About

Born on May 18, 1978, into a family of musicians, Thomas James Potrel grew up in the heart of an artistic universe. His father, a cellist, and his mother, a pianist, both concert performers and professors at the Montpellier Conservatory, instilled in him a passion for music at a very early age. He began playing the transverse flute at the conservatory at the age of 7, before discovering the electric bass in 1991, which quickly became his instrument of choice.

In 1999, he joined Christian Pachiaudi's class at the CNR in Nice, then furthered his training with Frédéric Monino from 2000 to 2003. These years marked the beginning of a rich and versatile artistic career.

In 2001, he joined Los Niños de Sara, the gypsy sound of Alabina, with whom he toured across the United States (Washington, New York, Miami, San Diego, Los Angeles). In 2002, he co-founded Elec'trio, a daring fusion project with Thomas Carbou and Frédéric Marchal, then Elec'quartet with Pierre Diaz, which explores the territories of improvisation and contemporary jazz. At the same time, he began teaching bass in Montpellier.

From 2004 to 2010, he collaborated with numerous artists, including Leila Negrau, Marc Hevea, Venturia, Billie Lee Hart, Christophe Godin, and many others. He developed his technique with Gary Willis and explored jazz with Serge Lazarevitch, earning a DEM (Degree of Professional Studies) with honors.

Since 2016, he has accompanied the legendary Gipsy Kings in concert, with whom he travels the world. His international tours take him to the biggest stages and festivals in North America, Latin America, Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and Asia. From the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles to festivals in Japan, via Brazil, Dubai, as well as Africa, he shares the stage with an emblematic formation of gypsy music. This human and artistic experience allows him to explore an exceptional cultural diversity while remaining deeply connected to the energy of live performance.

At the same time, Thomas has developed a thriving music-for-screen business, composing for films, documentaries, exhibitions, advertisements, and television. He notably created the current theme song for the France 2 show "Infrarouge" and regularly composes music for advertising campaigns, short films, and immersive museum installations.

From 2013 to 2024, he headed the teaching department at the CFPM in Montpellier, where he taught bass, harmony, composition, and music applied to film. A passionate teacher, he is as committed to the transmission of knowledge as he is to creation.

Composer, bassist, arranger and teacher, Thomas James Potrel embodies a generation of artists capable of navigating between the stages of the entire world and the worlds of music for image, in a subtle balance between artistic demands, adaptability and passion.