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Michel Herr

Pianist, composer, arranger, producer

About Me

Born in Brussels (B), Michel Herr has built in parallel a rich career as a pianist, a composer and an arranger.

As a jazz pianist, Michel Herr played with an impressive list of well known jazz musicians : Joe Henderson, Chet Baker, Joe Lovano, Archie Shepp, Charlie Mariano, Johnny Griffin, Slide Hampton, Art Farmer, Lee Konitz, Bill Frisell, John Abercrombie, Billy Hart, etc..., top European musicians such as Philip Catherine, Palle Mikkelborg, Daniel Humair, Aldo Romano, Palle Danielsson, Arild Andersen, Norma Winstone, Riccardo Del Fra, Richard Galliano, Francois Jeanneau, Paolo Fresu..., as well as the cream of the Belgian jazz scene. He played with Toots Thielemans during many years and toured Europe, Japan, the US.

Besides his career as a jazz pianist (albums as a leader of a trio and a quintet ), Michel Herr has been active internationally as a composer and arranger. It has now become his main focus.

He wrote for his own bands (trio, quintet, nonet, etc...) as well as for ensembles of various formats, from small groups to big bands and large orchestras, a.o.the WDR, NDR Big Bands, the Metropole Orchestra and the Brussels Jazz Orchestra, the latter on several occasions, a.o. with vocalist David Linx, and mostly, for an acclaimed double album of his compositions for jazz big band : “The Music of Michel Herr”. He also signed several compositions and arrangements for string ensemble, chamber orchestra, symphony orchestra, choir, etc...

The Metropole Orchestra (NL) and Ivan Paduart recorded his arrangements for the album « Crush ».

He arranged the album « Colors of time », (a suite by Swiss pianist Thierry Lang) for David Linx, choir and chamber orchestra.

2016 : the prestigious “Echo Jazz Award” (Germany ) went to the album of guitarist Philip Catherine, “the String Project”. Michel Herr wrote 3 arrangements for this project and was in charge of the musical supervision of the album.

2017 : a.o. release of the album of saxophonist Fabrice Alleman with Chamber Orchestra “Udiverse”, for which Michel Herr wrote 8 arrangements and some compositions. Also string arrangements for an album of bassist Daniel Romeo, etc...

2018 : concerts and arrangements for “An American Songbook” (feat. lyrical soprano Julie Mossay, a jazz quartet feat. Saxophonist Steve Houben and strings), and 3 arrangements for the album of vocalist Tutu Puoane & Brussels Jazz Orchestra “We have a dream”, a project which was presented worldwide (a.o. at the Lincoln Center in New York). Later in the year, Michel Herr wrote a symphonic version for the Brussels Jazz Orchestra and the OPRL (Liege Symphony, Belgium).

2019 : release of the cd « Michel Herr – Positive / Music for sextet and String quartet », featuring 9 original compositions for 11 musicians. The album received the Sabam Jazz Award.

In recent months, he was busy writing for several projects, mostly combining a jazz ensemble and classical players (strings or large orchestras), as well as arrangements for studio sessions.

Michel Herr's compositions have been played and/or recorded by prestigious jazz soloists, such as Joe Lovano, Judy Niemack, Fred Hersch, Tom Harrell, Kenny Barron, Bill Frisell, Archie Shepp, Toots Thielemans, Philip Catherine, Ivan Paduart etc...

Michel Herr also wrote music scores for movies (“Just Friends”, feat. Archie Shepp) and television.