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Heralded as
“the next accordion star,” Julien Labro has established himself as one of the
foremost accordion and bandoneón players in both the classical and jazz genres.
Deemed to be “a triple threat: brilliant technician, poetic melodist and
cunning arranger,” his artistry, virtuosity, and creativity as a musician,
composer and arranger have earned him international acclaim and continue to
astonish audiences worldwide.
French-born
Labro was in?uenced early on by traditional folk music and the melodic, lyrical
quality of the French chanson. Upon discovering the music
of jazz legends like Charlie Parker and Miles Davis, he quickly became inspired
by the originality, freedom, creativity, and the endless possibilities in their
musical language.After
graduating from the Marseille Conservatory of Music, Labro began winning
international awards, taking ?rst prize in the Coupe Mondiale in 1996 and the
Castel?dardo Competitions in 1997.
After sweeping ?rst place in the Marcel
Azzola, Jo Privat and Medard Ferrero competitions in 1995 and 1998,
respectively, Labro moved to the United States, where he earned graduate degrees
in Classical Music, Jazz Studies and Composition. During this time, he was
exposed to and embraced other genres of music, ranging from pop and hip-hop to
electronic/techno and rap, as well as Latin, Indian, Middle Eastern, and other
types of world music. Labro draws from both his diverse academic background and
eclectic musical influences in his professional life as a performer, arranger,
and composer. His passion for promoting the understanding and love of music has
well been recognized through his master classes at renowned institutions such
as the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the Cleveland Institute of Music.
As a musician
and artist, Labro is constantly evolving. In 2015, he performed and debuted his
first concerto, Apricity, with the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra.
Additionally, Labro curated an all-accordion concert for the prestigious
University Musical Society (UMS) in an event entitled “The Big Squeeze: An
Accordion Summit” at Hill Auditorium. Labro, once again, reunited some of the
instruments’ finest players to display the versatility of the accordion and its
various cousins.
Piazzolla, a major in?uence and the reason Labro picked up the
bandoneón, is also the title of his album with classical guitarist and
Grammy-award winner Jason Vieaux and A Far Cry chamber orchestra. Other
releases include Grammy-award winning vocalist Cassandra Wilson’s Another
Country and critically acclaimed Hot Club of Detroit’s Junction,
which features many of Labro’s original compositions, revealing his wide
understanding and mastery of different genres, innovative approach as well as
his broad musical inspirations.
On a creative
level, Labro has been enlisted as an arranger for several professional
ensembles, including Ensemble Vivant of Toronto, A Far Cry, Spektral Quartet,
and Curtis On Tour from the Curtis Institute of Music Faculty of Philadelphia.
Labro’s musical
journey has taken him around the world. His past performances include jazz
venues such as Dizzy’s, Birdland, SFJAZZ, Blue Note, Yoshi's, The Green Mill,
and Sculler's, and festivals such as Jazz Aspen Snowmass, Detroit Jazz
Festival, Jazz Salt Lake City, Fontana Chamber Arts Summer Festival, Soave
Guitar Festival (IT), Quebec City Summer Festival (CA), Inchad International
Cultural Festival in Constantine (AL), Byblos International Music Festival
(LB), Beiteddine Art Festival (LB), Al-Qurain Culture Festival (Kuwait), and
many more.
He has been a
guest artist with numerous symphonies and chamber ensembles such as the Detroit
Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Pops Orchestra, A Far Cry, the Lebanese
Philharmonic Orchestra, the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra, the Cape Cod
Symphony, the Michigan Pops Orchestra, the Linden String Quartet, the Prairie
Ensemble, the Spektral Quartet and many more.
In the past, he
has performed and/or collaborated with groups and artists such as Brazilian
pianist João Donato, Argentinean Grammy winning composer and pianist Fernando
Otero, vocalist Cassandra Wilson, clarinetist Anat Cohen, Lebanese oud master
Marcel Khalife, saxophonists Miguel Zenón, James Carter, Chris Cheek,
Jon Irabagon and Victor Goines, composers Du Yun and Avner Dorman, harmonica
extraordinaire Howard Levy, percussionist Jamey Haddad, bandoneónist Daniel
Binelli, and guitarists Howard Alden, Larry Coryell, Frank Vignola, Tommy
Emmanuel, and John and Bucky Pizzarelli.
In 2012, Labro
embarked on an exciting long-standing collaboration with Spektral Quartet, with
whom he performed at NYC’s Subculture in 2014, the International Latino
Festival in Chicago, and Wheaton College, just to name a few. Their work has
drawn increasing attention and was featured in a 2015 Chamber Music
America article entitled “Art of Opportunity” by Paul Brady, who
described Labro as an “A-list star” with “deep jazz cred.” Their 2014
album From This Point Forward, which was included in
the Chicago Tribune’s list of ten new significant classical album releases, is
a genre bending collection of compositions from South America. In these
arrangements, Labro delicately melds different genres, styles, and sounds with
intricate craftsmanship that not only preserves the original essence of the
pieces but also brings in fresh new twists and perspectives that introduce a
new understanding and appreciation of the music for the modern day audience.
Alto sax great and McArthur Fellow Miguel Zenón joined on a couple tracks.
This past
season was a busy one for Labro. He was invited as an artist in residence for
the Princeton University Concerts series, where he also premiered his new
project, the Julien Labro Quartet. Following a “Jazz at Lincoln Center” tour
throughout Mexico with Grammy nominated trumpet player, Diego Urcola, he
performed at the Riverside Fine Arts series with the Spektral Quartet in
Jacksonville, FL and played a concert with Frank Vignola for the Vail Jazz
Winter Series in Colorado. In the Spring, Labro reunited with A Far Cry for a
performance of Russian Avant-Garde composer Sofia Gubaidulina’s Fachwerk at
the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, MA and participated in
celebrating the inaugural season of Hope College’s new performing arts center
where he played music by Dutch composer Theo Loevendie. After a show in Dubai,
UAE, Labro will be returning to Lebanon this summer for performances at the
Batroun Festival in Lebanon, performing in the Lincoln Center’s Midsummer Night
Swing Festival, traveling to Colorado for the Crested Butte Music Festival and
expanding upon the Julien Labro Quartet with a tour through the Midwest. Labro
will be closing his Summer schedule with concerts in South Korea at the Daejeon
Chamber Music Festival and several other cities.
The new season
will open with a trip to Jordan for the Jordan Citadel Festival in Amman,
followed by several orchestral engagements throughout the United Stated,
including a performance with the Arkansas Symphony and Jason Vieaux as part of
the ACANSA Arts Festival. Labro and Vieaux’s collaboration will also result in
the release of a new album entitled Infusion, which will
include new arrangement of music by Brouwer, Gnattali, and Metheny amongst
others. On the jazz side, Labro is also working on a new project with
saxophonist Jon Irabagon, and preparing for a second tour with trumpet player
Diego Urcola, while continuing to perform with the Julien Labro Quartet and Hot
Club of Detroit. In his free time, Labro is working on composing a new
bandoneón concerto that will be a sequel to his accordion concerto Apricity.
Artist's Website: julienlabro.com/