His Senegalese friends supposedly gave him the nickname Saï Saï Saï, no doubt reflecting his exuberance, his warm, passionate outbursts, and that fiery musicality that captivates everyone from the night owls of Rue des Lombards to those at the Calvi Festival.

The flame still burns brightly, but the music now unfolds masterfully within truly beautiful compositions: the shadow of Wayne Shorter sometimes hovers over this heir to Sonny Rollins, and that's no small compliment.

His partners (guitarist Jérôme Barde, pianist Emmanuel Duprey, and bassist Gilles Naturel) have also contributed to the repertoire with great success. Drummer Jean-Pierre Arnaud provides the unfailing pulse, and trumpeter Stéphane Belmondo joins in on two tracks. Famous for his mohawk hairstyle, the Aix-en-Provence saxophonist is not yet 30 years old, yet already occupies a prominent place in the local jazz scene, and soon elsewhere.