Marcel Azzola
French accordionist and composer
French accordionist.
Born July 10, 1927; died January 21, 2019.
Illustrious recipient of the apostrophe launched by Jacques Brel in the song Vesoul “Chauffe Marcel, chauffe!" Where you can hear his chorus on the accordion.
After the war, he discovered jazz, Gus Viseur, Charley Bazin, Tony Murena and even had the opportunity to play for Django Reinhardt la Toccata and fugue in D minor by Bach. He is the forerunner of the classical accordion and jazz in France and he gives concerts in trio or quartet with Stéphane Grappelli who introduced him to Yehudi Menuhin, Didier Lockwood, Michel Legrand, Toots Thielemans.
In 1949, he made his first recording with Mademoiselle de Paris, and anonymously recorded his first records as accompanist and bandoneon with the orchestras of Ramon Mendizabal, Marcel Feijoo, José Maria Lucchesi and the training of Tani Scala, one of the masters of French tango after-war.
In the 1950s, he began to accompany the big names in French song such as Boris Vian, Edith Piaf (for which he participated in the recording of the song Sous le Ciel de Paris in 1949), Tino Rossi, Yves Montand, Barbara (5), Juliette Gréco, Jean Sablon, Francis Lemarque, Gilbert Bécaud, Jacques Brel and Graeme Allwright.
He accompanies Jacques Brel on his last three albums. During the recording of Vesoul, the latter overheard and amazed by the solo improvisation that Marcel Azzola does then sends him his cult apostrophe "Chauffe Marcel, chauffe!". The expression, launched in full recording of the song, has entered everyday language.
He also record a hundred of film scores.