Janko Nilović (born 20 May 1941)
is a pianist,
arranger
In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orchestra ...
and composer of
Montenegrin and Greek descent who was born in Turkey and has lived in France since 1960. He has published many works, most of them on
library label
Production music (also known as stock music or library music) is recorded music that can be music licensing, licensed to customers for use in film, television, radio and other media. Often, the music is produced and owned by production music libra ...
s not available for sale to the public. His
oeuvre
Oeuvre(s) or Œuvre(s) may refer to:
* A work of art; or, more commonly, the body of work of a creator
Books
* ''L'Œuvre'', a novel by Émile Zola
* ''Œuvres'', a work by Emil Cioran
* ''Œuvres'', a work by Auguste Brizeux
* ''Oeuvres'', a wor ...
stretches from classical, jazz, and
funk to pop,
psychedelia
Psychedelia refers to the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic music and style of dress during that era. This was primarily generated by people who used psychedelic dr ...
, and easy listening.
Biography
Born in
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
to a Montenegrin father and Greek mother, he studied piano, oboe and percussion as a child, and set up his own
rock and roll
Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...
band in the late 1950s. He moved to Paris in 1960, and played piano in nightclubs before joining a trio of Greek musicians, Les Doussis, with whom he played bass, guitar and keyboards. The group recorded for
Barclay Records
Barclay is a French record company and label founded by Eddie Barclay in 1953.
Eddie Barclay was a bandleader, pianist, producer, and nightclub owner. With his wife, Nicole, who was the vocalist in his band, he started Barclay. The catalogue in ...
, and Nilović then began to find work as an arranger and orchestrator for
pop music
Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describ ...
ians and TV shows, as well as continuing to perform in
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...
clubs.
In 1967, he joined with French-based singer Davy Jones (unrelated to
the Monkees' singer) to set up Ju Ju Records, writing and producing a series of singles by the singer. His arrangements brought him to the attention of André Farry, the founder of
library music label Éditions Montparnasse 2000 (MP 2000), who signed him as a
producer
Producer or producers may refer to:
Occupations
*Producer (agriculture), a farm operator
*A stakeholder of economic production
*Film producer, supervises the making of films
**Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...
. Nilović started to release a series of
LPs
LPS may refer to:
Science and medicine
* Lipopolysaccharide (Endotoxin)
* Levator palpebrae superioris muscle
Schools
* Leighton Park School in Reading, England
* Lexington Public Schools, a school district in Massachusetts, USA
* Lincoln P ...
for the label, including ''Psyc Impressions'', a commercially successful collaboration with Dave Sucky (real name Louis Delacour), described as "a heady stew of funky drums, gnarly
fuzz guitar, and
big band
A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s ...
horn arrangements."
[
At the same time as producing a succession of albums on MP 2000 under the collective title of ''Impressions'', widely used in TV documentaries, he worked as organist in the Paris production of '' Hair'', using cast members on some of his recordings. He also released records on other labels, using pseudonyms including Andy Loore and Johnny Montevideo, and in the mid-1970s started working in Belgium where he produced the album ''Funky Tramway'', one of his most successful recordings.][ He arranged the songs of Michel Jonasz and Gérard Lenorman.]
After leaving MP 2000 in the late 1970s, Nilović set up a music publishing
A music publisher is a type of publisher that specializes in distributing music. Music publishers originally published sheet music. When copyright became legally protected, music publishers started to play a role in the management of the intellect ...
company and focused on composing music. His reputation and influence grew, and his music began to be sampled by hip-hop and other musicians. The producer Dr. Dre sampled much of Nilović's piece "Underground Session" for his track "Loose Cannons" from the album '' Compton''. Producer No I.D. sampled Nilović's song "In the Space", for Jay-Z's " D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)", on the album '' The Blueprint 3''; A year prior to this Danny!
Daniel Keith Swain (born August 18, 1983), known mononymously as Danny!, is an American rapper, record producer, singer, and composer.
Swain rose to prominence after his debut performance on ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'', where he premiered h ...
, who Jay Z would later endorse, sampled "Tapatapa" for " The Groove". In 2010 Nilovic was nominated for a Grammy
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
award for the rap song "D.O.A.(Death of Auto-Tune)", along with Shawn Carter, Ernest Wilson, Gary DeCarlo, Dale Frashuer, Paul Leka, and Dave Sucky.
As of 2019, Nilović continues to work in Paris.[
]
Discography
* 1968 ''Maya Casabianca'' (Festival 66)
* 1968 ''Hommage a Monsieur Charlie Chaplin'' (Trema)
* 1968 ''Janko Nilović & Herve Roy'' (Telemusic)
* 1968 ''Janko Nilović, Raymond Guiot & Hervé Roy'' (Telemusic)
* 1969 ''Psyc Impressions'' (MP 2000)
* 1969 ''International Circus Band - Rande Parade de Cirque'' (Neuilly)
* 1969 ''Los Patos - Voodoo Ju Ju Obsession'' (Festival)
* 1971 ''Vocal Impressions'' (MP 2000)
* 1971 ''Janko Nilović & Pascal Auriat - Power'' (Briand)
* 1972 ''Pop Impressions'' (MP 2000)
* 1973 ''Supra Pop Impressions'' (MP 2000)
* 1973 ''Jazz Impressions 1'' (MP 2000)
* 1973 ''Jazz Impressions 2'' (MP 2000)
* 1974 ''Chorus'' (MP 2000)
* 1974 ''Rythmes Contemporains'' (MP 2000)
* 1974 ''Jouets Musicaux'' (MP 2000)
* 1974 ''Classical Phases'' (MP 2000)
* 1975 ''Soul Impressions'' (MP 2000)
* 1975 ''Percussions Dans L'espace'' (MSP 2000)
* 1975 ''Funky Tramway'' (Vogue)
* 1976 ''Un Couple Dans La Ville'' (MSP 2000)
* 1976 ''Super America'' (MSP 2000)
* 1976 ''Pop Shopin'' (MSP 2000)
* 1976 ''Star Cat Local Band directed by Janko Nilović'' (Cat Music)
* 1977 ''Concerto Pour Un Fou '' (MP 2000)
* 1977 ''L'ensemble de Trombones de Paris performs Suite Balkanique & Double Concerto by Janko Nilović'' (Crystal)
* 1978 ''Un Homme Dans L'Univers'' (MP 2000)
* 1979 ''Histoires Sans Paroles'' (MP 2000)
* 1979 ''Un Piano Dans L'Ouest'' (MP 2000)
* 1979 ''Balkans Impression'' (Selection)
* 1986 ''Musique Pour Films Muets'' (Crea Sound)
* 1990 ''Néobaroque Luxuriant '' (FEF)
* 1990 ''Amoureux De Paris'' (1990)
* 1991 ''Extra Strong'' (FEF)
* 2016 ''Supra Hip Hop Impressions'' (Broc)
* 2020 ''Maze of sounds'' (as Janko Nilovic & The Soul Surfers) (Broc)
References
External links
Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nilovic, Janko
1941 births
21st-century French conductors (music)
21st-century French male musicians
21st-century pianists
French composers
French jazz pianists
French male composers
French male conductors (music)
French male pianists
Living people
French male jazz musicians
Montenegrin composers
Montenegrin expatriates in France
Montenegrin pianists
Naturalized citizens of France