From Stéphan Forté himself : "Some of you requested some practicing videos, so here it is ! Rehearsing "De Praestigiis Daemonum" from "The Shadows Compendium" :))"

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STEPHAN FORTE is undoubtedly one of the most innovating virtuoso of the new generation. With influences ranging from Bartok to Meshuggah, his musical landscape could be described as such: modern virtuosity meets deep sensibily, both evolving within darkest musical corners.
In 1997, one year after he had been graduated from the famous music school CMCN, STEPHAN FORTE composed his first instrumental demo "Visions", which is considered to be the starting point of the ADAGIO adventure. This demo, being very clearly Neoclassical-oriented, quickly helped Stephans name to be noticed among the guitaristic community and allowed him to sign his first endorsement deals with Godin (guitars) and Rocktron (effects). In June 1998, he opened for YNGWIE MALMSTEEN and was contacted by producer Chris Tsangarides ( OZZY OSBOURNE, JUDAS PRIEST, GARY MOORE!) who wished to work with him. The same year he finally started a showcase tour for Rocktron and his new sponsor: Lag Guitars. In 1999, Olivier Garnier, former artistic director at CNR Music ( ANGRA, SYMPHONY X!), asked STEPHAN FORTE to compose some new material with vocals. Stunned by the virtuosity of the guitar-keyboard interplay, Garnier sent him to Philadelphia to record and eventually form a band with Ukrainian keyboard player Vitalij Kuprij, who was then recording for the well-known Shrapnel Records label ( Steve Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen! ). The two musicians spent two weeks together working, but gradually became aware of their different views on music. Finally they decided to put an end to their collaboration after they had recorded a four tracks demo.
STEPHAN FORTE came back to France to finish his compositions and then recruited Dirk Bruinenberg, Franck Hermanny, David Readman and Richard Andersson to record the first ADAGIO album with producer Dennis Ward. "Sanctus Ignis" was released on March 2001 and received great success in Japan and in France where it was voted album of the month in the Club Dial.
While he was giving a masterclass, Stephan met Kevin Codfert, a young keyboard player who wanted the guitarist to listen to his demo. Very impressed by the talent displayed, Stephan finally asked Kevin to be a permanent member of the the band.Afterwards, Stéphan entered a dark and difficult period of time which would influence his work and give birth to the "Underworld" album. Because of the strong orchestral and choral aspect of the music, it was obvious for Stephan that he would record with a massive choir ensemble. After three month of intense rehearsals, the Ensemble Vocal De Lyon conducted by Guy Cornut, was recorded by Dennis Ward at the splendid Temple Des Terreaux in Lyon. The five musicians worked very hard as the parts were quite complex and "Underworld" was finally released in September 2003 in Europe and Japan (Avalon/ Marquee). In order to have a more stable and balanced personal life, Dirk chose to leave the group and stop playing music for a while. Franck asked Eric Lebailly, an awesome drummer from Marseille with whom hed had played with in numerous occasions, to audition for the band. From the start, the guys knew he was the drummer they needed, and after a few rehearsals, Eric officially joined ADAGIO and played in Montereau ( near Paris ), on 8th November 2003 for Adagios first concert. Many fans were present at Adagios first tour in February 2004. The Paris & Strasbourg concerts were recorded and became Adagios first live album entitled A Band in Upperworld-Live. Due to management disagreements, Adagio and David Readman parted ways during the summer 2004.
Adagio played US Prog Power V Festival in September 2004, opened for Robert Plant in 2006, toured Japan in 2007 Stephan has since released an instructional DVD called "Underworld Solos", and finished two more Adagio albums: "Dominate" and "Archangels In Black". In support of the release of "Archangels in Black" , ADAGIO embarked on a full European tour with KAMELOT which definitely increased the band's international fan base. Many praised the band's scorching live performances and hailed Stephan as one of the main European guitar player of his time. In 2009, STEPHAN FORTE finally decides to go further and explore his very personal self without any musical limit. The Shadows Compendium, is the result of those 3 years of intense work and reflexion, and what we have here simply is an outstanding and unique piece of music.

https://stephanforte.org/
https://www.facebook.com/stephanforte
Stéphan is endorsed by : Lag, Mesa Boogie, DiMarzio, Elixir, Line 6 & Dunlop.

"The shadows compendium" OUT NOW

TRACKLISTING :
1. The Shadows Compendium (Guest: Jeff Loomis / Nevermore)
2. De Praestigiis Daemonum (Guest Mattias IA Eklundh / Freak Kitchen)
3. Spiritual Bliss
4. Duat (Guest: Glen Drover /Megadeth)
5. Sorrowful Centruroides (Guest: Derek Taylor /Solo artist)
6. Prophecies Of Loki XXI
7. I think there's someone in the kitchen (Guest: Daniele Gottardo/Solo Artist)
8. Improvisation on Sonata no. 14, c # minor - Op. 27 no 2