Photo: Caroline Forbes
Freelance
About
Paiste Artist Since
March 2015
Nationality
United Kingdom
Main Affiliation
Freelance
Website
martinfrance.co.uk
„Paiste cymbals have the cleanest, richest, purest tone of any cymbals available today, with a broad range large enough to find the sound you've been searching for.“
Setup
Biography
Throughout a career spanning over thirty five years Martin France has performed and recorded with some of the world's finest and creative musicians. He has performed in all five continents including concerts and tours in over forty countries worldwide. He is currently Professor of Jazz - Drums/Percussion at the Royal Academy of Music in London. Martin began performing at the age of twelve backing singers in Working Men's clubs with Organ trios in and around Manchester in the North of England. He studied under Geoff Riley, Kenny Clare and Richard Smith - Principal Percussionist with the Halle Orchestra. After moving to London in 1983 he began his recording career performing on several records for Manfred Eicher’s ECM label. He has since gone on to record over one hundred CD’s for a variety of different artists since his ECM debut. He has been invited to perform with many orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, Britten Sinfonia, London Sinfonietta, BBC Concert Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra of Wales, Liverpool Philharmonic, City of London Sinfonia, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, BBC Radio Big Band, BBC Philharmonic, Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg, ASKO Ensemble - Amsterdam, Danish Radio Big Band - Copenhagen, HR Big Band – Frankfurt, WDR Symphony Orchestra – Cologne, MDR Sinfonieorchester Leipzig, Duisburg Philharmonic Orchestra, The European Jazz Orchestra – Portugal. He is also a regular performer with NDR Big Band in Hamburg. He has been active for many years as a studio musician in London performing on numerous recording sessions with many of the world’s leading composers, conductors and arrangers for both European and American Film and TV productions. He is also involved in composing music for KPM/EMI Music in London, the music from which has been used extensively for worldwide TV and commercial broadcast. Along the way Martin has performed and recorded with some of the world's most diverse and finest musicians including Elvis Costello, Evan Parker, David Gilmour, John Taylor, Kenny Wheeler, Ralph Towner, John Dankworth, Lee Konitz, Dave Holland, Arild Anderson, Mark Johnson, Steve Swallow, Bob Mintzer and The Yellowjackets, Norma Winstone, Nils-Petter Molvaer, Bugge Wesseltoft, Arve Henriksen, Mike Gibbs, Maria Schneider, Gwilym Simcock, Sidsel Endresen, John Paul Jones, Stephen Warbeck, Anders Jormin, Victor Bailey, Eivind Aarset, J. Peter Schwalm, Charles Hazelwood, Palle Danielsson, June Tabor, Dave McKean, David Binney, Adam Rogers, Django Bates, Jason Rebello, Joanna MacGregor, Charlie Mariano, Charles Hazlewood, Paul Englishby, John Surman, Joe Lovano, Mark Feldman and Leo Abrahams to name but a few. His pioneering use of electronic and sequenced Drums/Percussion has resulted in performances and recording sessions for many contrasting musical projects for a variety of artists. He has also released three critically acclaimed CD’s with his own band - Spin Marvel.
Setup Cymbals
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Details
Sizes: 14"
Volume: Soft
Weight: Medium
Sound character: Dark, dry, woody. Fairly wide range, complex mix. Soft, responsive feel. Full, warm, open sound. Loose, soggy chick sound. Perfectly suited for traditional swing patterns, but also well usable for other acoustic styles like Blues, Country, Soul or Gospel.
- Sounds
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Details
Sizes: 20"
Volume: Soft
Weight: Medium
Sound character: Warm, mellow, crystal-like. Medium range, fairly clean mix. Very balanced and controlled feel. A pearly, woody stick sound paired with a silvery wash. A very sensitive cymbal perfectly suited for soft playing at lower volume level and studio application.
- Sounds
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Details
Sizes: 18", 22"
Volume: Medium
Weight: Medium
Sound character: Dark, warm, strong, exotic, sizzling, earthy. Wide range, slightly complex and dense mix. Fairly soft, responsive feel. Great for explosive, strong, dark accents. Complex, washy ride sound. A modern China cymbal with a wide spectrum for various musical applications. “The China is nearly smooth”, states Vinnie Colaiuta.
- Sounds