The Belgian guitarist and composer Francis Goya began his professional career in a rock band. Worldwide fame was brought to the musician by the work dedicated to his father, which was included in the debut album. Recognized as the best rock and jazz guitarist of his time, the artist has recorded 35 discs, most of which received gold and platinum status.
Interested in guitar Francois Weier at the age of 13. He started playing at the age of sixteen in the rock group "The Jivaros" founded by him with his brother.
The path to the vocation
The biography of the future celebrity began in 1946. The boy was born in the city of Liege on May 16 in a family of musicians. The boy learned to play the guitar at 13, from 16 he performed with friends and brother in a musical group that performed soul. In 1966, in connection with the arrival of vocalist Lou Deprikom in the team, the ensemble changed its name to Les Liberty Six.
Weier became a member of The J. J. Band in 1970. With her, he toured several countries and recorded albums. Five years later, in 1975, François decided to start a solo career under the name of Francis (Francis) Goya.
The debutant began recording discs with the Plus group. The very first song, "Nostalgia", which the guitarist dedicated to his father, turned into a world hit that brought the creator recognition, "gold" and "platinum" discs.
Goya has been giving concerts since the eighties. He became the most famous rock and jazz guitarist of his time. In between concerts, the performer recorded albums, at least from a collection between tours. One of the few performers of instrumental music has set a kind of record: his discs have sold 28 million copies worldwide.
World glory
Together with the Bolshoi Theater Orchestra, the musician was the first of the light genre artists to perform on the Russian stage in 1981, accompanied by an orchestra of Russian folk instruments and a male choir. The result was the collection "Moscow Nights". It includes unusual arrangements of several Russian popular songs made by the maestro.
The author and performer, who is fond of Latin American music, presented the album Bahia Lady with Brazilian motives in 1991. With Bolivian singer Carmina, over the course of two years he recorded the compilations Festival Latino and Noche Latino, which continued the passionate direction. At the same time, Goya directed the Luxembourg Orchestra at the Eurovision Song Contest in Italy. In 1993 he appeared as a conductor at Eurovision with the Irish Orchestra.
In 1994 a tour of Holland took place. In 1996, the new age album Gondwana was recorded. A couple of years later, the instrumentalist released a collection of songs by Jacques Brel, which gained popularity in Europe. The result of cooperation with Richard Clayderman was another successful collection.
The new collection was presented to fans in 2000. The following year, the maestro toured Estonia with the Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra. In memory of them, he recorded a disc with the works of the greatest composer of this country, Raymond Walgre.
On and off stage
In 2002, the presentation of the album with arrangements by Alexandra Pakhmutova, the favorite author of the performer, took place. The performance took place in St. Petersburg. Recordings in Asian countries received special recognition. Five years later, they toured Russia again.
For ten years, the musician has been constantly on tour. He, like a magician, combines various styles, creating unique works of authorship, especially preferring the combination of the classics of Latin American melodies.
The maestro is involved in charity work. He founded the art and music school "Ateliers Art et Musique" in Marrakech, where he lives with a virtuoso family since 2008, in 2010. The institution is oriented towards everyone, from beginners to professionals. A year later, the Francis Goya Foundation was founded to search for talents and develop children from disadvantaged areas of the country.
The daughter of a musician, Valeria, works in the Foundation. The organization is responsible for concerts to purchase musical instruments and finance creative lessons for children.
