Richard Galliano

Richard Galliano

Richard Galliano is a French accordionist from Le Cannet, France, born in 1950. He is associated with jazz, musette and tango, and works as a soloist and in several ensembles, including the Richard Galliano New York Trio, Le Quatuor d'accordéons de Paris, Mare Nostrum, Transhumance and Ensemble Pari’s Tango.

Early life and instrument

Galliano is of Franco-Italian background. He begins piano and accordion at the age of four, following his Italian father, Lucien. He grows up in the south of France, near Nice.

Collaborations and tango work

He performs with a wide range of international jazz musicians, including Ron Carter, Chet Baker, Jan Garbarek, Michel Petrucciani, Michel Portal, Toots Thielemans and Claude Nougaro. In 1983, Astor Piazzolla invites him to appear as bandoneon soloist at the Comédie Française in Piazzolla’s incidental music for Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. That collaboration leads to a friendship between the two that continues until Piazzolla’s death in 1992.