Sylvain Chauveau (born 1971, Bayonne, France) is a composer of quiet, minimalist music whose work explores silence, reduction, and necessity. After several years singing and playing guitar in rock bands, he turned in 1998 toward a solo practice guided by three principles: to remain as close as possible to the abstract beauty of silence; to ensure that every sound is essential; and to situate his music within his own cultural and personal history.

This search has led him toward what he considers a distinctly modern French trajectory—stretching from early 20th-century composers such as Debussy, Ravel, Satie and Fauré, through the innovations of musique concrète and the electroacoustic school (Pierre Henry, Luc Ferrari, Bernard Parmegiani), and informed equally by post-punk philosophy and a pop sensibility attentive to brevity and melody.

Chauveau has released numerous albums on labels including FatCat’s 130701 imprint, Sub Rosa, Sonic Pieces and Flau. His catalogue—comprising restrained works for acoustic instruments, electronics, silence and occasional voice—has accumulated over 100 million streams across platforms. His 2002 album Un Autre Décembre was among the early releases on 130701 and helped define the emerging post-classical landscape. Since then, he has maintained a prolific and singular output, including the seven-year-long composition You Will Leave No Mark On The Winter Snow (2012–2019), a largely silent work punctuated by only seventeen audible moments.

An established composer for film and dance, Chauveau is co-director of Ensemble 0 (with Stéphane Garin) and performs in collaborative projects including 0, On, and the avant-rock group Arca. He runs the label Onement, dedicated to single-copy vinyl releases, and co-founded Zero Carbon Records in 2021, reflecting his commitment to reducing the ecological impact of his professional practice.

His music has been performed by pianists such as Vanessa Wagner, Melaine Dalibert and François Mardirossian, and appears alongside Philip Glass, Max Richter and Ryuichi Sakamoto on the compilation XVI Reflections on Classical Music. He currently lives between Bayonne and Barcelona.

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"Toe-dipping in the paradigms of rock & pop music while being further removed from genre norms" - Pitchfork (USA)

"His music is sparing, unassuming and accordingly effective" - The Wire (UK)

"Eliminating any sound deemed unnecessary to convey the essential emotion" - The Washington Post (USA)

"One of the most brilliant minds of French music" - Les Inrockuptibles (FR)
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"Devastatingly effective" - The Guardian (UK)

"Tranquil, meditative" - The Quietus (UK)