SWR Big Band & Marc Godfroid
Biography SWR Big Band & Marc Godfroid
SWR Big Band
17 musicians – one sound. And it's convincing. The SWR Big Band has been nominated for the Grammy multiple times – the world's most important music award. Most recently, SWR Big Band arranger John Beasley won the Grammy in 2023 for "Scrapple From The Apple" from their joint album "Bird Lives." Another great honor was the 2011 "Prêmio da Música General Brasileira": The SWR Big Band was the first German band to be nominated for one of Brazil's most important music awards. With so much acclaim, it's easy to say: The SWR Big Band is one of the best big bands in the world.
Decebal Badila has been a member of our SWR Big Band since 1997. The jazz musician originally comes from Romania and is now known worldwide. He regularly performs international concerts with stars such as Chaka Khan, Shirley Bassey, and Markus Stockhausen and appears on his own TV shows. With his solo CDs "Nothing But Bass" and "Archibald's Dance," he created milestones in the development of the electric bass guitar. Today, Badila is considered one of the leading masters of jazz bass.
Jazz, fusion, or world music: The repertoire is extensive. Just like the guest list: Pat Metheny, Gary Burton, Ivan Lins, Larry Carlton, Curtis Stigers, Roy Hargrove, Roberta Gambarini, Patti Austin, Sammy Nestico, Paula Morelenbaum, Joo Kraus, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Bob Florence, Rob McConnell, Slide Hampton, Maria Schneider, Frank Foster, Bill Holman, Bob Mintzer, Ralf Schmid, Paul Kuhn, Bill Ramsey, Max Greger, and Dieter Reith. Or maybe something a little more pop-oriented? It's also possible – for example, with Max Mutzke, Mousse T., Paul Carrack, Andrew Roachford, Incognito, or Götz Alsmann.
Similar to the big bands in the USA, the SWR Big Band has its own unique sound. It got its name from its founder and conductor, Prof. Erwin Lehn. Its launch date was April 1, 1951: Back then, the SWR Big Band was still called the Südfunk Dance Orchestra. Lehn ensured that people soon began to talk about it as the "Daimler of Big Bands." Many stars have shared the stage: Miles Davis, Chick Corea, Astrud Gilberto, Chet Baker, Caterina Valente, and Arturo Sandoval. Since the early 1990s, the SWR Big Band has performed with different conductors – depending on the project and musical style. Prof. Erwin Lehn is retiring. But his sound remains.
Marc Godfroid
Belgian trombonist Marc Godfroid, born in 1960, lives in Brussels and has the longest commute of all the members of the SWR Big Band.
He joined the BRT (Flemish Radio) Jazz Big Band in 1981. That same year, he was lead trombonist with "EuroJazz," the European Union's big band. A year later, he won the soloist prize at the Tros Big Band Festival in Amersfoort, Netherlands.
In 1985, Gofroid represented Belgium with the EBU (European Broadcasting Union) Big Band at the Pori International Jazz Festival in Finland. This was followed by three productions as a soloist with the renowned Dutch Metropolenfest under the direction of Rogier van Otterloo.
Marc Godfroid has been a member of Peter Herbolzheimer's Rhythm Combination and Brass, the Joe Haider Big Band, and the Joe Haider Sextet since 1991. His collaboration with the two trombone legends Carl Fontana and Bill Watrous, as well as his work as a co-founder of the Brussels Jazz Orchestra, deserves special mention.
Since 1995, the same year he performed with Stephane Grapelli in Paris, he has been a permanent member of the SWR Big Band. He recorded his first solo CD in 1996.
Marc Godfroid teaches at the music academies in Ghent and Amsterdam, among others.
