Fabrizio Cassol

For twentyfive years, Fabrizio Cassol is the composer and saxophonist of the band Aka Moon.

He has often worked with choreographers such as Alain Platel (les ballets C de la B – vsprs, pitié!, Coup Fatal), Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker (Rosas),  the Samoan Lemi Ponifasio (Mao Company), the Congolese Faustin Linyekula (studio Kaboka). In opera, he already worked with Philippe Boesman-Luc Bondy, in theatre with Tg Stan.

His close collaboration with KVS, the Flemish Royal Theatre, when led by Jan Goossens, was followed by an artistic residence in the opera De Munt La Monnaie (Brussels) led by Bernard Foccroulle.

Since 2012, he has been artist in residence at the Fondation de l'Abbaye Royaumont near Paris to continue studying world cultures. His particular interest in non-European music started after a trip to the Aka pygmies in Central Africa in 1992 and expanded to Asia (especially India) and Africa where he worked with the diva from Mali Oumou Sangare, the Griot Baba Sissoko and the Black Machine, the Indian master of percussion U. K. Sivaraman and the Senegalese Doudou N'Diaye Rose. As for the improvised music scene, he worked with Marc Turner, Robin Eubanks, David Gilmore, Magic Malik, Marc Ducret and Joe Lovano.

Together with DJ Grazzhoppa, he created the first big band with 14 DJs and participated in the concept of the aulochrome, a new polyphonic and chromatic woodwind instrument built by François Louis.
He passes on his extensive knowledge of music from oral and written traditions, of chamber music or symphonic work in workshops and master classes all over the world, such as: at the Conservatoire National Supérieur in Paris, the Royal Academy in London, the Conservatory in Jerusalem, in Alger, Beijing, Berlin, Chennai, Tunis and Royaumont.

In 2017 he released with Aka Moon a collector box as celebration of their 25th anniversary, inclusive the new album ‘Now’ that returns to the roots of the group, presenting the original trio playing together.