Sylvain Luc grew up in the Basque region of southwestern France, among the picturesque rolling green hills of Bayonne. He found a passion for music very early. He was just four years old when he started to play, first guitar and then violin and cello — then back to guitar.
Amazingly, he and his brothers released an album of traditional folklore songs when he was nine.
Luc studied music at the Bayonne Conservatory for a decade. At the same time, he was learning traditional Basque songs and playing vibrant festivals in his hometown with his older brothers, and other regional musicians.
In his early 20s, he moved to Paris and started soaking in the sounds of an international music city. He became known as a versatile sideman and improviser.
He drew from his Basque upbringing and his wide spectrum of guitar influences from Joe Pass, John McLaughlin, John Scofield and Jeff Beck. He sat in with the city's finest jazz musicians and artists from around the world, including the acclaimed African bassist Richard Bona and the popular Argentinian folk singer Jairo.
Luc was known for recording with small ensembles. In an interview with French jazz magazine Citizen Jazz, he said this allowed him and his partners space to be themselves within the music.
In 2000, he recorded the album Duet with the Django Reinhardt-influenced guitarist Biréli Lagrène. That same year Luc joined up with André Ceccarelli and Jean-Marc Jafet and formed the acclaimed ensemble Trio Sud.
Through the 2000s, Luc gathered international acclaim and traveled the world and shared stages with Billy Cobham, Victor Bailey, Steve Gadd, Al Jarreau, Michel Legrand, Wynton Marsalis, Elvin Jones, and Dee Dee Bridgewater.
He was a French musical treasure and was awarded many high honors in the country. In 2005, he was appointed a knight in France's l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, and he received the Django d'Or in 2008, a high honor named after the French jazz pioneer.
With more than 20 albums to his name, Sylvain Luc played music all the way up to his untimely death in March.
