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Yann Tiersen

 
Artist: Yann Tiersen
Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Pop Artists

Similar Artists:

Musette, Ludovico Einaudi, Lhasa

Influenced By:

Fryderyk Chopin, Erik Satie, Michael Nyman, Philip Glass

Followers:

Detektivbyrån, Plamo
  • Active: '90s, 2000s
  • Genres: Soundtrack
  • Instrument: Piano, Arranger, Guitar
  • Representative Albums: "L' Absente," "La Valse des Monstres," "Le Phare"

Biography

With his whimsical, melancholy music, Yann Tiersen has become a sought-after composer, not only for his soundtrack work, but in his own right. Borrowing from French folk music, chanson, musette waltz and street music, as well as rock, avant-garde, and classical and minimalist influences, Tiersen's deceptively simple style has been likened to Chopin, Erik Satie, Philip Glass, and Michael Nyman. The Paris-based composer became popular outside his native country for his score to Jean-Pierre Jeunet's Amélie, but like most seemingly overnight successes, he had been working for years before the film's success brought him international acclaim. Born in Brest in Brittany, on June 23, 1970, Tiersen was raised in Rennes and made a name for himself as one of the star pupils at his local conservatory (despite middling academic grades). Tiersen studied violin and piano from the ages of six to 14, and eventually trained to be a conductor. However, Tiersen rebelled against his classical training and, inspired by the likes of Joy Division and the Stooges, played guitar with several local post-punk-influenced bands during his later teenage years. At the same time, Tiersen was also composing soundtracks for short films and accompaniment for plays. Several of these pieces ended up on his first album, Valse des Monstres, in 1995 and introduced his delicate but deeply emotional style, and which also featured intricate arrangements incorporating instruments as varied as toy piano, banjo, harpsichord, melodica, and carillon, as well as piano and guitar. Tiersen played all of these instruments both in the studio, and in concert, which gave his early, one-man shows a theatrical appeal that earned him a spot performing in 1996's Avignon Festival. However, Valse des Monstres and its follow-up, 1996's Rue Des Cascades, were largely ignored by the public and by critics. His third album, 1998's Phare, met a different fate; its single, "Monochrome," which was sung by French pop star Dominique A., was a radio hit and propelled the album, and Tiersen, to mainstream success in France. As Tiersen's acclaim grew, so did the scope of his records. That year's Black Sessions -- a live album of a radio performance -- featured collaborations with Dominique A. and the Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon, as well bands like Les Têtes Raides and the Married Monk, who also appeared on 1999's more rock-oriented album Tout Est Calme. Soon after, Tiersen was preparing his next album when he was contacted by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, who wanted Tiersen to score his next movie, Amélie. Jeunet had heard Tiersen's music while driving and had been so taken with it that he bought all of Tiersen's albums. Previously, the composer had contributed music to films such as Alice et Martin and La Vie Revee des Anges, but this was his most prominent film work yet. His Amelie score featured new and old compositions, and the film's success spun off to Tiersen's music; the soundtrack sold over 200,000 copies in his homeland. His next proper album, 2001's Absente, featured collaborations with Lisa Germano, as well as longtime contributors Hannon and Dominique A., and also benefited from Amélie's success, selling 100,000 copies in France. Throughout 2001 and 2002, Tiersen embarked on his most ambitious tours of France and the U.K. to date; this tour was chronicled in 2003's live album C'Était Ici. Later that year, Tiersens' score for Good Bye Lenin! arrived. ~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide
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Yann Tiersen

Portrait of Yann Tiersen.
Background information
Birth name Guillaume Yann Tiersen
Born 23 June 1970 (1970-06-23) (age 39)
Origin Brest, Brittany, France
Genres Minimalist, Avant-Garde
Occupations Musician, Songwriter
Instruments Piano, Violin, Accordion, Guitar, Toy piano, Voice and various others.
Years active 1995 - Present
Labels Virgin/EMI
Website Official website

Guillaume Yann Tiersen (born 23 June 1970) is a French musician and composer known internationally for composing the score to the Jean-Pierre Jeunet movie Amélie.[1][2] His music is recognized by its use of a large variety of instruments in relatively minimalist compositions, often with a touch of either European classical music or French folk music, using primarily the piano, accordion or violin together with instruments like the melodica, xylophone, toy piano, ondes martenot, harpsichord and typewriter. His musical style is reminiscent of Frédéric Chopin, Erik Satie, Philip Glass and Michael Nyman.

