Sylvestre Etienne was born in Villefranche-sur-Saône, France. Introduced to music at an early age by his father, he grew up listening to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Johann Sebastian Bach as well as The Police and AC/DC. He began playing music at 17, starting out on drums, driven by an insatiable passion.
Eager to deepen his knowledge, he studied jazz at the Nice Conservatory with François Raimondi de Luca, who notably performed with Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra and Enrico Macias. At the same time, he gained hands-on experience performing in various local piano-bar bands, learning the craft on stage.
After settling in Toulon, he launched his professional career, playing with Inigo Quartet, Kenobi, Swinouch and Jerk House Connection, with whom he recorded two albums (Souleiado and Soulful in Love) and appeared on numerous compilations and maxi-singles.
A series of musical encounters led him to perform in most major festivals and clubs along the French Riviera, as well as internationally: a Brazilian tour with the gypsy jazz band Swinouch, appearances at the NAMM Show in Los Angeles and at Music China in Shanghai.
Today, he divides his time between teaching, live performances (Aioli, Alexandra Burgos…), gear demonstrations for PRS, Blackstar, T-Rex and DR, and recording sessions in his studio, Music Kitchen.
