Santos Chillemi was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on September 13th, 1950. At the conservatory, he studied the piano, as well as electronic music, harmony and composition, and soon began touring South America with various Latin-American groups.
Like his Sicilian forbearers, he sings Italy. Like his own past, he hums Spain. Like his youth, he fills his lungs with the Rolling Stones. His music can, as it suites him, incorporate Bartok, Miles Davis, Chick Corea, Keith Jarrett, country folklore or Argentine tango...
A. Perrot
Santos Chillemi has lived in Paris since 1981.
"The music of Santos Chillemi exemplifies a unique and personal conception of a current trend in jazz, a form inspired by the most varied sources: rock, contemporary music, tango, traditional Argentine themes... Santos also possesses major compositional talent, as demonstrated by his highly defined style. Choosing to compose, strikes me as necessary today for jazz to progress. Santos is one of those people who is moving jazz forward."
Martial Solal