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Barney Wilen

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Barney Wilen, in full Bernard Jean Wilen, was a French tenor and soprano saxophonist and composer, born in 1937 in Nice. His father was an American dentist turned inventor, his mother French. During the war the family moved to the United States, where Wilen learned to play the saxophone. Back in France he began performing in clubs in Nice, encouraged by Blaise Cendrars, a friend of his mother's.

Music and breakthrough

In 1957 his career accelerated when he worked with Miles Davis on the music for Louis Malle's film Ascenseur pour l'échafaud. That same year Tilt appeared, his first album as a leader. In 1959 he wrote the music for Un témoin dans la ville and recorded Jazz sur Seine with Kenny Clarke, Milt Jackson and Percy Heath. In 1960 came the music for Roger Vadim's Les liaisons dangereuses. In the mid-1960s he left his bebop roots behind and moved towards rock and free jazz, with European free jazz musicians such as François Tusques, Joachim Kühn and Karl Berger. In 1968 he released Auto Jazz, a tribute to the Italian racing driver Lorenzo Bandini. In 1969 he set off with a group of travellers for Africa, aiming for Zanzibar. The journey lasted two years and inspired the 1972 album Moshi, with jazz and traditional African music.

Influence

Wilen was one of the European saxophonists who were allowed to play with American greats in the 1950s. He was remembered by writers and comic artists: Georges Perec mentions him in Je me souviens, and in 1987 the comic Barney et la note bleue appeared. His work shows how French jazz developed alongside American jazz.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to the film music of Les liaisons dangereuses from 1960. Notice how Wilen's saxophone creates a nocturnal, tense atmosphere.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

Categories: Artists