Maël Chauvet: Handpan in Brittany, From Brocéliande to the Stage

Have you just heard one of the melodies composed by handpan player Maël Chauvet? Want to learn more about this percussionist’s journey and live performances? How did Maël Chauvet actually discover the Hang drum?

After hearing him for the first time in 2020 during a performance with his duo Adag’nan, I was immediately captivated by his soft, ethereal compositions. Since then, I’ve been keeping up with Maël Chauvet’s latest news and listening to the new tracks he releases, so I can give you a quick look at his career.

By reading this article in its entirety, you will learn about:

• Maël Chauvet's musical journey
• The various projects he has undertaken
• His discography

This will give you a much clearer picture of this Breton musician’s professional path.

Now, let’s take a closer look at the life of Maël Chauvet.

What has been the musical journey of handpan player Maël Chauvet?

Maël Chauvet is a French musician specializing in the handpan. Born in 1984 into a family of artists, he was immersed in music before he even arrived: while pregnant, his mother worked in a recording studio, so Maël spent his final month in the womb surrounded by sound. As a child, he grew up backstage at concerts across Europe, with music becoming his first language. This deep immersion in the musical world allowed him to start playing several instruments at a very early age, including the Celtic harp, the African kora, the Japanese koto, and, of course, the handpan.

Before becoming one of the familiar faces of the handpan in Brittany, Maël Chauvet honed his skills in instrumental hip-hop and trip-hop. Under the pseudonym “Stab,” he built a reputation as a turntablist DJ, the art of making music with turntables and vinyl records by reworking popular tracks. As a result, he explored the art of scratching in depth and collaborated extensively in the trip-hop scene. This first artistic life led him to work with key figures in the genre: Maël shared the stage with Wax Tailor (even as an opening act at the legendary Olympia in Paris) and the Anglo-Québécois collective A State of Mind (ASM). He has also composed for other artists such as harpist Myrdhin and rapper Mattic, and produced remixes for international groups (The Broken Orchestra, Long Arm, Ogma, etc.).

In 2014, Maël discovered the handpan, a relatively new instrument whose soft, hypnotic sounds immediately captivated him. From then on, he gradually refocused his musical universe around this quirky acoustic “UFO”. Settled on the edge of the Forest of Brocéliande in Brittany, he began performing as a solo handpan player in 2014. However, he did not abandon his other musical tools; on the contrary, he integrated the handpan into his palette alongside his harp, machines, and world instruments, creating a personal fusion of electronic and acoustic music. Maël sometimes confides that he dreams of an imaginary jam session where Ravi Shankar would drink tea alongside DJ Shadow, Jan Garbarek, Bonobo, Ballaké Sissoko, Mari Boine, and Hidden Orchestra.

Onstage, Maël Chauvet stands out for his multi-instrumental approach and warm presence. He sometimes plays three handpans simultaneously to expand the instrument’s harmonic possibilities and move beyond purely intuitive playing. Based in Brittany, he performs throughout France, as well as in Switzerland and Belgium. Driven by a desire to share his art, he also offers intimate at-home concerts, playing in private living rooms for small groups for a fee of around $250 per performance, and he gladly brings his music to wellness events (yoga, meditation), wedding ceremonies, and other private occasions. In these settings, he favors improvisation to connect with the present moment and the audience. He also reaches for his Celtic harp, an African kora, or a Japanese koto to deepen his improvisations, adding Celtic, Mandinka, or Middle Eastern colors to his pieces. Watch one of his performances below:

What artistic projects has this percussionist been involved in?

Throughout his career, Maël Chauvet has taken part in many musical projects, and you can clearly see how his sound has evolved over time. Here are his main collaborations:

