Matthieu Emana Eskenazi

After having studied the piano as a child, Matthieu "Emana" Eskenazi started playing the bass guitar at 14 and discovered the double bass some years later. He established his musical personality under the guidance of his principal teachers, Remy Chaudagne and Noel Ekwabi.Thanks to Noel Ekwabi, Manu Dibango's musical director, and in parallel with his carrier in jazz and other occidental musics, Emana began to appreciate and develop the skills to play african styles such as bikutsi, makossa, mangabeu, assiko, dombolo, sega... His nickname « Emana » comes from his cameroonian colleagues who decided to baptize him as he adopted their musical culture.His professional experiences, strengths and passions have driven Emana to play with numerous artists from Cameroon, Senegal, Mali, Congo, Madagascar, Indian Ocean Islands, Morocco, Tunisia or Centrafrica. Amongst these he was chosen as the official bass player for the "national" orchestra of the Centrafrican Republic called the Musiki Orchestra. The mix between jazz and ethnic musics has become Emana's favorite game. Thus it's not surprizing to see him involved in various stylistic projects in funk, raï, salsa, blues, jazz, african or indian, alongside the musicians of Cheb Mami, Cheikha Rimitti, Salif Keita, Manu Dibango, the Orchestre National De Barbes, Papa Wemba... In addition to his work as a sideman on tour or in studio, Matthieu « Emana » Eskenazi often expresses his talents as composer, artistic producer, arranger or musical director for various artists. MORE INFO ON WEBSITE WWW.EMANAWORLD.COM