Bernard "Barney" Jean Wilen (4 March 1937[1] – 25 May 1996)[2] was a French tenor and soprano saxophonist and jazz composer.
Life
Wilen was born in Nice, France; his father was an American dentist turned inventor, and his mother was French.[1] He began performing in clubs in Nice after being encouraged by Blaise Cendrars who was a friend of his mother. His career was boosted in 1957, when he worked with Miles Davis on the soundtrack for the Louis Malle film Ascenseur pour l'Échafaud (Elevator to the Gallows). In 1959, Wilen wrote his soundtrack Un Témoin Dans la Ville and studio album Jazz sur Seine with Kenny Clarke. He wrote a soundtrack for Roger Vadim's film Les Liaisons Dangereuses two years later, working with Thelonious Monk.[3] Wilen returned to composing for French films in the 1980s and 1990s. In the mid-to-late 1960s, he became interested in rock,[1] and recorded an album dedicated to Timothy Leary. Wilen toured in Japan for the first time in 1990.[4] He also worked with punk rockers before returning to jazz in the 1990s. Wilen played with modern jazz musicians until his death in 1996. He died of cancer in Paris at the age of 59.[2]
