Yvonnick Prene interview

01:32 - Yvonnick is from Paris, France, and has lived in New York for seventeen years

01:56 - Was originally only supposed to stay for one year in New York as an exchange student from Sorbonne university in France

02:26 - Had long dreamed of meeting jazz heroes in New York but was a big change and culture shock

03:03 - Level of musicianship is very high in New York

03:40 - Paris was a hotbed of jazz in the 1940s/50s/60s

05:08 - When the young Yvonnick was learning jazz in Paris he met some American musicians, mainly from the Free Jazz genre

05:41 - Level of jazz musicianship is very high these days due to online resources

06:09 - Studies at Sorbonne university included two music degrees, with first degree focused on musicology

06:49 - Professor at Sorbonne university started a jazz history course and helped Yvonnick move to New York

07:25 - Didn’t study on the Chromatic harmonica during first course Sorbonne university, which was more general music studies

07:51 - Diatonic harmonica was first instrument played, followed by guitar and played blues on these for a few years, with jazz coming later

08:14 - Is an accomplished diatonic player and played jazz on the diatonic until age seventeen

08:34 - Studied with Greg Zlap, JJ Milteau and Sebastien Charlier

08:52 - Yvonnick’s early band in Paris playing jazz standards on diatonic

09:35 - Played overblows for jazz playing on diatonic

09:48 - Still plays diatonic everyday and teaches diatonic

09:57 - Reason why decided to play jazz on the chromatic instead of diatonic

10:04 - Was spending a lot of time customising diatonics to set-up to play jazz and the technical challenges of the diatonic

11:30 - Loves the evenness of the timbre of the chromatic, which makes it easier to play jazz than on a diatonic

12:05 - Diatonic harmonica has a lot of technical challenges to play jazz, although lots of young players using it very well

12:52 - Believes it’s easier to start playing jazz on the chromatic compared to the diatonic

12:59 - But if you love the sound of the diatonic then choose that, or play both diatonic and chromatic

13:33 - Passion is the important thing

14:20 - In 2012 started studying at the New School for Jazz & Contemporary Music in New York

14:39 - Yvonnick kept requesting for extensions for his stay in New York so went to Colombia university for 6 months

15:20 - Chromatic was main instrument at the New School as they were very free on the instrument that could be used

15:36 - Studied with some jazz greats at the New School including Charlie Persip and Lee Konitz

16:46 - How chromatic harmonica was received on New York jazz scene depends on the context, with jam sessions being highly competitive

17:07 - Mic in jam sessions can be an unknown quantity and harmonica needs highs turned down and a little reverb

18:21 - Was well received by some of the musicians in New York

18:51 - Is a bandleader including in the Yvonnick Prene Quartet and Padam Swing and has released seven albums under his own name

19:17 - Important as a harmonica player to lead your own projects as the instrument is not as in demand as others

20:54 - Padam Swing was a gypsy jazz band Yvonnick put together

21:31 - Wonderful World album from 2014 is with Padam Swing

21:55 - How Yvonnick started playing gypsy jazz

23:02 - Gypsy can be a good entry point to jazz as chord progressions not so complex, but rhythms are!

23:57 - Likes to explore different styles of music

24:16 - First album, Jour de Fête, was released in 2013, just after completing studies and made to help obtain US visa

25:49 - Released a Toots tribute album in 2015, Merci Toots, with guitarist Pasquale Grasso

27:01 - Breathe album released in 2016

27:20 - New York Moments album (2019) has a song dedicated to Greg Zlap, who Yvonnick learnt diatonic from when young in Paris

28:42 - Listen album from 2023 played in a quintet and featuring the chromatic alongside tenor saxophone

29:37 - Recorded in the Van Gelder studio, where lots of Blue Note albums recorded, booth blew up when Yvonnick was recording the Listen album

30:45 - Latest album is Jobim’s World (2024), based around the music of Brazilian composer Antonio Carlos Jobim and is a duo with Geoffrey Keezer on piano

32:36 - Working on touring the Jobim’s World album in 2025

33:00 - Also performs with other pianists

33:19 - Recently played some concerts in Paris including a concert recorded on radio France with pianist Manual Rocheman

34:21 - Has recorded many sessions as a sideman with other artists

34:44 - Enjoys playing with vocalists

35:30 - Has been hired to play at events, such as a perfume company

36:09 - Runs the New Harmonica School in New York

37:00 - Also has an online harmonica tutorial website called My Harmonica Studio

37:46 - Has written numerous harmonica tutorial books

38:26 - Focused on teaching for a few years, but now is concentrating more on playing

39:53 - Has played in some great venues, including the Blue Note and Birdland in New York, and a gig in Africa in the Ivory Coast

40:48 - Ten minute question

42:44 - Jazz players need to work on longer term goals, really mastering scales and inversions

43:00 - Meets so many people who don’t know the notes on the chromatic harmonica and just play by ear

44:11 - Also to leave some time to have fun in your practise and also to learn some tunes

44:32 - Advise for people who want to get into playing jazz: listen to jazz, start with simpler tunes, scales, jazz blues

46:10 - Have some knowledge, have a good sound, know the notes of chords, scales and intervals

46:35 - Jazz is played in the moment so need to react fast, have good ears, a good sense of time and rhythm

47:51 - Yvonnick is an ambassador for Hohner an a reseller for their new Xpression Chromatic, on which he has his face on the box

48:15 - Does some set-up of the Xpression before selling them

48:43 - Features of the Xpression chromatic

49:17 - Embouchre: Yvonnick started puckering but also does lots of tongue blocking for playing intervals

49:41 - Still plays plenty of diatonic harmonica and recording of an Eminem song with a singer

50:47 - Mics: has tried many, including SM58 and Audio-Technica condenser

51:56 - New favourite mic is Beyerdynamic M88

52:46 - Amps previously include the Fishman Acoustic and Roland. Now using a Henriksen amp originally designed for jazz guitar

53:57 - Bought an extension cabinet for the amp recently so other band members can hear the harmonica

54:29 - Effects: tried a lot of pedals in the pandemic, but returned most of them, and now uses just a little reverb with the M88 mic and Henriksen amp

56:08 - Always have to diversify and not go into auto pilot to be able to make it as a harmonica player

56:20 - Future plans: has started working on a new project