Hoosta Magazine

The Café Laurent, bar of the Hotel d’Aubusson in the heart of Saint Germain des Pres (33 rue Dauphine in the 6th arrondissement) welcomes jazz concerts every Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 6.30 p.m.This legendary cafe became the landmark for jazz lovers from Paris or overseas. Flavien, the bar manager and Christian Brenner, artistic director tell us what makes the Café Laurent so special.

Hoosta: How did you come up with the idea of jazz concerts?
Christian Brenner: “It all started when I met Flavien. I suggested him we could do something together and he accepted, we understood each other immediately. We are on the same wavelength and above all, in love with the Hotel d’Aubusson. We wanted to have the Café Tabou’s spirit back, carrying-on with the tradition.”

Hoosta: What’s the program?
Christian: “On Thursday we are three, Friday and Saturday four. I choose talentuous musicians who don’t have many opportunities to play music in Paris. The music is very eclectic; it’s a dynamic program where each instrument is important. Our style inspired by the synergy of the modern jazz with some classic songs which everybody knows, we also play our own composing. We always try to work in acoustic, playing with the resonance of the different places in the Cafe Laurent. You can listen to us closely at the bar or far to the lounge.”

Hoosta: Who are your guests?
Flavien: “Our guests are mainly regulars from the neighbourhood but also tourists from France or overseas who come back to Hotel d’Aubusson whenever they are in Paris. Regularly, Parisians pass by the hotel and think they should come back because the place looks great. That’s what happened to this guest who became a friend: she lived in the neighboorhood and used to come every night for the last five years. She moved out recently but she still comes here because she says there is no equivalent in Paris. Our clients appreciate the intimacy of the place and everyone finds something they like: the intimate lounge, the outside covered and heated patio or the bar where you can enjoy the concert. A lot of guests say Café Laurent makes them feel like they are in the heart of Saint Germain des Prés during the Belle Epoque when the jazz clubs where whole over the place.

Hoosta: I’ve heard Hotel d’Aubusson brings luck?
Flavien: “Yes, it’s true! Wolgang Becker Good Bye Lenin film maker was nominated for the Cesar ceremony in 2004 for the Best European Movie Award. He slept at the Hotel d’Aubusson and he won! The same thing happened to Florian Henckel Von Donnersmarck who won the award for Best Foreign Movie in 2008 with La Vie des Autres.”

Hoosta : One word to define the Cafe Laurent ?
Flavien: “Without hesitating: pleasure … First of all, because I love working in such a magic place, a place which has a soul. And because I feel that all the clients really enjoy coming here every night.”

Hoosta : A news for our readers?
Christian: “Since the beginning of March, every Wednesday from 9 p.m., the Cafe Laurent welcomes the Rencontres Musicales du Mercredi: the story of an artistic exchange between a pianist and a voice.”

For more information: www.cafe-laurent.com and www.amalgammes.net