Bio
Born in Latvia in 1994, Jānis Fedotovs begins to play percussions when only 5 years old. Aged 14, he progressively turned into a specialist of vibraphone, an instrument approaching the piano, unusual among the most recents instuments taking part to a Symphony Orchestra. One day, as Jānis is waiting for a class to begin at the Music Highschool Emils Darzins, he starts improvisations with an other percussions player. Few weeks later, the duo meets a bassist and a guitarist : the first jazz group of Jānis Fedotovs is born. A side from its story, he cumulates classical music awards from his country : Richards Zaļupe Special Price at the National Competition in 2009, First Price of the International Percussions Competition (vibraphone category) in Italy, New Artist of the Year at the Latvian Grand Music Award and winner of Ineses Galantes talanti in 2014. He also plays with many orchestra as a solist (Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, Jazeps Vitols Symphony Orchestra, etc).
Eager to go further in his mastery of vibraphone and willing to deeper his knowledges of Jazz Music, Jānis moves to France. There, he attends Emmanuel Séjourné and Eric Watson classes at the Haute Ecole des Arts du Rhin (HEAR – Académie Supérieure de musique de Strasbourg), keeps composing and playing as a solist in many Orchestra. He also performs in Jazz Festivals such as Jazzdor, Artissimo, Inese Galante Summertime , Saulkrasti Jazz, travelling with his vibraphone in France, Latvia, Switzerland, Germany and Luxembourg. In 2019, he recorded his first album.
In 2020, Janis gathers around him three french musicians, a pianist, a double bass player and a percussions player, and create the Janis Fedotovs Quartet. The group, organised around the vibraphone player, combine influences from pop, electro and metal musics, with improvisations and dialogues proper to jazz Music. When he is not playing in France or abroad, with an orchestra or with his Jazz group, Janis teaches percussions at the Music Academy of Montesson, next to Paris, where he lives.