William Chabbey

Born in 1967 into a family of artists and creators, William decided at a very young age to take up the guitar, inspired by Django Reinhardt. By the age of 15, he was playing in rock, funk, rhythm & blues, and pop bands. In 1986, he began studying under the legendary Pierre Cullaz at the CIM.

Starting in 1988, he began performing and playing with a large number of artists on the Paris jazz scene. He played with drummers George Brown (Wes Montgomery, Chet Baker), Steven McCraven (Archie Shepp), and Andy Barron, as well as double bassists James Lewis (B. Higgins, V. Freeman) and Gil Lachenal. He subsequently continued to play in blues and rhythm-and-blues bands, developing a passion for Brazilian music that led him to perform with Brazilian bassist Carlos Werneck (Tania Maria, C. Buarque), drummer Thierry Arpino (Jean-Luc Ponty), and singer Catia Werneck. Since 2000, William has accompanied saxophonist Moritz Peter on his numerous tours and recorded his two albums, “Dex Mex” and “Café Luz,” on which he also served as arranger and producer. He has recorded on Catia Werneck’s albums (Saudades de Paris, La vie en rose, Naturalmente) as well as on Carlos Werneck’s album MMM and performs with him. Since 2006, he has formed a duo with guitarist-singer Jean-Yves Dubanton, with whom he performs regularly and recorded on the album “C’est tout” alongside Diego Imbert, Franck Wolf, Jean-Claude Laudat, and Biréli Lagrène. More recently, he has been playing in a guitar duo with Jean-Philippe Bordier (album in the works). These musicians have greatly influenced his career and regularly perform alongside him. His collaboration with double bassist Gil Lachenal and drummer Andy Barron led to his first album, “Meeting with the Cool,” released in 1995, which also featured drummer George Brown, bassist Carlos Werneck, and virtuoso saxophonist Boris Blanchet.