Érik Marchand is a Breton traditional singer and player of the treujenn-gaol. Although born in Paris, his family was of Breton origin, hailing from Quelneuc, Brittany.
Influenced by the music of Manuel Kerjean, Marchand moved to his family's homeland and studied traditional music and the Breton language. He became deeply involved with traditional Breton singing, including the gwerz, a traditional lament. In the 1980s he helped form a traditional music group called Gwerz which released three albums. In the 1980s Marchand also began to collaborate with oudist Thierry Robin, producing a fusion of Celtic and Arabic motifs influenced by jazz.