Francesca Solleville
Encyclopedia
Francesca Solleville is a French singer. She was born in Périgueux
on 2 March 1932 and lives in Malakoff
(Hauts-de-Seine
). She is the granddaughter of the founder of the Italian League for the Rights of Man. She is married to the painter Louis Loyseau de Grandmaison.
, she studied humanities at the Sorbonne
where she obtained a licentiate
, and studied under the singer Marya Freud. She sang in the choirs of Radio France
.
From 1958 Solleville gave up lyric songs to perform her preferred composers in the cabarets of the Rive-Gauche of Paris. Influenced by Germaine Montéro and encouraged by Léo Ferré
, she was directed by Jacques Douai to the record company Boîte à musique. There she recorded her first 45 rpm single in 1959 : Francesca Solleville chante Aragon
and Mac Orlan
.
She sang in numerous cabarets: at l'Écluse, where she sang with Barbara, at La Contrescarpe where Elsa Triolet
and Louis Aragon
came to hear her sing, at La Colombe where she met Pierre Perret
and at Port du Salut (cabaret) where Christine Sèvres, Jacques Debronckart, Maurice Fanon, Pia Colombo and Pierre Louki
also sang. In 1959, at la Mutualité
, she sang two songs by Louis Aragon (La rose du premier de l'an and Un homme passe sous la fenêtre et chante). Also in 1959, she took part in collective recordings (chansons enfantines as a 45 rpm, chansons d'enfants as a 33⅓ rpm
10"), and she dedicated her first 45rpm to Aragon and Pierre Mac Orlan.
In 1960, for her second 45 rpm, she sang the works of Luc Bérimont, Aragon et Ferré. In 1961, she sang Mac Orlan for a new 45rpm.
In May 1962, Solleville released her first 10" album, intitulé Récital n°1, where she sange the poets Paul Fort
(La Marine, set to music by Georges Brassens
), Charles Baudelaire
, Louis Aragon and Jean Ferrat
(J'entends, j'entends).
In the 1960s, she recorded the songs of Hélène Martin, Georges Coulonges, Yani Spanos, Philippe-Gérard, Serge Rezvani, and the poems of Guillaume Apollinaire
and Jean Genet
. She sang in the film Dragées au poivre (1963). In 1964, she received the Grand Prix of the Académie Charles-Cros for her Récital n°2 of 1963.
She confirmed her role as a singer of activist songs against Nazism
, Francoism and the Vietnam War
. Equally, she supported the workers' cause (Le Chant des ouvriers). In 1971, she recorded with Marcel Mouloudji and Armand Mestral La Commune en chantant, a homage to 100 years of the Paris Commune
. In 1975, she released Chants d'exil et de lutte based on the texts of Pablo Neruda
. In 1988, she celebrated the bicentenary of the French Revolution
with Musique, citoyennes !. Allain Leprest wrote the words of her album Al Dente (1994). In 2004, she published her autobiography, A piena voce, written with the collaboration of Marc Legras. In 2009, she celebrated 50 years as a singer. Véronique Sauger's book, Portraits croisés, Francesca Solleville, Allain Leprest (Ed. Les points sur les i) was published in December 2009.
Périgueux
Périgueux is a commune in the Dordogne department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.Périgueux is the prefecture of the department and the capital of the region...
on 2 March 1932 and lives in Malakoff
Malakoff
Malakoff is a suburban commune in the Hauts-de-Seine department southwest of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of the city.-History:The commune of Malakoff was created on 8 November 1883 by detaching its territory from the commune of Vanves...
(Hauts-de-Seine
Hauts-de-Seine
Hauts-de-Seine is designated number 92 of the 101 départements in France. It is part of the Île-de-France region, and covers the western inner suburbs of Paris...
). She is the granddaughter of the founder of the Italian League for the Rights of Man. She is married to the painter Louis Loyseau de Grandmaison.
Biographye
Francesca Solleville was born in Périgueux (Dordogne) to a Gascon father and Italian mother. At home, her mother played piano but Francesca was passionate for French literature while learning traditional songs (Schubert, Debussy...). In ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, she studied humanities at the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
where she obtained a licentiate
Licentiate
Licentiate is the title of a person who holds an academic degree called a licence. The term may derive from the Latin licentia docendi, meaning permission to teach. The term may also derive from the Latin licentia ad practicandum, which signified someone who held a certificate of competence to...
, and studied under the singer Marya Freud. She sang in the choirs of Radio France
Radio France
Radio France is a French public service radio broadcaster.-Mission:Radio France's two principal missions are:* To create and expand the programming on all of their stations; and...
.
From 1958 Solleville gave up lyric songs to perform her preferred composers in the cabarets of the Rive-Gauche of Paris. Influenced by Germaine Montéro and encouraged by Léo Ferré
Léo Ferré
Léo Ferré was a Franco-Monegasque poet, composer, singer and musician.Born in Monaco, Ferré mixed love and melancholy with moral anarchy, lyricism with slang, rhyming verse with prose monologues...
