E026: François Houle on finding his Musical Voice and Embracing Versatility (Part 1 of 2)

Today on the Clarineat podcast my guest is Vancouver's François Houle. We discuss how François found his musical voice and became an incredibly diverse and successful performer. We then focus on three of his albums: Rue Paul Fort, Double Entendre, and Aerials, and briefly touch on the recording session for the pop song called "How it Goes" from Canadian rock music icon Matthew Good's album "Lights of Endangered Species," which includes Francois on clarinet. Biography Clarinetist François Houle has established himself as one of today's most inventive musicians, in all of the diverse musical spheres he embraces. Inspired by collaborations with the world's top musical innovators, François has developed a unique improvisational language, virtuosic and rich with sonic embellishment and technical extensions. A sought after soloist and chamber musician, he has actively expanded the clarinet's repertoire by commissioning some of today's leading Canadian and international composers and premiering over one hundred new works. A founding member of critically acclaimed ensembles such as Sea and Sky, The Turning Point Ensemble and Standing Wave, François has also collaborated with leading ensembles in Canada, including ECM+, Bozzini Quartet, Fibonacci Trio, among others. He has been listed on numerous occasions in Downbeat magazine's Readers and Critics' Polls as "Talent Deserving Wider Recognition" and "Rising Star". kyap4y5f