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Charles Aznavour

 
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Charles Aznavour

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Born in Paris to an Armenian family, sad-eyed, sinewy singer/composer Charles Aznavour started performing as a dancer at age nine. During the 1950s, Aznavour rose to stardom as a soulful interpreter of melancholy romance ballads. Many filmgoers assume that his film debut was as the gangster-obsessed musician in Truffaut's Shoot the Piano Player (1962), but in fact Aznavour made his first film, Le Tete Contre les Murs, in 1959. Many of his movie roles have been in the same noirish vein as his Piano Player performance; in the 1975 remake of Ten Little Indians, he was on screen only long enough to brood over his miserable past and sing a sad refrain before he is poisoned. Busy in films as both performer and composer into the late 1980s, Aznavour is the sort of wordly, hard-shelled performer who'd seem naked without a cigarette dangling from his lips and a half-consumed drink on the top of the piano. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
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Charles Aznavour

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Singer, songwriter

Charles Aznavour retired from the concert stage in 2001 after five decades as one of France's best-known musical exports. Aznavour's melancholy vocal stylings, with their tales of love lost and youth squandered, epitomized the lounge style long before it gained retro credibility in the 1990s. The diminutive star—a legend in France, fondly known as "le petit Charles"—was even cast by filmmaker François Truffaut in his 1960 classic Tirez sur le pianiste (Shoot the piano player). Aznavour is an unlikely romantic figure, as he admitted in an interview with Rose Tremain of London's Sunday Telegraph. "If I had been born rich, blond, tall, good-looking, I would never have had anything to express in song except my own vanity."

Aznavour was born on May 22, 1924, in Paris, France, to parents who had given up professional stage careers to run a restaurant there. His father, Misha, a singer, and his mother Knar, a comic actress, were forced to flee their native Armenia when ethnic violence erupted. The Aznavourians, as the family was then known, originally hoped to emigrate to the United States, but were unable to get a visa. "They never complained," Aznavour said in the Tremain interview of his parents' decision to make the best of their life in France, which centered around their restaurant and a succession of small apartments in the Latin Quarter and the Marais neighborhoods. "Armenians are a shy, proud people, but they never forget what has happened to them and I've never forgotten what it is to have nothing," the singer asserted.

Some of Misha and Knar's stage ambition, however, was transferred to their young son, who was born Shahnour Varenagh Aznavourian, but nicknamed "Charles" by his French nurse. He grew up learning gypsy songs from Armenia, and first performed on stage at the age of three with his family by reciting an Armenian poem. He was enrolled in dance and drama classes and by the age of ten had appeared on the Paris stage in Emile et les detectives as well as in the film La guerre des gosses. At that point, he left school to pursue a full-time career, touring as a teen with a theater group through France and Belgium. He was 16 when Paris was occupied by Nazi Germany. To earn a living, he sang in cabaret clubs in Pigalle and Mont-parnasse, crossing from the city's Left to Right Banks on roller skates; at times, because of wartime rationing, he went without proper shoes.

Booed Off Stage
Aznavour faced additional hurdles early in his career. He was short, stoop-shouldered, and in possession of a large nose and heavy eyebrows, none of which boded well for a career as a romantic crooner. He formed a stage act with Pierre Roche and they began writing songs together. Soon he was writing on his own: "J'ai bu" (I drank) recorded by Georges Ulmer in 1947, was one of his first hits. His songs were picked up by French stars like Charles Trenet and Maurice Chevalier, and soon legendary chanteuse Edith Piaf hired him as her assistant and general factotum. When Piaf toured the United States, Aznavour was both lighting technician and the opening act, an association that boosted his career immensely. Piaf, a legend in France at the time, also introduced him to music-industry executives and even suggested he have a nose job, which he did.

In 1950 one of Aznavour's songs, "Je hais les dimanches" (I hate Sundays) was a hit for a coolly glamorous new singer named Juliette Gréco. Encouraged by Piaf, Aznavour decided to strike out on his own. Unfortunately, early reviews of his performances were harsh; once he was even booed off the stage. "When I started to sing, my physical appearance was not an appearance that would appeal to the public," he recalled in an interview with Los Angeles Times journalist Don Heckman. "It was difficult for me. I was small, I did not have a lovely face. And I had an awful voice when I started. So I had to work with what I had inside. The only way I could do that was by being somebody on the outside, looking at somebody different."

He devoted more time to his songwriting, trying to give a new, cosmopolitan twist to the traditionally maudlin French ballad, often drawing inspiration from eavesdropping or tabloid newspapers. "That's where you find real misfortune," he asserted to Times of London journalist Charles Bremner. "People who are unhappy, lovers who commit suicide, people who drink, drug themselves, destroy themselves. I read them all."

Cast by Truffaut
Aznavour's career took off in 1955 after a well received engagement at the Olympia nightclub in Paris and his first hit, "Sur ma vie" (On my life). A car accident nearly derailed his career, but then director François Truffaut wrote Tirez sur le pianiste with Aznavour in mind, casting him in the film-noir crime thriller that has since become a cinematic classic.

The movie's success helped launch Aznavour's international career; in 1963 he debuted at Carnegie Hall in a performance so successful it became an annual engagement. A 1965 gig at the Ambassador Hotel in New York City, "The World of Charles Aznavour," garnered good critical notice, and boosted his North American following immensely. Performers from Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra to Bob Dylan and even Cher covered his songs, and his world-weary style of singing influenced Leonard Cohen and Tom Waits, both classic lounge performers.

