Biography
Francis Kleynjans (*1951) was born in Paris. He began his guitar education as a teenager, studying with Alexandre Lagoya and Alirio Diaz.
He became recognized as a composer when he won Radio France’s Paris Guitar Competition in 1983 with his piece À l’aube du dernier jour, a piece about a prisoner’s last night before his execution. That was his opus 33 at that time, so he had been an active composer for a while before this recognition. He now has more than 700 compositions to his name.
Kleynjans is considered a contemporary composer. However, his composition style is not overall hardcore contemporary with wild and exotic effects. He has composed quite a lot of more melodious works. There is often a bit of melancholy in his music.