Jean-Claude Vannier

Jean-Claude Vannier (born 1943) is a French musician, composer and arranger. Vannier has composed music, written lyrics, and produced albums for many singers.

Vannier is regarded as an important musician in his native country; music critic Andy Votel noted his Eastern music influences and named him a pop-culture icon of 1970s France, alongside Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin. He also was the conductor for Marie-France Dufour's song Un train qui part in the Eurovision Song Contest 1973.

Vannier was born during a bomb scare in Courbevoie, Hauts-de-Seine. Self-taught, he began playing the piano at age 18, later arranging for Michel Magne and Alice Dona, his first notions of orchestration taken from the books of the "Que sais-je?" collection.

Jean-Claude collaborated on several film soundtracks including: Les Guichets du Louvre by Michel Mitrani, La Horse by Pierre Granier Deferre, Paris Nous Appartient by Robert Benayoun, Slogan by Pierre Grimblat, Projection Privée by François Leterrier, L'amour Propre by Martin Veyron, La Nuit Tous Les Chats Sont Gris by Gérard Zingg, and Comédie d'été by Daniel Vigne.

Besides his own concerts and diverse musical entertainments, Jean-Claude staged numerous shows for artists such as Véronique Sanson's show with the Prague Symphonic Orchestra at Paris’ Châtelet Theatre, Jane Birkin at the Olympia, “Children's Opera" (for which he also composed the music) and for the Festival of Avignon.