Aznavour toured extensively over the next few years, and wrote scores of hit songs. One of his biggest was "Tous les visages de l'amour" (All the faces of love), which reached number one in Britain in June of 1974; a cover by Elvis Costello was later used as the title song for the 1999 Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts film Notting Hill. In all, Aznavour wrote some eight hundred songs that were recorded by himself and others. Many consider him the best writer of chansons realistes, a song style described by Variety reviewer Charles Isherwood as "clear-eyed looks at love and loss that are tinged with a uniquely Gallic form of rue."

Classic Aznavour tunes include "Les plaisirs démodés" (Old-fashioned way) "Hier, encore" (Yesterday, when I was young), and "Comme ils disent" (What makes a man), a daring 1972 homage to a gay life. Other songs that were successes for Aznavour were "Je bois" (I drink), a paean to drinking; "Mon emouvant amour," in which a man declares his love for his mute girlfriend; and "Sa jeunesse," about an aging lover's fascination with his youthful paramour. Not all of them translated well from French to English, and Adam Sweeting of the Guardian noted that Aznavour's "songs are riddled with heart-rending evocations of lost love, wasted lives and the bitter encroachments of age, but at least there is a little light relief to be savoured in wacky Anglicisations like … 'I've known delight, I've known disaster, the caviar, the humble pie.'"

Dropped by Label
By the 1980s Aznavour had attained cult status: his concerts sold out weeks in advance and ardent female fans would scramble to retrieve the signature white handkerchiefs he would toss into the audience at each performance. With 37 gold records to his name, Aznavour was, therefore, duly stunned when his long-time French label, Polygram, decided to sell his catalog; he bought it from them for just three million francs. It was a wise financial move for the singer whom some had dubbed past his prime. "I have often been written off," he told Sweeting in the Guardian. "I always heard said about me, 'His time is over.'" He would eventually sign with EMI France in 1995, and his first release on the new label was a recording of a live concert he gave with Liza Minnelli. In 1996 Aznavour released 28 albums, both new and compilation material, more than any other artist that year.

Aznavour was married and divorced twice before settling down with his third wife, Ulla, in the late 1960s; the couple has three children together, and Aznavour has several more from his previous marriages. Over the years, he has acted in films, appearing in 1979's Oscar winner for Best Foreign Film,The Tin Drum, and in Canadian filmmaker Atom Egoyan's 2003 release Ararat, a movie-within-a-movie whose story centers around the 1915 Armenian genocide.

Aznavour has written numerous film scores as well as a stage musical, Lautrec, which played in London's West End in 2000. Later that year he embarked on his farewell concert tour, which ended in Nice, France, a year later. He has penned two volumes of memoirs, Aznavour by Aznavour in 1972 and Yesterday When I Was Young, published later that decade. He told International Herald Tribune writer Mike Zwerin that he had no plans to write a third tome. "I am interested in the construction of a man and of his career. After success, what is there left to say? You can tell about all the famous people you meet and how much you love all of them and how much all of them love you…. But all of this is really not very interesting. After the fame and money arrive, there is no more drama."

Selected discography
La Mamma, EMI, 1963.
Charles Aznavour Sings His Love Songs in English, Reprise, 1965.
'65, Angel, 1965.
The World of Charles Aznavour, Reprise, 1966.
I Have Lived, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1972.
A Tapestry of Dreams, Barclay, 1974.
We Were Happy Then, DRG, 1978.
Yesterday When I Was Young, Alex, 1992.
Toi et moi, Alex, 1994.
Je M'Voyais Déja, Angel, 1995.
Idiote je t'aime, Angel, 1995.
La Bohème, Angel, 1995.
Il faut savoir, Angel, 1995.
Paris Palais du Congrès (live), Alex, 1996.
Aznavour Live: Olympia, 1978, EMI, 1998.

Selected writings
Aznavour by Aznavour, translated by Ghislaine Boulanger, Cowles, 1972.

Yesterday When I Was Young, W. H. Allen, 1979.

 Sources

Books
"Charles Aznavour," Contemporary Authors, Gale, 2003.
Knopper, Steve, editor, MusicHound Lounge: The Essential Album Guide to Martini Music and Easy Listening, Visible Ink, 1998.

Periodicals
Billboard, January 7, 1995, p. 36.
Guardian (London, England), November 12, 1996, p. 4; April 5, 1999, p. 9; November 11, 2000, p. 6.
Independent (London, England), December 28, 1996, p. 3.
International Herald Tribune, September 30, 1998, p. 24.
Los Angeles Times, November 19, 1998, p. 6; November 20, 1998, p. 6.
New Republic, December 16, 2002, p. 26.
Observer (London, England), April 9, 2000, p. 7.
Sensible Sound, August-September 2001, p. 73.
Sunday Telegraph (London, England), April 22, 2001, p. 6.
Time, March 28, 1983, p. 72.
Time International, April 28, 2003, p. 92.
Times (London, England), November 27, 2000, p. 6.
Variety, October 26, 1998, p. 134.

