Grégoire Kocjan

Harmonica virtuoso Gregoire Maret and acclaimed pianist Romain Collin team up to paint an egalitarian vision of the American Dream, exploring the varied roots of American music alongside guitar visionary Bill Frisell.

Harmonica player Grégoire Maret, born in Geneva in Switzerland and harpist Edmar Castañeda from Bogota in Colombia are two remarkable musicians. The strong musical affinity between them that comes across so vividly in “Harp vs. Harp” is no accident, not least because their backstories are so uncannily similar. Each of them came from his respective country as a callow teenager, and settled in New York. They have not merely survived, each individually, in the often unforgiving creative cauldron of New York’s musical life; each has established a reputation at the absolute top of the game, working on a regular, long-term basis with the best in the business.

Even on its first record "L'Escapade" (1974), Mona Lisa appeared as a dedicated follower of the theatrical, emotional and melodramatic rock created by Ange. The emphasis, the sensibility, the vocal subtlety of Dominique Le Guennec goes beyond the usual style. He "lives" his lyrics and surprises the listener by performing an expressive and suggestive music that evoke Genesis. The group got better with each album. "Grimaces" and especially "Le Petit Violon De Monsieur Grégoire" are two different landmarks of their technical maturity, that is evident thanks to a Steve Hackett style of guitar and the growth of the singer's vocal power and charisma. A true landmark of the Seventies French Progressive rock scene.