Sylvie Courvoisier

Sylvie Courvoisier
Courvoisier at the Moers Festival 2017
Background information
Birth name	(1968-11-30) November 30, 1968
Origin	Lausanne, Switzerland
Occupation(s)	Composer, musician
Instrument	Piano
Labels	Enja, Intakt, Tzadik, ECM
Website	sylviecourvoisier.com

Sylvie Courvoisier (born 30 November 1968) is a composer, pianist and improviser.

Career

Courvoisier, originally from Lausanne, Switzerland, has lived in Brooklyn, New York for 26 years. She has led several groups over the years, recorded 10 albums as a band leader, and appeared in about 50 albums (25 Cds co-leader and 25 cds as a side person) for different labels, notably ECM, Tzadik and Intakt Records.

Courvoisier has performed and recorded with John Zorn, Yusef Lateef, Mark Feldman, Erik Friedlander, Joey Baron, Ellery Eskelin, Susie Ibarra, Tim Berne, Wadada Leo Smith and the flamenco dancer Israel Galvan among others.

Currently, she is the leader of her own Trio with Kenny Wollesen and Drew Gress ; co-leads the Miller's Tale QUARTET with Evan Parker, Ikue Mori and Mark Feldman; the VWCR Quartet with Ken Vandermark, Nate Wooley and Tom Rainey and Lockdown Trio with Ned Rothenberg and Julian Sartorius. Since 1997, she performs regularly in Solo and in Duo with Mark Feldman. Since 2017, she plays in duo with Mary Halvorson. Since 2010, she has been a pianist and composer for Flamenco dancer Israel Galvan's project "La Curva". In 2018, Galvan and Courvoisier premiered "Cast-a- Net", a new project with Evan Parker, Mark Feldman, and Ikue Mori. In 2020, they premiered "La Consagracion de la primavera" with Cory Smythe, performing the Stravinky's Rite of Spring and Courvoisier's Spectro for two pianos and dance.

Courvoisier received numerous awards including the United States Artist Fellow (2020); a Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grants to Artist award (2018).; a SwissMusic Prize (2018); Switzerland SUISA’s Jazz Prize (2017); and Switzerland's Grand Prix de la Fondation Vaudoise de la Culture (2010).

Selected discography

As leader

Year recorded	Title	Label	Notes
1994	Sauvagerie Courtoise	Unit Records	Quintet, with Guglielmo Pagnozzi (sax), Lauro Rossi (trombone), Pascal Portner (drums), Banz Oester (bass)
1996	Ocre	Enja	Quintet, with Michel Godard (tuba), Pierre Charial (barrel organ), Mark Nauseef (drums), Tony Overwater (bass)
2000	Y2K	Enja	Trio, with Michel Godard (tuba), Pierre Charial (barrel organ)
2003	Abaton	ECM -Double album -	Trio, with Mark Feldman (violin), Erik Friedlander (cello)
2007	Signs and Epigrams	Tzadik	Solo piano
2008	Lonelyville	Intakt	Quintet, with Ikue Mori (electronics), Mark Feldman (violin), Vincent Courtois (cello), Gerald Cleaver (drums)
2014	Double Windsor	Tzadik	Trio, with Drew Gress (bass), Kenny Wollesen (drums)
2018	D'Agala	Intakt	Trio, with Drew Gress (bass), Kenny Wollesen (drums)
2020	Free Hoops	Intakt	Trio, with Drew Gress (bass), Kenny Wollesen (drums)

As co-leader

With Mark Feldman

• Music for Violin and Piano with Mark Feldman (Avant, 1999)
• To Fly to Steal – Sylvie Courvoisier-Mark Feldman Quartet with Thomas Morgan and Gerry Hemingway (Intakt 2010)
• Oblivia with Mark Feldman (Tzadik, 2010)
• Hôtel du Nord – Sylvie Courvoisier–Mark Feldman Quartet with Thomas Morgan and Gerry Hemingway (Intakt, 2011)
• Live at Theatre Vidy–Lausanne – Sylvie Courvoisier–Mark Feldman Duo (Intakt, 2013)
• Birdies for Lulu–Sylvie Courvoisier–Mark Feldman Quartet with Scott Colley and Billy Mintz (Intakt, 2014)
• Miller's Tale–Sylvie Courvoisier–Mark Feldman - Evan Parker- Ikue Mori (Intakt, 2016)
• Time Gone Out – Sylvie Courvoisier–Mark Feldman Duo (Intakt, 2019)

With Mephista (Courvoisier, Ikue Mori and Susie Ibarra)

• Black Narcissus (Tzadik, 2002)
• Entomological Reflections (Tzadik, 2004)

With others

• Birds of a feather with Mark Nauseef (Unit Records, 1997)
• Lavin with Lucas Niggli (Intakt, 1999)
• Deux Pianos with Jacques Demierre (Intakt, 2000)
• Passaggio with Joelle Leandre, Susie Ibarra (Intakt, 2002)
• Alien Huddle with Ikue Mori, Lotte Anker (Intakt, 2008)
• Every So Often with Ellery Eskelin (Prime Source, 2010)
• As Soon as Possible with Courtois, Eskelin (CAM Jazz, 2010)
• Either Or And with Evan Parker (Relative Pitch Records, 2014)
• Salt Task with Chris Corsano, Nate Wooley (Relative Pitch, 2016)
• In Cahoots with Mark Feldman, Ned Rothenberg (Clean Feed, 2016)
• Crop Circles with Mary Halvorson (Relative Pitch, 2017)
• Lockdown with Ned Rothenberg, Julian Sartorius (Clean Feed, 2021)

As sidewoman

With John Zorn

• Cobra: John Zorn's Game Pieces Volume 2 (Tzadik, 2002)
• Masada Recital (Tzadik, 2004)
• Malphas: Book of Angels Volume 3 (Tzadik, 2006)
• Femina (Tzadik, 2009)
• Dictée/Liber Novus (Tzadik, 2010)

With Erik Friedlander

• 50 Miniatures for Improvising Quintet (Skipstone, 2010)
• Claws and Wings (Skipstone, 2013)

With Herb Robertson

• Real Aberration (Clean Feed, 2005)
• Elaboration (Clean Feed, 2007)

With Nate Wooley

• Nate Wooley Battle Piece (Relative Pitch Records, 2015)

Nate Wooley ( trumpet), Ingrid Laubrock ( sax), Sylvie Courvoisier ( piano), Matt Moran ( vibraphone)

• Nate Wooley Battle Piece II (Relative Pitch, 2017)

External links

• Sylvie Courvoisier at AllMusic Sylvie Courvoisier on Bandcamp Sylvie Courvoisier discography at Discogs Sylvie Courvoisier discography at MusicBrainz
• Official web site
• List of compositions

Literature

• Rosset, Dominique: Au carrefour des mondes. La compositrice et pianiste lausannoise Sylvie Courvoisier. Zurich 2005.