• Berry Weight : his first major project, a Canadian-Swiss trip-hop duo formed with Montreal producer Nicolas “Apewok” Frenette. Under his alias Stab, Maël composes downtempo tracks with cinematic textures.
• InQi-Teka : a project born from the meeting between Maël and multi-instrumentalist Ludovic Winkler (flutist and didgeridoo player). Together, they fuse scratching, electronic beats, and traditional instruments to create a hybrid sound.
• Dodjoma : a collective founded around 2015, bringing together Maël Chauvet (on turntables and handpan), Ludovic Winkler (KornBass), flutist/beatboxer D’Jo, and dancer Pierre-Yves Diacon. Their EP Syntropia (2017) features six tracks blending electro and hip-hop, with touches of dub and improvisation.
• Leames : Launched in 2018, Leames is an ambitious project in which Maël Chauvet invites numerous artists to collaborate around his compositions. The album Dreams Under Trees (2018) stems directly from this project.
• Adag'nan : Formed in Brittany around 2019, Adag’nan is an acoustic world-jazz/trip-hop duo featuring Maël Chauvet (handpan, electric harp, backing vocals) and singer-saxophonist Roxane Au’Ra. You can visit the official website here.
• Tatcha : Maël’s latest project, Tatcha is a duo formed with multi-instrumentalist Julien Coste. The two partners came together through their shared passion for the handpan and world music.

In addition to these major projects, Maël Chauvet is also involved in smaller-scale collaborations. For example, he composes accompanying music for documentaries or live shows, and he takes part in handpan festivals, where he shares the stage with other virtuosos of the instrument.

What is the discography of handpan player Maël Chauvet?

With almost 15 years of artistic creation behind him, Maël Chauvet has recorded an impressive number of albums and tracks, both solo and alongside other musicians. Discover some of the most notable releases below:

• Music for Imaginary Movies – Berry Weight (album, 2010): dreamy downtempo trip-hop co-composed with Apewok, showcasing Maël’s (aka Stab’s) talent for organic, cinematic electronic arrangements.
• Lost Tapes 2007/2008 – Berry Weight (compilation, 2015): a collection of unreleased or alternate instrumentals from the Berry Weight duo.
• Inqiteka – InQi-Teka (album, 2016): an electro-world fusion of scratching and didgeridoo, born from Maël’s collaboration with Ludovic Winkler.
• Fenêtre Ouverte – Maël Chauvet (solo album, 2016): Maël Chauvet’s first solo album, recorded shortly after he moved to Brocéliande. The album skillfully blends handpan and electronic music, translating his introspection—seen through his “open window” onto the surrounding nature—into sound. Released in September 2016, the album features 11 tracks.
• Improvisations – Maël Chauvet (EP, 2016): a series of improvised handpan pieces captured live in August 2016.
• Jam Sessions – Entre frères – Maël Chauvet (EP, 2016): jam sessions recorded with family, reflecting the playful, experimental atmosphere in which Maël grew up.
• Dreams Under Trees – Leames (album, 2018): the flagship album of the Leames project, acclaimed for its instrumental richness and overall beauty. Rated 9/10 by some specialist media outlets.
• Schiste d’Émeraude – Maël Chauvet (EP, 2019): a solo EP recorded in the mountains, released in May 2019, where Maël explores mineral, crystalline handpan tones.
• Mountain Session – Maël Chauvet (EP, 2019): released in February 2019, this mini-album captures two improvisations recorded out in nature. Here, the percussionist uses the mountains’ natural echo to bring out the handpan’s remarkable acoustics.
  
• Signes & Racines – Adag’nan (album, 2021): the culmination of the duo's work with Roxane Au’Ra, this 10-track album offers a listening journey inspired by the elements and cultures of the world. Listen to a sample below:

• Animyst Waka – Tatcha (album, 2023): the first album produced with Julien Coste, released in March 2023. With 10 varied tracks, Animyst Waka was designed as a sonic journey where handpan vibrations blend beautifully with other instruments, such as world flutes (bansuri from India, fujara from Central Europe, xiao from China, etc.) and traditional percussion (daf, Turkish davul, etc.).
  

Maël Chauvet, a percussionist behind stunning melodies

Through all these experiences, Maël Chauvet has established himself as a hard-to-define sonic explorer. He has evolved from an underground trip-hop beatmaker into an in-demand handpan performer, without ever turning his back on his urban roots or his open-minded approach. With all the details above, you now have a solid overview of Maël Chauvet’s artistic journey. To learn more about his work on Baopan instruments, click here.

Let’s stay in Europe and head to Italy. The country is also home to many talents, such as Gabriele Pollina, a drummer who later specialized in the handpan through the music he composes. Today, this Italian percussionist is considered one of the best handpan players in the world.