Philippe Portejoie studied saxophone at the Conservatory of Nantes with Jean-Pierre Magnac, then continued at the Paris National Conservatory of Music with Daniel Deffayet. He has received numerous awards as a Soloist and as a Chamber Muscian (Léopold Bellan, International Competition UFAM, Paris International Chamber Music Competition, Aix les Bains International Competition...).
« I love the DUO ligatures, for their richness of tone, ease of emission and maneuverability on the mouthpiece »
He has played and recorded with the main French Orchestras (Paris Orchestra, France National Orchestra, Radio-France Philarmonic Orchestra, Colonne Orchestra, Ile-de-France Orchestra, Opera Orchestra, Toulouse Orchestra, Oays-de-Loire Orchestra, Slovac Orchestra, Orquesta Sonfónica de Bogotá...) and with a number of directors like Jeffrey Tate, Myu-Wung Chung, Michel Plasson, Peter Eotvos, Luciano Beri, Marek Janowsky, Kurt Mazur, Marc Soustrot, Dervaux, Ouerre François Llevar, Kéo Hussein...).
As a Soloist, Philippe has played with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Bogotá at the Jeju Summer Band Festival in Korea with the Bratislava Orchestra, the PKF-Prague Philarmonia as for Chamber Music, he's played with Guy Touvron, Ariane Jacon, Henri Bok, Sylvie Hue, Christophe Roy, Xavier Phillips, Roman Leleu, Pascal Vingeron, Ute Grefer, Anthony Millet and Hughes Leclere among others.
Since 1986, he plays duo saxophone and piano with Fédérique Lagarde, with whom he has recorded 9 CDs and has played in more than 250 concerts. Along with Claude Bolling's Big Band, he plays first sax alto and has recorded more than a dozen CDs and done more than 500 concerts.
Philippe Portejoie develops his career between classical music, jazz and sometimes he plays in movies or TV (Claude Lelouch - Hasards et coïncidences, Christophe Barratier - Faubourg 36, Corinne Touzet-Valentin and Co., Michel Hawanavicius - Rio ne répond plus y Serge Bromberg and Ruxandra Medera -L'enfer d'Henri-Georges Clouzot, Cesar 2010 to the best documentary).
He's shared the big stage in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Colombia, Mexico, El Salvador, Scotland, Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Switzerland, Cheque Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Norway, Sweden, Greece, South Korea, Algeria, Morocco, Ivory Coast, Reunion Island, Canada, Taiwan, Latvia, Guadalupe and Brazil with Top Jazz Players like Phil Zoods, Clark Terry, Dizzie Gillespie, Stéphane Grappelli, Didier Lockwood, John Johyn Fadis Hendryx, Benny Bailey, Roger Guerin, Martial Solal, Gérard Badini, Claude Tissendier, Marcel Azzola Sylvain Kassap, François Castielo, Stan Laferriere, Michel Pastre to name a few.
He has certainly left his mark with Claude Bolling, Michel Delakian, Marcel Azzola, Quatuor of Saxophones Inédits, Romain Leleu, Xavier Phillips, Trío Futurum, Claude Delangle and Ute Grefrer. He is member of the SACEM and his music is published by Leduc, Delage Music and Delatour.
Due to his vast experience in Saxophone Quartets, he has participated in the Gabriel Pierne Quartet, Jean Ledieu Quartet and currently in the Inédits Quartet.
Many composers have written for him. As much as for Saxophone Duos and Piano, Sax Trios, Piano and Clarinet as for Soloist. As is the case with the Concert for Saxophone and Trumpet of Trygve Madsen or the Concerto Giocoso d'Alain Margoni.
Philippe Portejoie became a Saxophone Professor at the Regional Conservatory of Paris in 1995 and since then students from all over the world travel to come and study with him.
He is also Professor at the CRD d'Evry-Centre-Essone since 1987. He's been rercently appointed Professor at the Paris CCR, the Darius Milhaud Conservatory and at the Centre Supérieur de Paris-Boulogne-Billancourt.
He frequently gives master classes in France and abroad like at the Nice International Summer Academy, Labaroche, Rencontres Musicales de Lorraine, Flaine International Academy, Colomber International Academy, Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico, National and Javeriana Universities of Bogota and the Antioquia University of Medellin, Janacek de Ostrava Conseratory, Oslo Royal Conservatory, Seoul University, Universtiy of Taipei, Curitiba Festival, CAFAM Bogota, among others.
Philippe plays with Buffet-Crampon Saxophones, Selmer and Vandoren Mouthpieces. He also collaborates with Rico-D'Addario, Feeling Musique and SPEDIDAM.
