Bio

Joan Chávez is a Colombian musician based in Heilbronn, Germany. His career began in Bogotá, where he performed as a sideman, arranger, and composer, while studying double bass. During this time, he recorded five studio albums and performed at renowned jazz festivals such as Jazz Domingo Festival, Teatro Libre Jazz Festival, Villa de Leyva Jazz Festival, and Atlantijazz in Barranquilla.

In 2014, Joan began his master’s studies in Jazz Performance at Folkwang Universität der Künste in Essen, Germany, under the guidance of Robert Landfermann, now Professor of Double Bass in Cologne HfM. Immersing himself in the jazz scene of North Rhine-Westphalia, he performed at local venues and toured Germany, France, Belgium, and Spain. He also participated in international festivals like the Art Dialogues Festival in Istanbul, Turkey, and the Yilan International Arts Festival in Taiwan. Joan has contributed as a sideman to over 20 discographic productions with prominent musicians from the Cologne scene, including Darius Heid, Duy Luong, Pablo Sáez and Álvaro Severino. In 2020, he participated in the band “Die Parzäros,” recording in Saarbrücken and performing live at SaarlandRadio.

In 2019, Joan released his debut studio album Magdalena, recorded at the Folkwang Universität der Künste studios. The project led to performances on German radio stations such as WDR3 Campus Jazz, Bayerisches Jazzweekend 2019, and Bayerische Rundfunk Bayern 2's BR Klassik RadioJazzNacht. Together with guitarist Santiago Sandoval, Joan toured Europe, performing in Germany, Belgium, Portugal, and Spain.

Over the past four years, Joan has expanded his career to include international tours with event-specialized bands based in the south of France. These tours have taken him across the globe, including performances in New York, Aspen, and Florida in the United States; European destinations spanning from Portugal to Hungary, including the UK and Norway; as well as Morocco, the Maldives, Dubai, Turkey, and Qatar.

In 2024, released his second solo album, Antología, a self-produced project mastered by Martin Ruch. The album features acoustic improvisations, collective recordings with Peter Kahlenborn, Álvaro Severino, and Patricio Boettcher, as well as elements of granular synthesis, modified tape and electronic tools, showcasing a unique fusion of textures and musical approaches