Online
"Charles Aznavour," All Music Guide, http://www.allmusic.com (December 10, 2003).
"Charles Aznavour," Salon, http://www.salon.com/people/feature/1999/07/15/aznavour/ (December 10, 2003).
"Time 100 : The Online Poll," Time 100, http://www.time.com/time/time100/chat.html (December 10, 2003).
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Artists:

Charles Aznavour

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  • Genres: Vocal Music

Biography

Charles Aznavour is perhaps the best-known French music hall entertainer in the world -- renowned the world over for the bittersweet love songs he has written and sung, which seem to embody the essence of French popular song, and also for his appearances on screen in such wildly divergent fare as Shoot the Piano Player, Candy, and The Tin Drum. His status as the quintessential French popular culture icon is something of an irony for a man who identifies himself most closely with his Armenian heritage. Born Shahnour Varenagh Aznavourian, his French roots derive from the fact that his family fled the threat of massacre by the Turks -- his father was a singer and sometime-restauranteur, while his mother was an actress and part-time seamstress. His father's singing, done in a notably impassioned style, heavily influenced Aznavour's approach to singing as a boy. Although he had a voracious appetite for music, he also had a serious impediment growing up, in the form of a paralyzed vocal cord that gave his voice a raspy quality. He channeled some of his energy into theater, making both his stage and screen debuts at age nine, in 1933, in the theater piece Un Bon Petite Diable and in the film La Guerre des Gosses. As an adolescent, he danced in nightclubs and sold newspapers, as well as touring with theatrical companies, and he wrote a nightclub act in partnership with Pierre Roche -- Aznavour wrote the lyrics to their songs and it was through that material that he began his singing career. Early on, he learned to overcome his fears about his vocal limitations, in part with help from singing legend Edith Piaf, for whom he worked as a chauffeur, among other capacities; with her help, he developed a style that suited his capabilities and played to his strengths and also continued writing songs in earnest, some of which were performed by Piaf.

His success came very slowly, however. Aznavour at first found some difficulty being accepted as a composer in France or anywhere else. His compositions, although considered tame by any modern standard, were regarded as too risqué for French radio and were banned from the airwaves for a decade or more, from the late '40s through the end of the 1950s; American publishers seemed equally reticent about them, as he discovered on a visit to New York in 1948. That trip did yield his first performing engagement in the city, however, at the Cafe Society Downtown in Greenwich Village. For the next decade, Aznavour made his living as a performer in second-tier clubs and middle- or bottom-of-the-bill berths on three continents. His mix of daringly original and frank love songs, coupled with a limited but very expressive singing style, left audiences somewhat bewildered at first.

His breakthrough came in 1956, during a vaudeville engagement in Casablanca, where the audience reaction was so positive that Aznavour was moved to headliner status. After this, it became easier for the singer to find better engagements in France; by 1958 he even had a recording contract. He made his screen debut that same year in a dramatic role, playing an epileptic in George Franju's La Tete Contre les Muirs. He also composed music for Alex Joff's Du Rififi Chez Les Femmes in 1958; from there, he moved on to bigger roles in better movies, including Jean Cocteau's Testament of Orpheus and Francois Truffaut's Shoot the Piano Player. The latter movie turned Aznavour into a screen star in France and opened the way for his breakthrough in America. He sang at Carnegie Hall in the early '60s and followed this up in 1965 with a one-man show, The World of Charles Aznavour, at the Ambassador Hotel in New York, which drew rave notices from audiences and critics alike. By that time, the once-struggling singer had secured his first American LP release with the similarly titled album The World of Charles Aznavour on Reprise Records, the label founded and run by Frank Sinatra.

Aznavour would be the last to compare himself with those whom he regards as truly gifted vocalists, such as Sinatra and Mel Torme, preferring to think of himself as a composer who also happens to sing. His style of performing has been compared variously to Maurice Chevalier and Sinatra and has remained enduringly popular for four decades. Almost all of Aznavour's songs deal with love and its permutations, running the gamut from upbeat, joyous pieces such as "Apres l'amour" and "J'Ai Perdu la Tete" to the dark-hued "J'en Deduis Que Je t'Aime" and "Bon Anniversaire." A teetotaler and a racing car enthusiast, Aznavour has been married three times and has three children. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi
Wikipedia on Answers.com:

Charles Aznavour

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Charles Aznavour

Aznavour at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival
Background information
Birth name Shahnour Vaghenag Aznavourian
Born May 22, 1924 (1924-05-22) (age 87)
Origin Paris, France
Genres Pop
Chanson
Jazz
Occupations Singer-songwriter, actor, public activist, diplomat
Years active 1936–present
Labels EMI
MusArm Records
Associated acts Claude Lombard
Katia Aznavour
Website www.c-aznavour.com

Charles Aznavour, OC (born Shahnour Vaghenag Aznavourian; Armenian: Շահնուր Վաղինակ Ազնավուրեան; Shahnour Vaghinak Aznavurian;[1] May 22, 1924) is an Armenian-French singer, songwriter, actor, public activist and diplomat. Besides being one of France's most popular and enduring singers, he is also one of the best-known singers in the world. Charles Aznavour (pronounced in French as Sharl Aznavour) is known for his unique tenor[2] voice: clear and ringing in its upper reaches, with gravelly and profound low notes. He has appeared in more than sixty movies, composed about a thousand songs (including 150 at least in English, 100 in Italian, 70 in Spanish, and 50 in German[3]), and sold well over 100 million records.[4]

In 1998, Charles Aznavour was named Entertainer of the Century by CNN and users of Time Online from around the globe. He was recognized as the century's outstanding performer, with nearly 18% of the total vote, edging out Elvis Presley and Bob Dylan.[5] He has sung for presidents, popes, and royalty, as well as at humanitarian events, and is the founder of the charitable organization Aznavour for Armenia along with his long-time friend impresario Levon Sayan.