, she was directed by Jacques Douai to the record company Boîte à musique. There she recorded her first 45 rpm single in 1959 : Francesca Solleville chante Aragon
Louis Aragon
Louis Aragon , was a French poet, novelist and editor, a long-time member of the Communist Party and a member of the Académie Goncourt.- Early life :...
and Mac Orlan
Pierre Mac Orlan
Pierre Mac Orlan, sometimes written MacOrlan, was a French novelist and songwriter.His novel Quai des Brumes was the source for Marcel Carné's 1938 film of the same name, starring Jean Gabin...
.
She sang in numerous cabarets: at l'Écluse, where she sang with Barbara, at La Contrescarpe where Elsa Triolet
Elsa Triolet
Elsa Yur'evna Triolet was a French writer.-Biography:Born Ella Kagan into a Jewish family of a lawyer and a music teacher in Moscow, she and her sister, Lilya Brik received excellent educations; they were able to speak fluent German and French and play the piano...
and Louis Aragon
Louis Aragon
Louis Aragon , was a French poet, novelist and editor, a long-time member of the Communist Party and a member of the Académie Goncourt.- Early life :...
came to hear her sing, at La Colombe where she met Pierre Perret
Pierre Perret
Pierre Perret , is a French singer and composer. Pierre Perret resides in the city of Nangis.- Biography :...
and at Port du Salut (cabaret) where Christine Sèvres, Jacques Debronckart, Maurice Fanon, Pia Colombo and Pierre Louki
Pierre Louki
Pierre Louki, born Pierre Varenne on 25 July 1920 in Brienon-sur-Armançon in Yonne, died 21 December 2006, was a French actor and singer/song-writer....
also sang. In 1959, at la Mutualité
Maison de la Mutualité
The Maison de la Mutualité is a conference center at 24 Rue Saint-Victor, 5th arrondissement of Paris, France. The closest métro station is Maubert-Mutualité....
, she sang two songs by Louis Aragon (La rose du premier de l'an and Un homme passe sous la fenêtre et chante). Also in 1959, she took part in collective recordings (chansons enfantines as a 45 rpm, chansons d'enfants as a 33⅓ rpm
LP record
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
10"), and she dedicated her first 45rpm to Aragon and Pierre Mac Orlan.
In 1960, for her second 45 rpm, she sang the works of Luc Bérimont, Aragon et Ferré. In 1961, she sang Mac Orlan for a new 45rpm.
In May 1962, Solleville released her first 10" album, intitulé Récital n°1, where she sange the poets Paul Fort
Paul Fort
Paul Fort was a French poet associated with the Symbolist movement. At the age of 18, reacting against the Naturalistic theatre, Fort founded the Théâtre d’Art...
(La Marine, set to music by Georges Brassens
Georges Brassens
Georges Brassens , 22 October 1921 – 29 October 1981), was a French singer-songwriter and poet.Brassens was born in Sète, a town in southern France near Montpellier...
), Charles Baudelaire
Charles Baudelaire
Charles Baudelaire was a French poet who produced notable work as an essayist, art critic, and pioneering translator of Edgar Allan Poe. His most famous work, Les Fleurs du mal expresses the changing nature of beauty in modern, industrializing Paris during the nineteenth century...
, Louis Aragon and Jean Ferrat
Jean Ferrat
Jean Ferrat was a French singer-songwriter and poet. He specialized in singing poetry, particularly that of Louis Aragon.-Biography:...
(J'entends, j'entends).
In the 1960s, she recorded the songs of Hélène Martin, Georges Coulonges, Yani Spanos, Philippe-Gérard, Serge Rezvani, and the poems of Guillaume Apollinaire
Guillaume Apollinaire
Wilhelm Albert Włodzimierz Apolinary Kostrowicki, known as Guillaume Apollinaire was a French poet, playwright, short story writer, novelist, and art critic born in Italy to a Polish mother....
and Jean Genet
Jean Genet
Jean Genet was a prominent and controversial French novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and political activist. Early in his life he was a vagabond and petty criminal, but later took to writing...
. She sang in the film Dragées au poivre (1963). In 1964, she received the Grand Prix of the Académie Charles-Cros for her Récital n°2 of 1963.
She confirmed her role as a singer of activist songs against Nazism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
, Francoism and the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. Equally, she supported the workers' cause (Le Chant des ouvriers). In 1971, she recorded with Marcel Mouloudji and Armand Mestral La Commune en chantant, a homage to 100 years of the Paris Commune
Paris Commune
The Paris Commune was a government that briefly ruled Paris from March 18 to May 28, 1871. It existed before the split between anarchists and Marxists had taken place, and it is hailed by both groups as the first assumption of power by the working class during the Industrial Revolution...
. In 1975, she released Chants d'exil et de lutte based on the texts of Pablo Neruda
Pablo Neruda
Pablo Neruda was the pen name and, later, legal name of the Chilean poet, diplomat and politician Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto. He chose his pen name after Czech poet Jan Neruda....
