Didier Lockwood -

Didier Lockwood (Feb. 11, 1956 — Feb. 18, 2018) was a French violinist with Seventies stints in Magma, Surya, Synthesis, Visitors, and Zao. Starting with the 1976 Music-Zag release Jazz Rock, he made thirty-plus albums for MPS, JMS, and other labels.

Background

Didier Lockwood was born Didier André Paul Lockwood on February 11, 1956, in Calais, Pas-de-Calais, France. His father was a schoolteacher and violin instructor at the Calais Conservatoire. Francis, his older brother, played piano and introduced him to jazz. Didier studied violin from age six at the conservatoire. At thirteen, he joined the Orchestre Lyrique at the Théâtre Municipal in Calais.

By 1970, Lockwood embraced amplified violin, inspired by violinist Jean-Luc Ponty on King Kong: Jean-Luc Ponty Plays the Music of Frank Zappa. That June, he discovered Magma through a performance of “Stöah” on the television program Discorama. In 1972, Lockwood won first prize at the Calais Conservatoire and a national contemporary-music prize from the French performing-rights society SACEM for a composition for prepared violin.

Lockwood joined Abracadabra at sixteen with Francis and former members of the French rock group Alice. The brothers moved to Vallauris on the Côte d’Azur, where they received salaries from a patron. Didier also played with the band Zoo in nearby Valbonne. He studied harmony and piano at the École Normale de Musique in Paris.

In 1974, Lockwood partook in the space-rock album Visitors, produced by Jean-Pierre Massiera with a larger studio ensemble.Meanwhile, Francis contacted drummer Christian Vander, who sought a pianist for a new Magma lineup. The brothers joined Magma in late 1974 through auditions on “Köhntarkösz” and “Mëkanïk Kömmandöh.” Didier played on the band’s 1975 release Live/Hhaï, a document of their show at Taverne de l’Olympia in Paris.

Lockwood reunited with Francis for a joint album with bassist Bunny Brunel, drummer Kirt Rust, and keyboardists Patrick Gauthier and Luc Plouton. The brothers recorded Jazz-Rock in July 1976 at Studio Antibes in La Fontonne with Massiera.

Discography:

Jazz Rock (1976 • Lockwood)
Thank You Friends (1978 • François Cahen & Didier Lockwood)
New World (1979)
Live in Montreux (live, 1981)
Fasten Seat Belts (1982)
The Kid (1983)
Didier Lockwood Group (1984)
Trio (1984 • Philip Catherine, Christian Escoudé & Didier Lockwood)
Out of the Blue (1985)
Absolutely Live (live, 1986 • UZEB & Didier Lockwood)
Rhythm & BLU (1986 • John Blake, Didier Lockwood & Michał Urbaniak)
1 2 3 4 (1987)
Au clair de la Lune (1989)
Phoenix 90 (1990)

References and notes

Didier Lockwood — Label biography confirming the full birth name, birth date, and birthplace. (Universal Music France)
Didier Lockwood — Le grand entretien — December 29, 2011 broadcast biography covering the musical family, childhood violin studies, theater orchestra, and conservatoire and SACEM prizes. (France Inter)
…violon — Michel Bourre interview — Rock & Folk, No. 122, March 1977. Firsthand account of Abracadabra, Vallauris, Zoo, Paris studies, the Antibes jam, and Magma. Three interview scans appear near the foot of the page. (Groupes et chanteurs 60’s–70’s)
Visitors — Reissue-label account identifying Massiera as producer and the album as the first recorded appearance by Didier Lockwood. (Musea Records)
Dans l’antre du dieu Vander : Didier Lockwood et Magma — Philippe Gonin examines the late-1974 recruitment, Francis Lockwood’s approach to Vander, audition repertoire, and June 1975 live recordings. (Epistrophy)
Discographie de Didier Lockwood — Martin Guerpin and Lucas Le Texier distinguish the 1974 Visitors appearance, 1975 Magma album, and 1976 Music-Zag debut shared with Francis. (Epistrophy)
Bunny Brunel, Lockwood — Jazz-Rock — Original French Music-Zag edition, catalog number 773 001; confirms the 1976 release, Studio Antibes, and producer Jean-Pierre Massiera. (Discogs)
Volkor — Jazz-Rock + Debbi — Musea reissue credits identify the debut personnel and date the Jazz-Rock sessions to July 1976 at Studio Antibes in La Fontonne. (Discogs)