Céline Bonacina (born 23 July 1975 in Belfort, France) is a French saxophonist and composer. She plays soprano, alto and baritone saxophone.

Biography

Bonacina started learning music at the age of eight. She got classical saxophone lessons at various conservatories in Belfort, Besançon and

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. Between 1996 and 1998, Bonacina played baritone saxophone in various jazz big bands in Paris. She then moved to

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...

, for seven years to teach saxophone at the ''Conservatoire National de Région'' During this time, she participated at numerous festivals in the Indien Oceans region. She was musically influenced of the inclusion of the living rhythms there, and this is reflected in her later compositions. Returning to Paris, her debut album ''Vue d'en Haut'' was released in 2005. Bonacina has collaborated with musicians such as the French pianist

Laurent de Wilde Laurent de Wilde (born in Washington, D.C. in 1960) is a French jazz pianist, composer, and writer. Biography Born in Washington, D.C., and raised in France from 1964, he joined the École Normale Supérieure in 1981, philosophy section. In 19 ...

, Cuban pianist

Omar Sosa Omar Sosa (born April 10, 1965) is a jazz pianist from Cuba. Biography A native of Camagüey, Cuba, Sosa studied percussion at the Escuela Nacional de Musica and Instituto Superior de Arte. In the 1980s he started the band Tributo, recording alb ...

, vibraphonist Mike Mainieri, saxophonist Andy Sheppard and guitarists Yannick Robert and Nguyên Lê. In addition, and she temporarily supplemented the ''Funk Unit'' of the Swedish trombonist Nils Landgren. Her album ''Way of Life'', which is based almost exclusively on her own compositions, was recorded with a trio comprising the French Nicolas Garnier (bass guitar) and the Malagasy Hary Ratsimbazafy (drums and percussion) and the guitarist Nguyên Lê as a guest musician. In November 2010 she took part with her trio at the JazzFest Berlin. The music of this trio has been largely played all over Europe with special guest Romain Labaye on bass. In 2013, after the release of ''Open Heart'', she created a sextet to play the music of this album, involving Leila Martial on vocals, Illya Amar on vibes & electronics, Romain Labaye on bass and vocals, Nicolas Leroy on percussion and Hary Ratsimbazafy on drums. The sextet performed in the two major jazz festivals in France: Jazz à Vienne and Jazz in Marciac, but also Paris Jazz Festival, London Jazz Festival as well as many venues in France and Europe. Bonacina has won a number of saxophonist prizes in classical and jazz, such as the ''Defense Concours national jazz festival ''and the ''Festival Jazz - La Ciotat''.

Discography (in selection)

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

: ''Vue d’en Haut'' (Self Release) *

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

: ''Way of Life'' ( ACT), with Céline Bonacina Trio, feat Nguyên Lê *

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

: ''The ACT Jubilee Concert'' (ACT), with Nils Landgren,

Michael Wollny Michael Wollny (born 25 May 1978) is a German jazz pianist and a professor at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Leipzig. He has played with international musicians including Joachim Kühn, Tamar Halperin, Marius Neset, Andreas Schaerer, Ém ...

, Leszek Możdżer, Nguyên Lê,

Lars Danielsson Lars Danielsson (born 5 September 1958) is a Swedish jazz bassist, composer, and record producer. Biography Danielsson was born in Smålandsstenar, and was educated at the Conservatory of music, music conservatory in Gothenburg. He plays doub ...

, Wolfgang Haffner,

Cæcilie Norby Cæcilie Norby (born 9 September 1964) is a Danish jazz and rock singer. She was born in Frederiksberg, Denmark, into a musical family. Her father, Erik Norby, is classical composer and her mother, Solveig Lumholt, is an opera singer. She was a ...

, and Verneri Pohjola *

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

: ''Open Heart'' (ACT), with Céline Bonacina Trio & guests *

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

: ''Crystal Rain'' (Cristal Records), with Céline Bonacina Crystal Quartet

References

External links

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Céline Bonacina
bei MySpace
Céline Bonacina
bei jazz thing *

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bonacina, Celine 1975 births French jazz saxophonists Women jazz saxophonists French women composers French jazz composers Living people 21st-century saxophonists 21st-century French women musicians ACT Music artists