by Joyce Ann L. Rocamora/PNA
MANILA — Filipino and French musicians offered a night of music in Makati this week as tribute to Charles Aznavour, France’s most acclaimed singer and composer who died last month.
The tribute was organized by the Alliance Française de Manille and the French Embassy in Manila as part of its Cultural Thursdays’ program that seeks to introduce French identity and culture in Manila.
Filipino singers Christine Carlos, Niko Maka, and baritone Marvin Gayramon, and French jazz artist Eric Soulard, accompanied by the Hydroproject Jazz Quartet, performed Aznavour’s most beloved chansons in English and in French, such as La Bohème, She, and Toi et Moi.
The mini concert was attended by almost a hundred people, including Ambassador Nicolas Galey.
Last October 1, France mourned the loss of Aznavour, known to the English-speaking world as the “Frank Sinatra of France.”
Aznavour was born in Paris to Armenian parents on May 22, 1924.
His musical career took off at a global scale in 1946, where his talents for singing and songwriting were discovered by Edith Piaf.
He has written more than 1,200 songs in French, English, Armenian, Spanish, and other languages, sold more than 180 million records, and starred in over 60 films.
The Les Jeudis culturels or Cultural Thursdays will take place each month to celebrate the French “art de vivre” and highlight cultural collaborations between France and the Philippines through music, theater, dance, poetry, gastronomy, and various other art forms.
Last month’s Cultural Thursdays featured South African saxophonist Adam Campbell and Filipina pianist Mariel Ilusorio.
