French composer, pianist, and flautist, from Besancon (France). Damien Groleau was familiar from his childhood with keyboards and improvisation. He studied classical and improvised piano with Igor Blagodatov. He won the national contest Jeunesses musicales de France at 16 and the Jeunes Talents contest L’Illiade Strasbourg at 16. His first trio of compositions was “Sunjazz”. As a teenager, he began his career on the stage with many performances in jazz groups and Cuban music in France (Festival d’Audincourt and Montreux Jazz festival). He completed his training as a composer and pianist at the Montbeliard conservatory after two years in Paris at Didier Lockwood in 2002-2003. Damien Groleau studied flute with Orlando Maraca Valle, a great Cuban flutist, in Paris. He also studied with Antonio Rocha, a Brazilian choro flutist in Rio de Janeiro. He is a rising pianist and active flute performer.
