Kepler
Adrien Sanchez (fr) - tenor saxophone
Julien Pontvianne (fr) - tenor saxophone, clarinet
Jozef Dumoulin (be) - piano, keyboard
Kepler's music uses slowness as a microscope : it might seem plain or static at first, but cracks, abysses, mysteries and miracles are gradually revealed. Every detail reveals its depth, and the minimal becomes poetic. The pieces are short, most of the time, finely chiseled, mesmerizing with their play on resonances, echoes and textures. They are also haunted by true melodies, the other essential aspect of this musical journey. The trio is influenced as much by Brian Eno or Arvo Part, as by Schumann or Keith Jarrett. A deep yearning for song underlies their digging into slowness. The result is never flamboyant or showy, but casts a delicate and frozen spell. Kepler’s debut album was released in March 2019 on the Onze Heure Onze label, and the band was a winner of the French Jazz Migration program in the same year.
Born in 1987, Adrien Sanchez started playing the piano in South Korea. Back in France, he takes classical piano and flute lessons. At 20 he gets a scholarship to attend the Berkley College of Music, where he studies with George Garzone, Hal Crook, Victor Mendoza, Rick DiMuzio, Jeff Galindo, to name a few. He also plays and meets musicians like Joe Lovano, Miguel Zenon or Greg Osby. Back in France, he entered the Paris CNSM where he graduated in 2012 and got a Masters Degree in Jazz and Improvised Music. In 2009 he won the Kodolany International Jazz Competition in Hungary and the next year the Selmer Prize for Young Rising Jazz Musicians of the Saint Germain Jazz festival in Paris. Adrien played many concerts in Parisian Jazz Clubs such as the Sunside, the Duc des Lombards etc., in festivals such as the Banlieues Bleues, Jazz in Marciac, Jazz sous les Pommiers in Coutances, Jazz sur son 31 etc. Recently he played with the National French Jazz Orchestra (ONJ), the Moutin factory quintet, Laurent Cugny’s big-band, Lailas Olivesi… He is also a co-leader of the quartet Flash Pig, best Jazz band in 2024 according to Jazz Magazine.
Born in 1983 and schooled notably at the Paris conservatoire, Julien Pontvianne feeds on several musical traditions in order to propose his own perception of slowness - perception that explores, through bands like Watt, Aum grand ensemble or Abhra, the shapes of silence, the roles of the voice and the melody, non-temperated tunes, the evolution of continuous matters, timbres melting, resonant, time, long forms or song’s forms… He incarnates a music of patience, in countercurrent, closed to a kind of hedonistic asceticism that invites introspection, from which intellectualism never predominates on a strong sensuality. His different albums, released for most of them on the label of the Onze heures onze collective that he is one of the founders, led the critics to connect him to the idea of ecology of sound imagined by Gérard Grisey, or the idea of ecology of listening defined by Salvatore Sciarrino. influenced, among others, by masses from Renaissance, by indonesian gamelan, by Sonic Youth, Paul Motian, Morton Feldman or Michael Pisaro, he plays in several contexts, from 1920’s jazz to experimental rock (Oxyd, Trojan panda…) and to the most contemporary musics (Ensemble 0…)
Pianist Jozef Dumoulin has redefined the Fender Rhodes keyboard with a unique approach that is both modern and deeply personal. He was the first artist to present a full solo program dedicated to the instrument, showcased in his 2014 release A Fender Rhodes Solo. Known for his open and luminous style, Dumoulin brings a fresh perspective to the piano and music as a whole, remaining rooted in tradition without being confined by it.
Dumoulin is widely recognized for his innovative use of electronics, seamlessly blending acoustic and electronic sounds to develop layered, intricate textures. His boundary-pushing work has earned him international recognition, and he has performed at prestigious festivals and venues worldwide. Dumoulin has collaborated with a wide array of celebrated artists, including Mark Turner, Arve Henriksen, Stian Westerhus, Marc Ducret, and Tony Malaby, across genres like jazz, experimental, rock, and traditional music.
In addition to being an in-demand sideman, Dumoulin is a respected bandleader and composer. His creative vision shines through in projects like Lilly Joel (with vocalist Lynn Cassiers) and Red Hill Orchestra (featuring Ellery Eskelin and Dan Weiss), where he blends improvisation with bold compositional ideas.
His cross-genre explorations challenge the boundaries of jazz, merging elements of contemporary classical music, world music, and experimental sound art, all while maintaining an unmistakable musical voice. He currently resides in Paris.