Andre Thierry
Richmond, California, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2014
Music
Press
Bay area evening news profiled Andre Thierry on his recent GRAMMY nomination. The piece included Bay Area zydeco, and the Creole Culture. - Channel 5 KPIX CBS San Francisco
San Rafael, CA—Dozens of young musicians and singers from Marin and the San Francisco Bay Area are being mentored and given opportunities to perform through the Narada Michael Walden Foundation. Narada states, “I started my Foundation so that young people could experience creativity, love and delight through music. I was saddened by the absence of music in the schools and my goal comes straight from my heart—to inspire kids with music education.”
Performing Stars of Marin Zydeco Boys—Directed by Andre Thierry
Keith Callahan (age 7)
Kevin Callahan (age 6)
Oceil Mazarigaes (San Rafael, age 6)
Charlie Rodriguez (Marin City, age 6)
Marsean Sanders (Marin City, age 5)
Daesean Sanders (Marin City, age 5)
Sean Tyler (Marin City, age 7) - Bay Area Newspapers
MARIN CITY is a long way from Louisiana. But it seems a lot closer on Wednesday afternoons, when Andre Thierry, a 32-year-old accordion player, singer and bandleader, schools a dozen or so little boys on the rhythms and traditions of zydeco, a joyful form of American roots music from southwest Louisiana.
While he plays accordion, his students, ages 4 to 7, scratch out beats on washboards, also known as rubboards, the homespun instruments that zydeco musicians have traditionally played at Louisiana house parties, where the music began.
"I'm teaching them two-steps, waltzes, shuffles, the basic rhythms of zydeco," Thierry said. "But we don't want them to just learn to play, - Marin Independent Journal
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
GRAMMY nominee Andre Thierry is a phenomenal talent who has been capturing the attention of other musicians and music lovers since he was a young boy. Andres French Creole heritage is deeply rooted in Louisiana although he was born and reared in northern California.
The King of Zydeco, the late great Clifton Chenier, grabbed three-year old Andre by the arms and deemed him a future accordion player. Andre was captivated by Clifton Chenier and when he was given his first accordion by local musician, Billy Wilson (currently with MotorDude Zydeco), he began teaching himself to play by listening to Clifton Cheniers music.
Thierry can't be lumped into Zydeco's old-school R&B-influenced camp or its nouveau, rap-inspired one: He and his band, Zydeco Magic, lay down both soulful, traditional slow-dances and bottom-end-booming kinetic groovers.
At only 33 years old, he is already a legend. There is widespread agreement that he is an exceptional multi-dimensional musician who has a finely-honed ability to merge traditional Zydeco music with hip-hop, blues, jazz and rock. Building from his love and respect for traditional Zydeco, his original music is a blend of old and new. His musical mastery enables him to create a unique sound for his and future generations while staying true to the past.
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