Clémence Manachère

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Press & Bio

“With her flute she breathes, tickling out this rough timbre. […] Clémence Manachère is constantly reinventing herself – an authentic water nature.”
– Peter Helling, NDR journalist

“In the middle of 2024 we make the claim: [Serpents et Échelles] one of the records of the year.”
– Susanne Müller, Jazz Podium

“It’s been a long time since someone has been working so distinctive on the ensemble’s common sound right from the start. Also it’s not often the case that the collective sound is that present as in the musical fantasies of Clémence Manachère. The sound of the band is entirely hers and the horizon is very broad under water.”
– Michael Laages, NDR-Journalist

Clémence Manachère is a jazz flute player, soprano saxophone player, and composer from the seaside mountains of the southwest of France. The inspirations for Clémence’s music span from jazz to contemporary and classical music, with influences ranging from Frank Zappa to Brazilian music. Pushing the boundaries of composition and improvisation is a key focus for Clémence, whether it involves odd meters, microtonality, or both.

At age 10, Clémence began learning classical piano, studying for eight years at the Pau Conservatory of Music. At 14, she participated in the festival Les Enfants du Jazz and heard Elvin Jones perform live in Barcelonnette, her grandmother’s village in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. At 16, she got her first flute and began learning the instrument as an autodidact. From ages 18 to 24, she studied architecture between France and Mexico City. After finishing studying architecture, she traveled to Brazil where she got deeply inspired by the richness of Brazilian music. Back in Europe, she studied jazz flute at the Musikschule Berlin-Neukölln and, since October 2017, has added soprano saxophone, studying at Hamburg’s Hochschule für Musik und Theater.

Clémence also took rhythm and drumming lessons with Mark Nauseef for two years. Mark’s rhythmic visions have been a significant influence on her composing and improvising. In order to bring her compositions to life, she launched her project Clémence Manachère Unterwasser in 2018. She has already recorded three albums with Unterwasser, released in 2020, 2022, and in 2024 under the JazzHausMusik label.

Clémence has received the “Mixed Generations” grant from the Feldtmann Foundation and the Jazz Federation Hamburg for a tour with Unterwasser and Norwegian trombone player Helge Sunde in April and November 2022. In 2023 and 2024, Clémence was part of the Claussen-Simon Stiftung stART.up program and in January 2024, Clémence won the Werner Burkhardt Musikpreis.

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