Born André Paul Stephane Persiani, in Paris, France, on 19 November 1927. Persiany began playing piano as a child and by his early twenties was an accomplished leader of small groups playing swing style jazz. He worked with numerous touring American jazz artists including Bill Coleman, Buck Clayton and Lionel Hampton through the late 40s and early 50s.

A familiar fellow in and around the Paris swing scene from the years of the Second World War up through the mid-'80s. André Persiani is also frequently identified as André Persiany, the surname ending in "i" being the one given him at birth. His father wrote songs for musical theater during the '20s, the pianist offspring debuting professionally around the time American forces started marching through France, many of them hot for swing. The guys with carbines were not the only Americans arriving in France. Among the troops of arriving jazz musicians were many players who decided to stay. Persiani had much to do with the resulting expatriate community, on the bandstand anyway. He backed up Sidney Bechet just as he backed up the subsequent generations of swing players paying tribute to that master, including frequent front-line player Budd Johnson. The pianist also played and recorded with Mezz Mezzrow, Bill Coleman, Buck Clayton, Charlie Shavers, Al Nicholas, and many others. In the second half of the '50s he left France for New York City, garnering a steady job at the Metropole and recording with several all-star aggregations.

In the mid-50s he moved to New York where he played with several bands before becoming a member of the Jonah Jones quartet in 1961. He remained with Jones for most of the decade before returning to his homeland. In France, he recorded a pair of albums as a leader in the '70s and played again with visiting Americans, including Cat Anderson, Arnett Cobb, Charlie Shavers, Budd Johnson and Milt Buckner, in whose playing style Persiany found qualities he liked and chose to emulate. He played with a strong rhythmic pulse and a clear preference for the swing era style of jazz piano.

Near the close of his career as a jazz pianist, this artist expressed interest in focusing more on composition. André Persiani, died in Paris, on 2 January 2004.

Eugene Chadbourne -All Music Guide