Jean Schwarz

Jean Schwarz, born in Lille in 1939, is a French composer and engineer who has made significant contributions to ethnomusicology and contemporary music. He served as an engineer at the CNRS (National Center for Scientific Research) in the Ethnomusicology Department of the Musée de l'Homme in Paris from 1965 to 1999, and was a member of the Groupe de Recherches Musicales (GRM) at INA (National Audiovisual Institute) from 1969 to 1999.

Schwarz has composed music for renowned choreographers such as Carolyn Carlson, Maguy Marin, Larrio Ekson, Françoise Dupuy, Serge Campardon, and Bartabas. He has also contributed to film scores, collaborating with directors like Alain Resnais, Michel Deville, Charles Belmont, Jean-Luc Godard, Serge Moati, Michel Léviant, Gérard Follin, Mosco, and Pétrika Ionesco.

Additionally, he has composed concert music for artists including Michel Portal, Tomas Gubitsch, Mino Cinelu, Jean-François Jenny-Clark, Don Cherry, Jean-Paul Célea, Alexandre Ouzounoff, Beñat Achiary, Élise Caron, John Surman, Charles Austin, Nana Vasconcelos, Joe Gallivan, and André Velter.

Together with André Francis, Schwarz produced the CD collections "Trésors du Jazz" and "Jazz Characters" (500 CDs, Le Chant du Monde, 2002-2010).