A tale of two countries Some time ago, the french & German tv channel
Arte had created an internet extension devoted to audio only,
Arteradio. This website contains hours of audio creations. This is the place where you can listen to
The first radio drama /la première fiction radio /in two languages and one version /en deux langues et une seule version /a BBC-ARTE Radio coproduction /enregistrée à Paris et London /recorded on location /diffusée en hertzien /broadcasted on BBC Radio 4 on February, 4th, 2009 /online on arteradio.com.
You can also listen to
McKenzie Wark, or to
the moment of silence created on September the eleventh 2002, to
Steve, to
English pupils in Paris, to
Susan George, to
Dean Hurley commenting his work, and then dive into the complete unknown, and pure French sounds, like
these testimonies about masturbation, or about
la chanson, like a Paris
postcard, or even a
street snapshot.
posted by nicolin
on Feb 10, 2009 -
3 comments
This post isn't about the great Belgian guitarist
Philip Catherine - too many guitar posts recently - it isn't about the Belgian singer
Katerine (nothing to say). It is about the French singer Philippe Katerine, who has been changing the way lyrics are written, as well as giving a whole range of new topics to French song. With
Je vous emmerde (F*** you) he explains what's on a loser's mind.
Excuse-moi is about the things a man focuses on during sexual intercourse in order to avoid early ejaculation. The individual struggling with an meaningless society is always present :
Borderline (
warcraft version with English subtitles). His lists and his humor clearly link his work with the texts of Poets like Raymond Queneau, Boris Vian (and Serge Gainsbourg), or the prose of Georges Perec. He can be
Elegiac,
Paradoxical,
Funky,
prosaic, he's always twofold.
posted by nicolin
on Oct 25, 2007 -
13 comments
First she was a dancer but after an injury she had to sing to make a living. She still dances a little during her songs (a rare feat among flamenco cantaoras). I first heard about her when she made a whole record (cd) of Edith Piaf's songs in spanish. You can get a taste
here. She talks about it
here (spanish + french, excerpts). She sang
les feuilles mortes too. But nothing equals seeing her, I think : so here she is with two covers from a recent documentary : a song by
Edith Piaf, a song by
Lola Flores. Btw, If you get into french songs in the flamenco idiom, try
this.
posted by nicolin
on Oct 11, 2007 -
4 comments
Some more great french guitar players.
Nelson Veras first came to France to meet Pat Metheny (he was 14 then, it has been documented on video by Frank Cassenti) but upon meeting
some other jazzmen , he decided to stay in France and to experiment in
various settings.
Robert Crumb isn't exactly a "great french guitar player", but his decision to move to France (his or his wife's decision) and later his responsability in the creation of
Les Primitifs du Futur has played a part in the rebirth of ancient french styles ("musette") and the renewed interest in old jazz and blues forms.
[more inside]
posted by nicolin
on Sep 10, 2007 -
9 comments
Flamenco clearly belongs to spain. But so many immigrants came to France to find work or escape from the civil war that there is a small community of guitarists in southern France who are playing it with original voices.
Bernardo Sandoval was the subject of a
post in mefi music some time ago.
Antonio "kiko" ruiz is about to come to the United States with Renaud-Garcia-Fons : their work can be seen
here.
Serge Lopez is another great guitarist who puts some
guitar parts on his website.
Salvador Paterna adds to the traditional sound of flamenco both the 'oud and the violin.
They are all from or nearby
Toulouse.
posted by nicolin
on Sep 4, 2007 -
8 comments
