Louis Sclavis was born in Lyons, on February 2, 1953. In 1962, he studied clarinet and began to play in a local brasshand before entering the Lyons Conservatory of music. From 1975 to 1988, he played with such acclaimed groups as the Workshop de Lyon, the Marvelous Band and the Marmite Infernale. During these years, he also met Didier Levallet, Michel Portal, Bernard Lubat; he worked with the Chris Mac Gregor’s Brotherhood of Breath and the Henri Texier Quartet.
1982
Louis Sclavis founded his own combo: Le Tour De France, with six musicians coming from different french regions: Gerard Siracusa, Benat Achiary, Philippe Deschepper, Yves Robert, Michel Doneda and Alain Gibert. He also played and recorded with Evan Parker, Peter Brotzman, Tony Oxley, Lol Coxhill, Connie Bauer, John Lindberg, etc. for two contemporary jazz companies: NATO and FMP (free music production).
1984
Louis Sclavis recorded a solo album entitled Clarinets for Ida Records, and he founded a quartet with Bruno Chevillon, François Raulin and Christian Ville; these four young musicians appeared in well-known french or foreign festivals, and they worked together on a lot of special projects; then they recorded two albums with Dominique Pifarely - violonist - as special guest: - Chine on Ida Records 1987 - Rouge on ECM Records on 1991
1987
Louis Sclavis founded a septet - especially for the festival Banlieues Bleues and recorded Chamber Music on Ida Records.
1988
He obtained the Pirx Django Reinhardt, traditionally awarded to the best french jazzman of the year. In collaboration with Jacques Di Donato and Armand Angster, he founded The Clarinet Trio which appeared in numerous concerts including both contemporary compositions (by amongst others, Dusapin, Donatoni, Ferneyhoug, Boulez ...) and improvisation. At the same time, Louis Sclavis met Mathilde Monnier - a choreographer and dancer - and they worked together in several performances: A la renverse, Chinoserie, Face Nord, Ainsi de Suite.
1989
The Louis Sclavis Quartet won the first Prize at the Barcelona Biennal as the best european creation of the year.
1990
Sclavis obtained the British Jazz Award 90/91 , as the best foreign artist of the Midem. He featured with a sextet, in the Paris Jazz Festival, a tribute to Duke Ellington. Ellington on the Air was then recorded on Ida Records. Moreover, Sclavis innovated playing with jazzmen and french folk musicians, working with a breton group: the clarinet quintet, a singer from Auvergne, André Ricros, as well as Valentin Clastrier - hurdy gurdy grinder - and he recorded with all of them on Silex: - Musique têtue with the clarinet quintet - Le partege des eaux with André Ricros Hérésie with Valentin Clastrier.
1991
The Clarinet trio recorded Live in Berlin on FMP. Sclavis featured Indigéne at Angoulême . Musiques métisses.
1992
He founded a new group entitled Acoustic Quartet with Dominique Pifarely, Bruno Chevillon and Marc Ducret.
1993
He recorded again on ECM records with the Acoustic Quartet and featured at the Festival Banileues Bleues a Double Trio composed of the Arcado String Trio (including Mark Dresser, Mark Feldman and Ernst Reijseger) and the Clarinet Trio; this group appeared in several other festivals: Groningen, Moers, Vandoeuvre, Grenoble...
Since 1980, Louis Sclavis has been composing regularly for a theatre company Image Aigue, and he has also been working with the play-producer Jean-Louis Martinelli as well as a film-director Jean-Louis Comolli.
Since 1982, he has appeared in collaboration with photographer Guy Le Querrec (from Magnum) in such performances as "De l’eau dans le jazz", "Oeil de Breizh", "Jazz comme une image". A CD and book set is now in preparation. At the present time he also plays in trio with Aldo Romano and Henri Texier, with Joachim Kuhn, Michel Portal, Ernst Reijseger... and work as a soloist for composer Fabien Tehericsen.
Other recordings with Trilok Gurtu, Cecil Taylor Big Band, Klaus Koenig, Henri Texier, etc.
In 1994, Louis Sclavis founded a new trio with Bruno Chevillon (b) and François Merville (d).
He featured, with his sextet, "Les violences de Rameau", a co-production with the Théatre de la Renaissance. Finally, he has a special project with Ars Nova.