Contents

Biography

Tiersen was born in Brittany, France, in 1970 and received classical training at several musical academies, including those in Rennes, Nantes, and Boulogne.[3] In the early 1980s as a teenager he was influenced by the post-punk culture of bands like The Stooges and Joy Division.[4]

Before releasing scores under his own name, Tiersen recorded background music for a number of plays and short films, such as La Vie Rêvée des Anges (1998, Erick Zonca), Alice et Martin (1998, André Téchiné), Qui Plume la Lune? (Christine Carrière, 1999).

He rose to domestic fame upon the release of his third album, Le Phare, but remained relatively unknown outside France until the release of his score for Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain in 2001, which was a mixture of both new and previously released material.

Tiersen favors the piano, accordion, and violin, but is also known for his experimentation and use of obscure and found instruments like the ondes martenot and the typewriter.

Yann Tiersen's list of collaborators continues to grow album after album (see discography below for details). While composing his fifth album, L'absente, Tiersen lent his musical talent to Françoiz Breut and Les Têtes Raides for their own albums. His 2005 album, Les Retrouvailles, featured vocals from Stuart Staples of Tindersticks, Jane Birkin, and Elizabeth Fraser, formerly of Cocteau Twins. Tiersen also played piano on Staples' solo album, Lucky Dog Recordings 03-04. In 2004 he also released a collaborative CD with American singer-songwriter Shannon Wright.

His live performances vary greatly. Sometimes he is accompanied by an orchestra and many guest collaborators, like Dominique A. Others, he offers the more frequent minimalistic sessions, usually accompanied only by a drummer/bassist and a guitarist, with Tiersen switching seamlessly between piano, accordion, and violin for his lighter songs, and electric guitar for his louder pieces (where his Avant-Garde Music meet some rock sonorities).

Discography

Studio albums

Soundtracks

Live albums

Singles

  • 3 titres inédits au profit de la FIDH (part of the On Aime, On Aide collection, composed to raise funds for the FIDH, sold exclusively at Fnac) (2003)

Collaborations

Contributions

  • One Trip, One Noise (by Noir Désir) (1997)
    • "A ton étoile" (arrangements, strings, vibraphone, bell, mandolin, electric guitar and bass)
  • Vingt à Trente Mille Jours (by Françoiz Breut) (2000)
    • "Porsmouth" (vibraphone), "Vingt à trente mille jours" (vibraphone), "L'heure bleue" (violin), "Le verre pilé" (vibraphone); arrangements
  • Gratte-poil (by Têtes Raides) (2001)
    • "Cabaret des nues" (violin)
  • The Married Monk (by The Married Monk) (2001)
    • "Roma Amor" (strings, vibraphone), "Holidays" (strings) and "Cyro's Request" (vibraphone)
  • Les oiseaux de passage (tribute to Georges Brassens)
    • cover of "Le parapluie" with Natacha Régnier
  • Absent Friends (by The Divine Comedy) (2004)
    • "Sticks & Stones" (accordion); "Anthem for Bored Youth" (accordion), a track appearing only on the French limited edition
  • The Endless Rise of the Sun (by Smooth) (2006)
    • "The Endless Rise of the Sun" (keyboards)
  • Raides à la ville (by Katel) (2006)
    • "La Vielle" (violin)
  • 13m² (by David Delabrosse) (2006)
    • production and arrangements
  • Solitude Nomade (by Christine Ott) (2009)
    • "Pensées sauvages" (violin)
  • Finistérien (by Miossec) (2009)
    • music and arrangements

DVD

  • La Traversée (2005) (by Aurélie du Boys, about the recording and composition of Les Retrouvailles in Ouessant)
  • On Tour (2006) (by Aurélie du Boys, about the tour)

References

  1. ^ Article in CafeBabel (Deutsch)
  2. ^ Yann Tiersen interview
  3. ^ Artist biography at Everything2.com
  4. ^ Michael Hubbard (24 February, 2002). "Composer Tiersen serenades Amelie". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1839313.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-05. 

External links


This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 
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Artist. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
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