Aznavour started his Aznavour en Toute Intimité tour in 2011. In 2009 he was appointed ambassador of Armenia to Switzerland, as well as Armenia's permanent delegate to the United Nations at Geneva.[6]

Contents

Life and career

A young Charles with his mother Knar (1920s)

Background

Aznavour was born as Shahnour Vaghenagi Aznavourian in Paris the son of Armenian immigrants Michael Aznavourian (an Armenian[7][8] from Akhaltsikhe in present-day Georgia) and Knar Baghdasarian (from Turkey).[9] His father spent his youth in Tbilisi, where his family had moved for work (Charles's grandfather was a personal chef to Governor General in Tbilisi).[10] Later, after moving to France, Michael Aznavourian sang in restaurants before establishing his own Caucasian restaurant called Le Caucase. Together with his wife, who was an actress, Michael introduced Charles to the world of theatre at an early age. Charles dropped out of school at the age of nine, already aspiring to the life of an artist. He began to perform at this time, and soon took the stage name "Aznavour". His big break came in 1946 when the singer Édith Piaf heard him sing and arranged to take him with her on tour in France and to the United States.[11]

Music

Often described as "France's Frank Sinatra ", Aznavour sings frequently about love. He has written musicals and about a thousand songs, and made more than one hundred records. Aznavour's voice is shaded towards the tenor range, but possesses the low range and coloration more typical of a baritone, contributing to his unique sound. Aznavour speaks and sings in many languages (French, English, Italian, Spanish, German, Russian, Armenian, Portuguese, Neapolitan), which has helped him perform at Carnegie Hall and other major venues around the world. He also recorded at least one song from the 18th century poet Sayat Nova, in Armenian. Que C'est Triste Venise, sung in French, Italian (Com'è Triste Venezia), Spanish (Venecia Sin Ti), English (How Sad Venice Can Be), and German (Venedig in Grau), is one of Aznavour's most famous multilingual songs.

In 1974 Aznavour became a major success in the United Kingdom where his song "She" went to Number One in the charts. His other well-known song in the UK was "Dance in the Old Fashioned Way".

Aznavour and Norwegian singer Sissel Kyrkjebø performing in Vienna

Artists who have recorded his songs and collaborated with Aznavour include Fred Astaire, Andrea Bocelli, Bing Crosby, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan (he named Aznavour among the greatest live performers he's ever seen),[12][13] Liza Minnelli, Josh Groban, Shirley Bassey, José Carreras, Laura Pausini, Nana Mouskouri and Julio Iglesias. Fellow French pop legend Mireille Mathieu has sung and recorded with Aznavour on numerous occasions. In 1974, Jack Jones recorded an entire album of Aznavour compositions entitled "Write Me A Love Song, Charlie", re-released on CD in 2006.[14] Aznavour and Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti sang Gounod's aria Ave Maria together. He performed with famed Russian cellist and friend Mstislav Rostropovich to inaugurate the French presidency of the European Union in 1995. Elvis Costello recorded "She" for the film Notting Hill. One of Aznavour's greatest friends and collaborators from the music industry is legendary Spanish operatic tenor Plácido Domingo, who often performs his hits, most notably a studio recording of "Les bateaux sont partis" in 1985, as well as multiple live renditions Aznavour's "Ave Maria". In 1994, Aznavour performed with Domingo and Norwegian soprano Sissel Kyrkjebø at Domingo's third annual Christmas in Vienna concert. The three singers performed a variety of carols, medleys, and duets, and the concert was televised throughout the world, as well as released on a CD internationally.[15]

At the start of autumn in 2006, Aznavour initiated his farewell tour, performing in the US and Canada, and earning very positive reviews. Aznavour started 2007 with concerts all over Japan and Asia. The second half of 2007 saw Aznavour return to Paris for over 20 shows at the Palais des Congrès in Paris, followed by more touring in Belgium, the Netherlands, and the rest of France. He has repeatedly stated that this farewell tour, health permitting, will likely last beyond 2010. At 87, Aznavour is in excellent health, although admittedly 60 years on stage have made him "a little hard of hearing".[16] He still sings in multiple languages and without persistent use of teleprompters, but typically sticks to just two or three (French and English being the primary two, with Spanish or Italian being the third) during most concerts.[17] On 30 September 2006, Aznavour performed a major concert in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia to start off the cultural season "Arménie mon amie" in France. Armenian president Robert Kocharyan and French president Jacques Chirac, at the time on an official visit to Armenia, were in front-row attendance.[18]

Charles Aznavour in concert (1988).

In 2006, 82-year-old Aznavour traveled to Cuba, where he, together with Chucho Valdés, recorded his new album Colore Ma Vie, presented at Aznavour's Moscow concert in April 2007. Later, in July 2007, Aznavour was invited to perform at the Vieilles Charrues Festival.

