GUILHEM VERGER
saxophones & keyboards

« I ‘m honored I’ve meet Jhon Coltrane’s Spirit when I was 8.

Passionated by improvisation, jazz, and classical music, I begin to study music at 9.

After studying in Perpignan Conservatory (saxophone and Jazz Gold medal), then Paris Superior Conservatory (Jazz and Classical Writing), I begin a musician career (Accordion /electro effects , Saxophone, Clarinet) as well as a composer / arranger.

It brings me all around Europe but also in Mexico, China and Africa (Maghreb).

I was specially lucky to play with Daniel Humair, Riccardo Del Fra, Jozef Dumoulin, Jhon Thicaï, Tcha Limberger, Roy Hargrove (just one Gig), Lionel Beuvens, Harmen Fraanje, Brice Soniano, Toma Gouband, Serge Lazarevitch, Emilie Lesbros, Jean-Luc Lehr, Lionel Malric, Hans Van Ousterhout, Alexi Tuomarila, Glenn Ferris, Paul Lay, Jhon Betsch, Guido Zorn, Kalevi Luhorivuori, Francesco Pastaldi, Robin Canac, Mats Eilertsen, Hervé Duret, Maxime Rouayroux, Johan Eche-Puig, Alfred Villayleck, Matia Levréro, Rémi Ploton, Julien Omé, Jerome Antonuccio, Bruno Ducret, Guillaume Gardey de Soos, Thibault Frisoni, Sysmo (Matters Collective), Nathan Woutters, Toby Mac, Christophe Morrisset, Annemie Osborne, Roman Bestion, Martin Taxt, etc…

DAVID VILAYLECK
electric guitar

David Vilayleck is an eclectic musician who studied, in Morocco from 2004 to 2008, gnawa music with its greatest masters : M.Bakbou, the Boussou and Guinia families. He played and recorded with Serge Lazarevitch (Tribute to Hendrix creation), Fred Poncet, Joel Allouche, Frank Nicolas, Mario Canonge, Souriba Kouyaté, John Tchicai, Jerome Dufour, Sam Mastorakis, Fred Leger, Gautier Garrigue, Renaud Gensane, Juan Martin, Steeve Laffont, Davy Grad mange, Alex Velasco, Hugues Mayot, Enrique Otte, Anton Mobin…

In 2008, he worked in Morocco alongside with the American musicians George Burton (piano) and Najib Salem (drums). In 2010, while he was living in Japan, David Vilayleck worked on severals Osaka’s Jazz Clubs and for the Club Flamingo Arusha with the Japanese bass player Yasutaka Yorozu, and the American artist Larry Marshall as well as Steve Hanuman a vocalist trumpet player. He also worked on free jazz, improvised and electronic music projects with the Dutch musicians Raphael Vanoli, Gerri Jager, Jasper Stadhouders, and the French pianist Xavier Lopez, who is an electronic musician as well.

David Vilayleck has began in 2004 his improvised electronic and instrumental music solo project Ayankoko and has created his net label AyanRecords in 2008. Since then, he has been performing on several European festival stages, and in New York in 2012. Nowadays he leads his own quintet with Joel Allouche and the Collectif Koa’s musicians. He is also a part of the Skamanians band (ska jazz), which he went recently touring in England with.

ALFRED VILAYLECK
electric bass

Alfred Vilayleck has started to be attracted to music at the age of 12 by listening to rock music, and especially Jimi Hendrix, it did not take long before he discovered the Jazz, the improvisation is what attracts him more in this music. After he graduated from the Music Academies of Perpignan and Strasbourg, he played in many jazz bands and created in 2008 the Collectif Koa in Montpellier, as its artistic director. This experience led him up to meet and work with Steve Coleman, Aka Moon, Magic Malik, Jim Black…

Multi-skilled companion, he has performed with Serge Lazarevitch, Joël Allouche, Jeroen Van Herzeele, Julien Lourau, Hugues Mayot, Vittorio Silvestri, Ari Hoenig, Gautier Garrigue, Franck Vaillant, John Tchicaï, Stéphane Foucher, Pierre Van Dormael, Cherif Soumano… As a world traveler musician, he has played in France, USA, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, Morocco, Mali, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, Malawi, Lesotho… He currently leads the Grand Ensemble Koa, and accompanies several bands as Gratitude trio, Puja, Koa feat Hoening, SoM4tet… Alfred Vilayleck leads and par-ticipates in many soundpainting projects. Pedagogue and holder of a Jazz teacher diploma, he teaches jazz at the Music Academy of Montpellier.

FRANCK VAILLANT
drums & percussions

Drummer, compositor, arranger, Franck Vaillant is first and foremost a musician who loves adventure. He recorded more than 30 CDs and performed all around the world. He recorded all kinds of creations for years, until his first record Signature Radio France came out in 2005. He is a true self-taught artist, who lately learnt to read music in the aim of getting is compositions playable by other musicians. As a creative musician, he adds his personal touch to all his collaborations and uses the different « colors » a drum can offer, as would do a percussionist. For ten years, his activity as contemporary jazz sideman has become intense. He has played regularly or temporarily with : Sarah Murcia, Sylvain Cathala, Gilles Coronado, Olivier Py, Guillaume Orti, Stéphane Payen, Benoit Delbecq, Jozef Dumoulin, Malik Mezzadri, Yves Robert, Bruno Chevillon, Stéphanus Vivens, Laurent Dehors, Louis Sclavis, Emmanuel Bex, Hubert Dupont, Marc Ducret, Laurent Blondiau, Antoine Prawerman, Pierre Van Dormael, Vincent Courtois, Laurent Blondiau, Edward Perraud, Brad Scott, François Thuiller, Daniel Casimir, Yaron Herman, David Chevallier, Vincent Courtois, Julien Lourau, Bojan Z, Alban Darche, Vincent Ségal, Manu Codjia, Nelson Veras, Thomas de Pourquery, Christophe Monniot, Médéric Collignon… Soon he has been attracted by the words and the songs. He played with the Varans de Komodo, Kabal, Arthur H, Fred Poulet, Jeanne Balibar, LO’JO, Mike Carley, and occasionally with Alain Bashung, Katerine, Brigitte Fontaine, Izia, Franck Monnet, Dave, Mark Thomkins…

Franck Vaillant participated to the pop- world of LO’JO adventure for 4 years. A band from Angers (France) created in 1982 which after ten albums stays more known abroad than in its native country. For a few years, he participates in the Arte France research workshops, in the Paul Ouazan’s program directed by Sarah Murcia and plays alongside with Mark Thomkins, Dave, Brad Scott, Mami Chan, Fred Poulet, Elise Caron, Albin de la Simone, and Dave. He also a part of the Underground de la planète Slam adventure by performing for the Bouchazoreilles events, playing in duet with his old companion D’de Kabal, as well as playing with the trio Harragas d’Abd el Haq.