TWiST
Susanne Paul (Germany/USA), cello & composition
Héloïse Lefebvre (France), violin & composition
TWiST is anything but your typical string duo: plucking, picking, chopping, and bowing against the grain, they twist rhythms, bend expectations, and strike a perfect chord between tradition and rebellion. Writing their own music, they create a new, unique repertoire that blends the expressive sound of violin and cello with the driving energy of a jazz band.
Their musical language weaves together influences from Brazil, Argentina, flamenco, classical forms, and jazz. With just two string instruments, they pack the punch of a miniature orchestra.
In the hands of this French-German duo, groove meets emotion, speed meets stillness, and raw power meets playful virtuosity.
TWIST est un duo à cordes franco-allemand qui brouille les frontières entre jazz, grooves africains et sonorités orientales avec une exquise touche de folie. Les deux musiciennes explorent un langage à la fois créatif et élégant et communiquent en totale symbiose au travers de compositions riches et originales.
TWiST ist ein kein gewöhnliches Streichduo: Sie pflegen die krummen Takte und die runde Sache, das Zupfen, Picking, Choppen, Tremolieren und das Streichen gegen den Strich. Sie schreiben ein neues, einzigartiges Repertoire, das die expressive Klangwelt von Geige und Cello mit der zupackenden Energie einer Jazzband verbindet. In ihrer Klangsprache fließen Einflüsse aus Brasilien, Argentinien, Flamenco, klassischer Formensprache und Jazz zusammen. In minimalistischer Streicherbesetzung bringen sie Kontraste ins Schweben: Groove und Gefühl, Beweglichkeit und Ruhe, erdiger Zugriff und verspielte Virtuosität prägen die Musik des deutsch-französischen Duos.
HÉLOÏSE LEFEBVRE
"technically brilliant and resourceful, she is as obviously at home in classical modernism as in improvised music"- Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung -
Student of the jazz violin legend Didier Lockwood, she’s graduated from the Academy with the state Diploma for Jazz and Improvised Music and a multiple award winners (Stephane Grappelli competition, Young Talents SACEM Prize).
After the release of her critically acclaimed debut in 2017 on french label Laborie Jazz (rated "Revelation" by Jazz Magazine), she released a new EP called "This Secret Cay" in September, 2018 in collaboration with Heartcore Records (founded by iconic guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel).
On the side of her work as a leader, she plays with countless acts on the European jazz scene (Julia Hülsmann Oktett, Bernhard & Peter Meyer 5tet, Move String Quartet, Wanderlust Orchestra, Mejiro). She has travelled all around the world, performing prestigious venues among l’Olympia (Paris), Paris Jazz Festival, Jazz in Marciac, Gypsy Jazz Festival (Nouméa), Haus der Kulturen der Welt (Berlin), Casa da Música (Porto), just to name a few.
SUSANNE PAUL
" Earsplittingly beautiful, rousing, sparkling playing"
- RBB Kulturradio -
Her colorful musical language grows out of her explorations of diverse musical styles: Straight Jazz, Brazilian music, Baroque music, Trash Pop, Tango and Flamenco shape her playing, along with the classical music of her childhood and the punk rock of her teens. In her hands, the 5-string cello turns into a veritable chord, bass, rhythm, and melody instrument.
Growing up in Southern California and Northern Germany in a music-loving German-Mexican family, her polyglot musical curiosity grew naturally. She studied in Berlin and Moscow and spent longer periods of time in Prague and Rio de Janeiro. She performs, composes and arranges in various bands and for theater, and teaches Jazz Cello at the Anton Bruckner University in Linz, Austria and at the UdK (Univerity of Arts) in Berlin, Germany.
CONTACT
BOOKING REQUESTS
Susanne Paul (EN/DE)
Héloïse Lefebvre (EN/FR)