"Forever Cool" (2007), an album from Capitol/EMI, features Aznavour singing a new duet of "Everybody Loves Somebody Sometime" with the voice of the late Dean Martin.

Aznavour finished a tour of Portugal in February 2008. On 18 January 2008 he participated as guest vocalist with the contestants of the French reality show Star Academy and sang his famous Emmenez-Moi with contestant Jérémy Chapron. Throughout the spring of 2008, Aznavour toured South America, holding a multitude of concerts in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay. Summer saw him in Quebec, and a return to Latin America followed in autumn.

In 2008 an album of duets, Duos, was released. It is a collaborative effort featuring Aznavour and his greatest friends and partners from his long career in the music industry, including Celine Dion, Laura Pausini, Josh Groban, Plácido Domingo, and many others.[19] It was released on various dates in December 2008 across the world.[20] His next album, Charles Aznavour and The Clayton Hamilton Jazz Orchestra (previously known as Jazznavour 2), is a continuation in the same vein as his hit album Jazznavour released in 1998, involving new arrangements on his classic songs with a jazz orchestra and other guest jazz artists. It was released on November 30, 2009.[21]

In 2009 Aznavour also toured across America. The tour, named Aznavour en liberté,[22] started in late April 2009 with a wave of concerts across the United States and Canada, took him across Latin America in the autumn, as well as the USA once again. In August 2011 Aznavour released a new album, Aznavour Toujours, featuring 11 new songs, and Elle, a French re-working of his greatest international hit, She. Following the release of Aznavour Toujours, 87-years old Aznavour began a tour across France and Europe, named Charles Aznavour en Toute Intimité, which started with 21 concerts in the "Olympia" theatre in Paris.[23] On December 12, 2011 he gave a concert in Moscow State Kremlin Palace that attracted a capacity crowd.[24] The concert was followed by standing ovation which continued for about 15 minutes.[25]

Charles Aznavour, Armen Martirosyan and Djivan Gasparyan in Yerevan

Film

See also: Charles Aznavour#Filmography

Aznavour has had a long and varied parallel career as an actor, appearing in over 60 films. In 1960 Aznavour starred in François Truffaut's Tirez sur le pianiste, playing a character called Édouard Saroyan. He also put in a critically acclaimed performance in the 1974 movie And Then There Were None. Aznavour had an important supporting role in 1979's The Tin Drum, winner of the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1980. Aznavour starred in the 2002 movie Ararat playing Edward Saroyan, a movie director.

Armenia and abroad

Since the 1988 earthquake in Armenia, Aznavour has been helping the country through his charity, Aznavour for Armenia. Together with his brother in-law and co-author Georges Garvarentz he wrote the song "Pour toi Arménie", which was performed by a group of famous French artists and topped the charts for 18 weeks. There is a square named after him in central Yerevan on Abovian Street, and a statue erected in Gyumri, which saw the most lives lost in the earthquake. In 1995 Charles Aznavour was appointed an Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of Armenia to UNESCO. Aznavour is a member of the Armenia Fund International Board of Trustees. The organization has rendered more than $150 million in humanitarian aid and infrastructure development assistance to Armenia since 1992. Charles Aznavour was appointed as "Officier" (Officer) of the Légion d'honneur in 1997.

In 2004 Aznavour received the title of "National Hero of Armenia" for his humanitarian work, Armenia's highest award. On December 26, 2008, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan signed a presidential decree for granting citizenship for the Republic of Armenia to Charles Aznavour whom he called a "prominent singer and public figure" and "a hero of the Armenian people".[26]

An admirer of Quebec, where he played in Montreal cabarets before becoming famous, he has helped the career of Québécoise singer-songwriter Lynda Lemay in France, and has a house in Montreal. On 5 July 2008, he was invested as an honorary officer of the Order of Canada and performed the following day on the Plains of Abraham as a feature of the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City.[27]

Aznavour and famed Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour, with the collaboration of over 40 of France's most celebrated singers and musicians, recorded a music video band aid[disambiguation needed ] in the aftermath of the catastrophic 2010 Haiti earthquake, titled "1 geste pour Haïti chérie".[28]

Personal life and cultural impact

Charles Aznavour, a photo by Xavier Thomas.

Aznavour married his third wife, Swede Ulla Thorsell, in 1968. He has 5 children - Seda, Katia, Misha, Nicolas and Patrick. In 1990 he offered insights into his life to writer-director Michael Feeney Callan in his series My Riviera, which was filmed at and around Aznavour's home in Port Grimaud, in the South of France. He currently resides in Geneva, Switzerland.[29]

His musicality and fame abroad is present in many other areas of pop culture. Aznavour's name was used as the basis for the name of the character Char Aznable by Yoshiyuki Tomino in his anime mecha series, Mobile Suit Gundam. His song "Parce Que Tu Crois" was sampled by Hip Hop producer Dr. Dre for the song "What's the Difference", from his album 2001. He is mentioned in The Psychedelic Furs song "Sister Europe" ("The radio upon the floor/ is stupid, it plays Aznavour").

He has often joked about his physicality, the most infamous feature of which is his limited height; he stands only 160 cm (5 ft 3 in) tall, and Aznavour has made this a source of self-deprecating humour over the years.

