Unique piece from the scrapbook of mid 20th century French Jazz critic, poet, author and publisher Gaston Criel is this artfully torn and joined pair of photos of the important post war Parisian jazz clarinetist Claude Luter (1923-2006). Signed and inscribed to Criel who has joined two photos of the musician and torn them for effect.  "Clarinetist Claude Luter towered over the landscape of the postwar Paris jazz scene. A longtime confederate of American bandleader Sidney Bechet, he championed the sound and spirit of traditional jazz into the 21st century...After discovering New Orleans jazz as a teen, he began playing private parties and clubs during the Nazi occupation, and post-liberation, emerged as a fixture at the L'orientais, one of the Latin Quarter's premier nightspots. In the wake of World War II the French embraced American jazz with new fervor, and the caves of Paris' St. Germain de Prés served as the music's epicenter; Luter's trio was the toast of the intellectual elite, playing to crowds that included Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre, and made their first recordings in 1946. Two years later, at the first Nice Jazz Festival, Luter befriended the great Louis Armstrong, and in the months to follow he recorded with a who's who of visiting American jazz musicians including  Willie "The Lion" Smith, Rex Stewart, and Buck Clayton. His most significant association was his work with Bechet,  like Armstrong a pioneer of the New Orleans jazz that shaped Luter's  own playing; first teaming in 1949, Bechet and Luter continued collaborating until the saxophonist's May 1959 death, " (from  his biography on Allmusic) This photo dates to the early 1950s. Very good condition.  Measures 10.5" by 7". Guaranteed to be a period original photograph and inscription - not any kind of reprint.

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