Marc Perrenoud and Daniel Hernandez

Foto: Baptiste Coulon/Federal Studio

Marc Perrenoud was born in Berlin in 1981. The Swiss pianist and composer is regarded as one of the most important figures in contemporary European jazz. He studied at the Lausanne Conservatory (HEMU), where he received his diploma in 2004. With his virtuosity, his sense of improvisation and his own musical language, he quickly made his mark on the jazz scene. He has won several competitions, including the Montreux Jazz Chrysler Award in 2003 and the prize for best soloist at the International Jazz Festival in Bern in 2006. In 2010, he won the ZKB Jazzpreis competition in Zurich with his trio. As leader of the Marc Perrenoud Trio, he can be heard on stages all over the world: from Jazz at Lincoln Centre/New-York (USA) and Snug Harbour/New Orleans (USA) to the London Jazz Festival (UK) and the Marciac Jazz Festival (FR). His critically acclaimed albums include ‘Logo’ (2008), ‘Two Lost Churches’ (2012), ‘Vestry Lamento’ (2013), ‘Hamra’ (2015), ‘Nature Boy. (2016) and ‘Morphée’ (2020). In 2023, Marc Perrenoud collaborated with trumpeter David Enhco for the ‘Chet’ project, a tribute to Chet Baker featuring a mixture of reinterpreted standards and original compositions. For the 2022/2023 season, he was appointed Artist in Residence at the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande (OSR), which testifies to his musical openness. Marc Perrenoud is also a teacher and teaches at the Geneva University of Music. He also heads the Pulse Foundation, which is dedicated to promoting jazz in Switzerland.

Foto: Daniel Hernandez

Daniel Hernandez is a Swiss pianist and composer of Russian-Colombian heritage, born in 1995. He began playing the piano at the age of 8 at the Freiburg Conservatory, where he received classical piano training. In 2012, he turned to jazz and continued his studies with Stefan Aeby. As the winner of the Soto Prize in 2018, he earned a Master’s degree in Jazz Performance in 2023 from the Bern University of the Arts, where he studied with Colin Vallon, Django Bates, and Ralph Alessi. In 2021, he was also awarded the Friedlwald Scholarship. Based in Freiburg, he is active in numerous projects spanning a wide range of styles, including contemporary jazz, experimental music, Afrobeat, hip-hop, funk, and improvised music. He performs regularly in Switzerland and across Europe. In 2024, he participated in the Swiss Diagonales Jazz tour with the trio OKWOK, whose debut album was released in 2022. Since 2025, he has been developing a personal project focused on solo piano improvisation.