Politics

Charles Aznavour has been increasingly involved in French, Armenian, and international politics as his career has progressed. During the 2002 French presidential elections, when radical right-wing nationalist Jean-Marie Le Pen of the National Front made it into the runoff election, facing incumbent Jacques Chirac, Aznavour signed the "Vive la France" petition, and called on all French to "sing the Marseillaise" in protest.[30] Chirac, a personal friend of Aznavour's, ended up winning in a landslide, carrying over 82% of the vote.

He has written a song about the Armenian Genocide, titled Ils sont tombés (known in English as "They fell").

He has also campaigned fervently for international copyright law reform. In November 2005 he met with President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso[31] on the issue of the review of term of protection for performers and producers in the EU, advocating an extension of the EU's term of protection from the current 50 years to the United States' law allowing 95 years, saying "[o]n term of protection, artists and record companies are of the same mind. Extension of term of protection would be good for European culture, positive for the European economy and would put an end the current discrimination with the U.S." He has also notably butted heads with French politician Christine Boutin over her defense of a "global license" flat-fee authorization for sharing of copyrighted files over the Internet, claiming that the license would eliminate creativity. In May 2009 the French Senate approved one of the strictest internet anti-piracy bills ever with a landslide 189-14 vote. Aznavour was a vocal proponent of the measure and considered it a rousing victory:

"If the youth can't make a living through creative work, they will do something else and the artistic world will be dealt a blow... There will be no more songs, no more books, nothing at all. So we had to fight..."[32]

Along with holding the mostly ceremonial title of French ambassador-at-large to Armenia, Aznavour agreed to hold the position of Ambassador of Armenia to Switzerland on February 12, 2009:

"First I hesitated, as it is not an easy task. Then I thought that what is important for Armenia is important for us. I have accepted the proposal with love, happiness and feeling of deep dignity"[33]

Awards and recognition

Discography

Main article: Charles Aznavour discography

Filmography

Actor

  • La Guerre des gosses (1936) – Extra
  • Adieu chérie (1946) (as Aznavour) – Le duettiste
  • Entrez dans la danse (1948)
  • Une gosse sensass' (1957) – Le chanteur
  • Paris Music Hall (1957) – Charles
  • La Tête contre les murs (1959) – Heurtevent
  • Les Dragueurs (1959) – Joseph Bouvier
  • Pourquoi viens-tu si tard? (1959) – Un danseur
  • Oh! Qué mambo (1959) (uncredited) – Un spectateur au cabaret
  • Le Testament d'Orphée (1960) (uncredited) – The Curious Man
  • Un taxi pour Tobrouk (1960) – Samuel Goldmann
  • Tomorrow Is My Turn (Le Passage du Rhin) (1960) – Roger
  • Tirez sur le pianiste (1960) – Charlie Kohler/Édouard Saroyan
  • Gosse de Paris (1961)
  • Les Lions sont lâchés (1961) – Charles, un convive de Marie-Laure
  • Esame di guida - tempo di Roma (1962) – Marcello
  • Horace 62 (1962) – Horace Fabiani
  • Le Diable et les dix commandements (1962) – Denis Mayeux (episode "Homicide point ne seras")
  • Les Quatre vérités (1962) – Charles
  • Les Vierges (1963) – Berthet
  • Cherchez l'Idole (1963) – Aznavour
  • Le Rat d'Amérique (1963) – Charles
  • Thomas l'imposteur (1964)
  • Alta infedeltà (1964) – Giulio (segment "Peccato nel Pomeriggio")
  • La Métamorphose des cloportes (1965) – Edmond
  • Le Facteur s'en va-t-en guerre (1966) – Thibon
  • Paris au mois d'août (1966) – Henri Plantin
  • Caroline chérie (1968) – Postillon
  • Candy (1968) – Hunchback juggler
  • Le Temps des loups (1969) – Inspector
  • The Adventurers (1970) – Marcel Campion
  • L'Amour (1970) – Le présentateur
  • The Games (1970) – Pavel Vendek
  • The Selfish Giant (1971) – Narrator (French version)
  • Un beau monstre (1971) – Inspector Leroy
  • Part des lions (1971) – Éric Chambon
  • Les Intrus (1972) – Charles Bernard
  • The Blockhouse (1973) – Visconti
  • Dix Petits Negres (1974) Dir Peter Colinson, Produit par Gerard Thum
  • Ein Unbekannter rechnet ab (1974) – Michel Raven
  • Sky Riders (1976) – Insp. Nikolidis
  • Folies bourgeoises (1976) – Dr. Lartigue
  • Die Blechtrommel (1979) – Sigismund Markus
  • Ciao, les mecs (1979) – L'amnésique
  • Der Zauberberg (1982) – Naphta
  • Qu'est-ce qui fait courir David? (1982) – Léon, le père de David
  • Les Fantômes du chapelier (1982) – Kachoudas
  • Une jeunesse (1983) – Bellun
  • Viva la vie! (1984) – Édouard Takvorian
  • Yiddish Connection (1986) – Aaron Rapoport
  • Mangeclous (1988) – Jérémie
  • Il Maestro (1989) – Romualdi
  • Le chinois (1989) – Charles Cotrel
  • Charles Aznavour Armenia 1989 (1989)
  • Les Années campagne (1992) – Le grand-père/Grandfather
  • Pondichéry, dernier comptoir des Indes (1997) – Léo Bauman
  • Le Comédien (1997) – Monsieur Maillard
  • Laguna (2001)
  • Truth About Charlie (2002) – Himself
  • Ararat (2002) – Edward Saroyan
  • Le Père Goriot (2004) – Jean-Joachim Goriot
  • Ennemis publics (2005)
  • The Colonel (2006) – Père Rossi
  • Up (2009) – Carl Fredricksen (French Voice)