. In 1988, she celebrated the bicentenary of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
with Musique, citoyennes !. Allain Leprest wrote the words of her album Al Dente (1994). In 2004, she published her autobiography, A piena voce, written with the collaboration of Marc Legras. In 2009, she celebrated 50 years as a singer. Véronique Sauger's book, Portraits croisés, Francesca Solleville, Allain Leprest (Ed. Les points sur les i) was published in December 2009.
Discography
- 1959 Chansons enfantines - 45 rpm (collective disc)
- 1959 Chansons d'enfants - 10" (collective disc)
- 1959 Francesca Solleville chante Aragon et Mac Orlan - 45 rpm
- 1960 Francesca Solleville chante Aragon, Bérimont, Ferré - 45 rpm
- 1961 Francesca Solleville chante Mac Orlan n°4 - 45 rpm
- 1961 Francesca Solleville n° 3 - 45 rpm
- 1962 Récital n°1 - 33⅓ rpm
- 1962 Made in France - 25 cm
- 1963 Récital n°2 - 33⅓ rpm - Grand prix de l'Académie Charles Cros 1964
- 1963 Dragée au poivre - 33⅓ rpm (B.O.F., collective disc)
- 1963 Vingt ans - 45 tours
- 1963 Aujourd'hui les femmes - 33⅓ rpm
- 1964 Nuit et Brouillard - 45 rpm
- 1964 Paris-Cayenne - 45 rpm
- 1965 Récital n°3 - 33⅓ rpm
- 1966 Récital n°4 - 33⅓ rpm
- 1966 La petite juive - 45 rpm
- 1966 Les tuileries - 45 rpm
- 1967 Chansons rive gauche - 33⅓ rpm (collective album)
- 1967 La légende des Saintes Maries de la Mer - 45 rpm
- 1968 La gloire - La fine fleur n°5 - 33⅓ rpm
- 1968 Terres mutilées - René Char/Hélène Martin - 33 rpm
- 1968 Et je t'appelle - 45 rpm
- 1969 Récital n°6 - 33⅓ rpm
- 1969 Francesca Solleville chante Paul Eluard - 45 rpm
- 1970 Mouloudji et Francesca Solleville chantent Aristide Bruant - 33⅓ rpm
- 1970 Je t'aime - 45 rpm
- 1971 Francesca Solleville chante Louis Aragon - 33⅓ rpm
- 1971 La commune en chantant - 33⅓ rpm (collective album)
- 1971 Naissance de Saint-Germain-des-Prés - 33⅓ rpm (collective album)
- 1972 Je suis ainsi - 45 rpm
- 1972 Francesca Solleville chante la violence et l'espoir - 33⅓ rpm
- 1972 Poèmes vietnamiens chantés par Francesca Solleville - 33⅓ rpm
- 1972 Ballades et complaintes syndicalistes - Le chant des ouvriers - double 33⅓ rpm (collective album)
- 1974 Le visage de l'homme - 33⅓ rpm
- 1974 Demande aux femmes - 45 rpm
- 1975 Aujourd'hui les femmes - 33⅓ rpm
- 1975 Chants d'exil et de lutte - 33⅓ rpm (collective album)
- 1975 Paris populi - 33⅓ rpm (collective album)
- 1977 Chant pour les enfants du Chili - 33⅓ rpm (collective album)
- 1977 Francesca Solleville 77 - 33⅓ rpm
- 1980 L'émotion - 33⅓ rpm
- 1983 La révolte des Canuts - 33⅓ rpm (collective album)
- 1983 Francesca Solleville 83 - 33⅓ rpm
- 1989 Musique, citoyennes ! - 33⅓ rpm disc and CD
- 1990 Je suis ainsi - CD
- 1991 participation in CD Inédits 91 by Colette Magny (interpretation of Les chants des hommes)
- 1994 Francesca Solleville chante Allain Leprest - CD
- 1996 Al dente - enregistrement du spectacle - CD
- 1997 Chansons de poètes : Louis Aragon, anthologie de la chanson française - collective CD
- 2000 Grand frère, petit frère - CD
- 2001 En tournée au Japon - CD
- 2003 On s'ra jamais vieux - CD
- 2003 Hommage aux grands de la chanson - collective CD set (interpretation of 3 songs)
- 2005 Les grands poètes & la chanson française - collective CD set (interpretation of 9 songs)
- 2005 Le cri du peuple - collective CD
- 2007 Donnez-moi la phrase... - CD
- 2007 participation in the CD René Char - Terres mutilées & Dans mon pays by Hélène Martin
- 2009 Je déménage - CD
- 2009 Chez Leprest. Vol.2 (interpretation of Je ne te salue pas by Allain Leprest) - collective CD
- 2010 Francesca Solleville venge la vie 1959-1983 - set of 5 CDs
Theatre
- 1964 Le Trèfle fleuri by Rafael AlbertiRafael AlbertiRafael Alberti Merello was a Spanish poet, a member of the Generation of '27....
, directed by Pierre Debauche, Théâtre Daniel Sorano Vincennes