Charles Loos
©Photography / Jacky Lepage
piano
Belgium
After formal classical piano training, Belgian jazz Master pianist and composer Charles Loos left, in 1972, to study jazz composition and orchestration at the Berklee School of Music in Boston.
Back in Belgium, he co-founded Les Lundis d’Hortense, a Belgian association for jazz musicians. From 1993 to 1997, he was the president of Les Lundis d’Hortense.
He worked as a sideman with numerous soloists: Toots Thielemans, Chet Baker, Ali Ryerson, Philip Catherine, Johnny Griffin, Maurane etc… He also took part in more experimental groups such as “Abraxis” and “Julverne”.
Charles Loos particularly enjoys playing intimate settings both for gigs and recordings. Most of his recordings as a leader or co-leader are in solo, duo or trio. Some musical partnerships last for several decades, including with Steve Houben, Ali Ryerson, Serge Lazarevitch.
Loos usually plays his own compositions, inspired by classical music, various folklores, as well as jazz of yesterday and today.
These various styles have taken him around the world.
Teaching and writing for theatre (“Les poètes du jazz”, “Antigone”, “Salut Lenny”) and ballet (“No Wall No War”, California 1991) fill his time.
He was awarded the “Sax Prize” for the best concert of the year 1988, the “Prize for the Jazz Rallye’s most creative concert” in 1990, the DJANGO D’OR in 1997.
In 2018, he recorded with a new “chamber jazz” trio featuring Sébastien Walnier (solo cellist at “La Monnaie” Opera House in Brussels) and Jeanfrançois Prins on guitar. Their CD “Avant un Rêve” was released on GAM Records (GAM 920).
Charles Loos can only be described as poetical inspiration made sound… He acts as a painter, enamored with tonalities, aware of their magical power. The compositions have in common a certain bareness, an inexpressible purity…
Artist on GAM Records
New Release – Mixology live – out Now!
“Mixology live” by Stéphane Mercier Belgian Jazz All Stars live at the Tournai Jazz Festival is an extraordinary 8-piece set comprised of wide-ranging original compositions and a couple of newly-arranged standard songs.
This is an exceptional group of individuals, allowing for unusual combinations of instrumentations, styles and strong personalities all focusing on one common goal: playing great music together.
It features the talents of internationally renowned Belgian music masters: David Linx, Charles Loos, Jeanfrançois Prins, Nathalie Loriers, Vincent Bruyninckx, Fabrice Alleman, Daniel Stokart, Toine Thys, Paolo Loveri, Jean-Louis Rassinfosse, Nicolas Thys, and Bruno Castellucci.
Avant Un Rêve
Three stellar Belgian musicians from both the jazz and classical scene form this unique "chamber jazz" constellation (piano, guitar, and cello), to offer us an original repertoire full of heart-stirring melodies, entrancing soundscapes, and interactive and highly dynamic improvisations.