Concerts

Video

  • 1977 Großer Unterhaltungsabend – Charles Aznavour (Essen, Germany 1977). VHS Nikkatsu Video Films Co., Ltd./Japan
  • 1982 An Evening with Charles Aznavour (Duke of York's Theatre, London 1982). VIP Videocasette Diffusion, VHS SECAM MU 550

Laserdisc

  • 1982 An Evening with Charles Aznavour (Duke of York's Theatre, London 1982) [content differs from the video version]

DVD

  • 1999 Aznavour Live - Palais des Congrès 97/98 (EMI)
  • 2001 Aznavour Live - Olympia 68/72/78/80 (EMI)
  • 2001 Charles Aznavour au Carnegie Hall (New York, June 1996) (EMI)
  • 2001 AZNAVOUR – Pour toi Arménie (At Erevan Opera, September 1996)
  • 2002 Patrick Bruel – Entre-Deux (C. Aznavour sings Parlez-moi d'amour [with Patrick Bruel])
  • 2003 AZNAVOUR LIVE – Palais des Congrès 1994 (EMI)
  • 2004 Aznavour – Minelli au Palais des Congrès de Paris (EMI)
  • 2004 Toronto 1980 (as a Bonus to the Aznavour/Indispensables CD Boxset) (EMI)
  • 2004 80, Bon Anniversaire Charles – Palais des congrès 2004 (EMI)
  • 2004 Bon anniversaire Charles! (TV broadcast concert for Charles Aznavour 80th anniversary, May 22, 2004) (EMI)
  • 2005 Charles Aznavour 2000 – Concert intégral (EMI)
  • 2006 The Royal Opera – Die Fledermaus (Covent Garden, London 31-12-1983) (C. Aznavour sings She)
  • 2007 Charles Aznavour : En concert à Erevan (EMI)
  • 2007 Aznavour - Palais des Congrès de Paris (1987) [not the same concert as the CD version] (EMI)
  • 2008 Charles Aznavour et ses amis au Palais Garnier (EMI)
  • 2009 Anthologie 1955–1972 - 3 DVD Box Set (PAL Only) (INA / EMI)
  • 2010 Anthologie volume 2 1973–1999 - 3 DVD Box Set (PAL Only) (INA / EMI)

FILMS Documentary

  • Charles Aznavour - Armenia 1989, (Armenfilm) 1989 color 10min. 35mm. Director Levon Mkrtchyan. The film is about the humanitarian aid that Charles Aznavour, a famous French singer of Armenian origin, brought to Armenia after the Spitak earthquake in 1988.[42]
  • Christmas in Vienna III, A Christmas gala concert live from Vienna on 22 December 1994 with Aznavour, Plácido Domingo and Sissel Kyrkjebø, featuring the Vienna Symphony conducted by famed Croatian conductor Vjekoslav Šutej.
  • Making of "Colore ma vie", A making-of featurette released in 2007 coinciding with the release of Aznavour's latest studio album, Colore ma vie. Filmed in Havana and Paris, it shows his collaboration with Chucho Valdez and the thoughts, opinions, and artistry the two put into the album.
  • Appeared on The Muppet Show Episode 9. Taping Dates: June 29 - July 1, 1976. Original Airdates: January 17, 1977 (New York) and January 22, 1977 (LA)

