Ideas Festival  / Music / Sun 3rd Dec / 19h30 - 21h30

Maël grew up following his saxophonist father on the roads and was constantly surrounded by music. He started studying classical piano at the academy. At the age of 12, he studied at the Kuntshumaniora in Brussels, where he developed his passion for jazz. At 16, he attended the Brussels Royal Conservatory and took classes with Eric Legnini, Nathalie Loriers, and Vincent Bruyninckx among others. After successfully graduating from the conservatory, he is now doing his Master's at the internationally renowned Basel Academy of Music. Wynton Marsalis noticed Maël at the age of 14, and would later be responsible for the strong relationship he has with his mentor Nduduzo Makhathini with whom he regularly gets lesson from. Meanwhile, he also learned from Aaron Parks, Hamilton de Holanda, Grégoire Maret, and Kenny Werner.

Eliott started playing the guitar at 6, and developed his passion for jazz from 12. He first trained with Peter Hertmans and Bert Cools, while still in high school (Kunsthumaniora Brussel). During his school career, he obtained the status of “TOP-Artist” from the Department of Culture. Eliott was also admitted as a “young talent” at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. At the age of 16, he had the chance to jam with Wynton Marsalis during one of his tours in Europe, who then invited him for a session organized by the Jazz at Lincoln Center and broadcasted from Dizzy’s Club in New York. At the age of 17, Eliott recorded his first album with Stéphane Guillaume as special guest. He was then invited by the Brussels Jazz Orchestra in “De Werf” (Aalst). As soon as his album was released, he started performing at BOZAR, the Grand-Place of Brussels, the Brosella, the Getxo Jazz Festival, the Leuven Jazz Festival, the River Jazz Festival, the Djangofollie, and more. In 2022, he started studying at the Jazz Campus in Basel, Switzerland. There he studied with Lionel Loueke, Wolfgang Muthspiel, Jeff Ballard, Mark Turner, Larry Grenadier, Jorge Rossy, among others. That same year, Eliott was invited by the Swiss Embassy for a private concert in front of President Ignazio Cassis, and King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium. In March 2023 Eliott was named “young artist in residence” at the Leuven Jazz Festival and had the chance to perform with the famous pianist Aaron Parks. In April 2023, the Knuets/Secula quartet was selected for the finals of the international jazz competition “Keep an Eye” in Amsterdam. They won the prize for best arrangement. Eliott also had the chance to be invited by Jorge Rossy for a trio, with which he will perform in the future, notably at Bozar.