Caroline “Caro” Fontanieu has been in conversation with jazz musicians for over twenty years – first on French radio, and today through her acclaimed ECM Podcast. Part interviewer, part label director, part professional listener, part enthusiast curator, she has built her life around the music and the people who make it.
After a decade in France working in radio and concert production, she moved to the United States to immerse herself more deeply in Black American music. In New York, she worked with the legendary Blue Note Jazz Club before leading the independent label GroundUP Music and its annual festival She later took the reins of U.S. operations for the legendary German label ECM Records, and now oversees the label’s activities across both the United States and the United Kingdom. Alongside her executive career, Caro has remained deeply engaged in community-driven initiatives, organizing benefit concerts in support of the ACLU and Black Lives Matter, developing a music program for Alzheimer’s patients or participating in panels about Women in Music.
Now based in London with her pianist husband, she continues to bridge continents, artists, and audiences – on air and behind the scenes. When she’s not interviewing musicians or shaping global campaigns, she can be found walking through the parks of East London or searching for the city’s best croissant.
You can hear Caro on the ECM Podcast on One Jazz.