See also

References

  1. ^ "ArmeniaPedia". ArmeniaPedia. http://www.armeniapedia.org/index.php?title=Charles_Aznavour. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  2. ^ "highly distinct tenor voice". New York Times. 18 October 1998. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C06E0D8173AF93BA25753C1A96E958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  3. ^ Tableau des équivalences[dead link]
  4. ^ Thomas, Rebecca (10 April 2001). "Aznavour leaves on high note". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/1269362.stm. "Aznavour has sold more than 100 million records..." 
  5. ^ "Singer Aznavour named Armenian ambassador to Switzerland". AFP. Google. 6 May 2009. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5geLe8F5WkuPKYptN-cDufS2oh3gQ. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  6. ^ "Charles Aznavour: A chat with the legendary performer, winner of the TIME 100 Online poll as the Entertainer of the Century". TIME. 9 July 1998. http://www.time.com/time/community/transcripts/chattr070998.html. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  7. ^ Embassy of the Republic of Armenia in Switzerland, Portrait de S.E. Charles Aznavour
  8. ^ Charles Aznavour. Biography
  9. ^ "Biodata". Billetnet.fr. http://www.billetnet.fr/en/wiki/Charles_Aznavour. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  10. ^ [1] The Villager
  11. ^ "Charles Aznavour". RFI Musique. 2008-12. http://www.rfimusique.com/siteEN/biographie/biographie_6059.asp. Retrieved 2011-02-10. 
  12. ^ "Bob Dylan interview: Rolling Stone Nov/Dec 1987". Expectingrain.com. 10 December 1995. http://expectingrain.com/dok/int/RS1987.html#ca. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  13. ^ "Song of the Day: Bob Dylan, "The Times We’ve Known" (Charles Aznavour cover) » Cover Me". Covermesongs.com. http://www.covermesongs.com/2010/08/bob-dylan-the-times-weve-known.html. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  14. ^ "Write Me A Love Song, Charlie", by Jack Jones, also at Amazon.com
  15. ^ "Sissel Kyrkjebø (Soprano)". Bach-cantatas.com. http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Bio/Sissel.htm. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  16. ^ "Aznavour's log goodbye". Expatica.com. http://www.expatica.com/fr/life_in/feature/aznavours-long-goodbye--83-and-still-singing-44686.html. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  17. ^ Riding, Alan (18 September 2006). "At 82, Charles Aznavour Is Singing a Farewell That Could Last for Years". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/18/arts/music/18azna.html?ex=1167368400&en=5b722c96ea2a5172&ei=5070. "There are some people who grow old and others who just add years. I have added years, but I am not yet old..." 
  18. ^ Charles Aznavour Biography, RFI Musique, February 2007
  19. ^ Prochain album[dead link]
  20. ^ "Charles Aznavour pays himself "it all" in his new album". Voir.ca. http://www.voir.ca/blogs/manuel_champagne/archive/2008/10/22/charles-aznavour-se-paie-la-171-totale-187-dans-son-nouvel-album.aspx. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  21. ^ Tournée / Sortie CD[dead link]
  22. ^ "Aznavour en Liberté". Patwhite.com. 23 April 2009. http://patwhite.com/node/5598. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  23. ^ "Charles Aznavour upcoming concerts". Songkick.com. 9 January 2011. http://www.songkick.com/artists/302900-charles-aznavour/calendar?page=1. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  24. ^ Charles Aznavour wows Moscow, The Voice of Russia, 2011
  25. ^ Moscow impressed by Charles Aznavour, News.am. 2011
  26. ^ Compiled by Dave Itzkoff (26 December 2008). "Aznavour Granted Armenian Citizenship". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/27/arts/27arts-AZNAVOURGRAN_BRF.html?ref=arts. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  27. ^ Andy Blatchford. "Aznavour receives Order of Canada honours in Quebec". globeandmail.com. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080705.waznavour0705/BNStory/Entertainment/home. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  28. ^ "French music stars mobilise for Haiti". AFP. Google. 15 January 2010. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gQCv5Op1eurkYtoZz7S_ba5vpMkg. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  29. ^ "Aznavour in Switzerland". Switzerland.isyours.com. http://www.switzerland.isyours.com/E/celebrities/bios/124.html. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  30. ^ "Biography - Charles Aznavour". Rfimusique.com. http://www.rfimusique.com/siteEN/biographie/biographie_6059.asp. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  31. ^ "Charles Aznavour meets EC President José Manuel Barroso". Ifpi.org. 1 September 2005. http://www.ifpi.org/content/section_views/view017.html. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  32. ^ "French bill to combat Internet piracy clears final hurdle". AFP. Google. 13 May 2009. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gpdqJ8BoNcJMpEHbAckCIFWMl7lQ. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  33. ^ "Charles Aznavour Ambassador of Armenia to Switzerland". Panorama.am. 13 Feb. 2009. http://www.panorama.am/en/politics/2009/02/13/posol/. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  34. ^ "Edison Award Official Site, 2008". Edisonaward.nl. http://www.edisonaward.nl/. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  35. ^ "Delegation of Armenia to UNESCO". Erc.unesco.org. http://erc.unesco.org/cp/cp.asp?country=am&language=e. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  36. ^ "Charles Aznavour and Kirk Kerkorian National Heroes of Armenia". Panarmenian.net. 28 May 2004. http://www.panarmenian.net/news/eng/?nid=10630. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  37. ^ Charles Aznavour receives Order of Canada honours in Quebec City[dead link]
  38. ^ "Aznavour to receive MIDEM award, PanArmenian.net, 15.01.2009". Panarmenian.net. 15 January 2009. http://www.panarmenian.net/news/eng/?nid=28195. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  39. ^ "Именем Шарля Азнавура в Степанакерте назван культурный центр, Regnum, 2009". Regnum.ru. 18 May 2009. http://www.regnum.ru/news/fd-abroad/armenia/1164595.html. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 
  40. ^ "Citation". National Order of Quebec. http://www.ordre-national.gouv.qc.ca/membres/membre.asp?id=2558. 
  41. ^ "Argumenty i fakty" newspaper, 1-7 sept., 2010
  42. ^ "Charles Aznavour // Armenia 1989". YouTube. 7 December 1988. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAQW5VLJtAk&feature=related. Retrieved 1 May 2011. 

External links

Live performances

Awards
Preceded by
Maxime Le Forestier		 Male artist of the year
at the Victoires de la Musique
1997		 Succeeded by
Florent Pagny
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by
Zohrab Mnatsakanian		 Permanent Representative of Armenia to the United Nations in Geneva
since 26 June 2009		 Incumbent
Ambassador of Armenia to Switzerland
since 30 June 2009

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

Copyrights:

AMG AllMovie Guide. Copyright © 2012 All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Gale Musician Profiles. Contemporary Musicians © 1989-2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Artists. Copyright © 2012 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia on Answers.com. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Charles Aznavour.  Read more

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