Andres Jimenez

Andres Jimenez - biography

 

Formerly known as Marcos Jimenez,  Andres Jimenez performs in major international jazz events and jazz clubs around the world. His main projects as a leader, include a quintet, a trio, and a piano solo. Beside his career on stage, Andres is a regular teacher at the Ejma of Lausanne and AMR in Geneva.

 

Andres Jimenez, Spanish born raised in Geneva, Switzerland, started at the age of 10 by playing everything he heard by ear. Music has been always part of the life of his family that produced several professional musicians: “my parents bought a piano upon their arrival in Geneva, I initiated myself reproducing what I heard on records and from radio, soon I started to improvise my own compositions”. He soon began listening to pop recordings that his brother brought home. He began playing along with those recordings and into his teens started to go on stage with cover bands of the Beatles, the Moody Blues, and others in vogue at that time.

 

Andres Jimenez studied jazz piano for two years with pianist Michel Bastet. Then, during eight years he attended the course of Sébastien Risler in the Conservatoire Populaire de Genève. where he was deeply immersed in, and fascinated by classical and contemporary music. Additionaly, he attended composition lessons with composer Eric Gaudibert.

 

Later, he had piano lessons with Franco d'Andrea, Richie Beirach, and most importantly Kenny Werner.

 

In 1995 he graduated from his classical studies obtaining a certificate with the congratulations of the Jury, and the Special Prize Kneiffel.

 

He then continued his exploration of jazz as an autodidact, transcribing solos and arrangements, playing with local musicians such as Erik Truffaz, Maurice Magnoni, Mathieu Michel, Christophe Calpini, Patrice Moret, Daniel Schläppi, Dominic egli, Marcel Papaux, to name a few.

 

He also founded the Andres Jimenez quartet and performed his own compostions with musicians such as Marc Johnson, Bänz Oester and Norbert Pfammatte for a tour in Switzerland and France.

 

Daniel le Bris in one of his reviews defined Andres as ”a rare, sensitive and inventive artist, subtle melodist that is worth the stop. Unwilling to succumb to the siren charms of the facility, the musician realized that music is about feeling, sensuality. And alone or with his trio, the note is there, that hits the right place. His attraction to the diversity makes him a pianist "atypical" attentive to all types of music".

 

Andres Jimenez has accompanied many singers, including Christine Python with whom he won the Sacem prize at the vocal competition of “Festival de Crest” in France, he played with drummer Daniel Humair and worked with french female singer Zizi Jeanmaire and choreographer Roland Petit. He was the pianist and arranger for what should be the final “tour de chant” of Mrs Zizi Jeanmaire. He also composed a song for her, which was recorded on the album "La Liberté est une Fleur".