Rakotondraina (keyboard), Andriantiana "Nata" Andrianantenaina (trumpet), Laurent Amouric (percussion), and Nicolas Vatomanga (soprano/alto/tenor sax, sodina flute) (featuring : Panayotis Dourantonis, congas, for the Slam Jazz Projekt)
Quotes
- "Music is a great journey during which you are in a constant discovery." (Interview on Jazz Radio RLI)
- "Jazz music in Madagascar is still perceived both hermetic and elitist: it is a misappropriation of the spirit of jazz itself." (Interview on nocomment)
Jazz
Collective album- 2008: Malagasy Jazz Social Club: In Mada Blue(CD) - Harmonia MundiHarmonia MundiHarmonia Mundi is an independent music record label founded in 1958 by Bernard Coutaz in Arles . The Latin phrase means "world harmony"....
- 2009: SocialFusion - Social Group Production
With Mokhtar Samba
- 2005: Dounia- O + Music
With Julio Rakotonanahary
- 2003: Mande Wazy- Tynda
With Fanaiky Rasolomahatratra
- 2007: MeloGasy - Fan Prod
- 2011: Goma- Fan Prod
With Fanja Andriamanantena
- 2009: No. Isika Miaraka Mo ^ ik Tsotra izao
With Silo Andrianandraina
- 2001: Rimorimo- tysa
Opus unprecedented
- 2000: Redalandy - Opus unprecedented
Public Records
- 2005: Vorompotsy(with Mahatozo Ravelonjaka) - Radio RLI
- 2008: Elatra - Radio RLI
- 2009: Maraindraina- Radio RLI
World Music
With Rakoto Frah- 2000: Songs and Dances in Imerina- Arion Music Label
- 2001: MadagascarMerina Country - Ocora Radio FranceRadio FranceRadio France is a French public service radio broadcaster.-Mission:Radio France's two principal missions are:* To create and expand the programming on all of their stations; and...
With Jaojoby Eusèbe
- 2001: Aza Arianao- Blue Label
With Kilema
- 1999: KaMalisa - Iris Music Label
With Rajery
- 2001: Fanamby- Blue Label - IndigoIndigoIndigo is a color named after the purple dye derived from the plant Indigofera tinctoria and related species. The color is placed on the electromagnetic spectrum between about 420 and 450 nm in wavelength, placing it between blue and violet...
Filmography
As a musician and / or interviewed- 2009: Malagasy Jazz Social Club: In Mada Blue (DVD) - Harmonia MundiHarmonia MundiHarmonia Mundi is an independent music record label founded in 1958 by Bernard Coutaz in Arles . The Latin phrase means "world harmony"....
- 2009: Madagascar: generation jazz (T. Rasoanaivo documentary film)
- 2010: Madajazzcar 2008 - Digital Development Communication
External links
- Official website
- Nicolas Vatomanga at Madajazzcar (Report)
- Radio Echos of Capricorn (Interview)
- Biography on nocomment
- "19th Madajazzcar: The Island of Jazz", in Jazz magazineJazz MagazineJazz Magazine is a French magazine dedicated to jazz. It was created in 1954 by Nicole and Eddie Barclay and Jacques Souplet. Frank Ténot - who had left Jazz Hot to join Jazz Magazine - and Daniel Filipacchi became directors of the magazine soon after its creation, becoming owners in 1956...
, number 599, January 2009, page 12