Airelle Besson – musician, trumpet player, composer, author, arranger, performer and producer

Trumpeter, composer and arranger, Airelle Besson is acclaimed on the European jazz scene for her clear and powerful playing, virtuoso but never showy, rich in emotion and musicality.

Could you tell us about your profession, in a few words?

I am a musician, trumpet player, composer, writer, arranger, jazz improviser, performer, and producer. I am also a trained conductor. At the beginning of my artistic career, I played in small jazz groups, quartets and quintets as well as in larger ensembles – big bands. I have been a member of Sacem since 2004, and since then, my work as a composer has developed quite a lot.

Today, I get commissions for all types of instrumentations and contexts: from duos to symphonic orchestras, big bands and harmony orchestras, for creative works or for competition pieces.

How has Sacem been useful to you?

Sacem is indispensable because it collects all my royalties as a composer, during my concerts or for my radio and television broadcasts. It is indispensable because it is the only organisation that does this.

It also distributes my royalties from abroad – especially from radio stations in other European countries. My last album released last year, is widely broadcast in Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland and on German and English radio stations.

Par ailleurs, j’ai bénéficié de plusieurs aides de la part de la Sacem, notamment entre 2013 et 2015 : des In addition, I have received several grants from Sacem, notably between 2013 and 2015: grants for composition, for my international development, for editorial development for my publisher, for tours and for production. It was really quite substantial! It happened at a key moment when the support was a real accelerator. At the same time, I was in residence at the Jazz Sous les Pommiers festival in Coutances, within the framework of a partnership between the festival and Sacem. Everything came together at the right time. It’s exactly the support I would have dreamed of. It even opened doors for me internationally. I went to play at the Kriol Jazz Festival in Cape Verde and at Jazzahead in Bremen, Germany. Recently, I received a commission from France Musique for the program “création mondiale” in which the Sacem is a partner. I am currently giving cine-concerts in art cinemas in France, and Sacem helps out with production so that everything happens under the best conditions.

How would you sum up Sacem tn three words?

Indispensable, supportive ans professional.

– Crédit photo : Sylvain Gripoix –