La Esterella
Encyclopedia
La Esterella, born Esther Lambrechts (Antwerp, May 7, 1919 - Antwerp, April 11, 2011) was a Flemish
singer. She was best known for her classic "Oh Lieve Vrouwetoren". She had a typical deep voice, causing her to be called sometimes the Belgian Zarah Leander
. La Esterella was the first Flemish artist who achieved international success.
s. She had an immediate success with the public. Her husband didn't just arrange the business agreements but also taught her how to become a professional singer, turning her into a perfectionist.
During World War II
La Esterella was forced to perform in Germany where she was called "die Kanone". After the war, she became a success with the general public and performed every year during six months from 1948 to 1954 in theatres of British seaside resorts. In 1948 La Esterella already sang in the television studio of the BBC
. She was thus the first Flemish singer ever to appear on TV. In 1948 she also made it in other European countries such as France
, Norway
and Czechoslovakia
, where she always sung at least one song in the local language.
In 1953 she was offered a recording contract with Philips Records
. From that moment on, the record company advised her to sing in her native Dutch language. In that year, her song "Oh Lieve Vrouwetoren" became an immediate hit. She continued to scored hits, until 1959. In that year her husband became gravely ill and she decided to perform to a lesser degree. When her husband died in 1962, she stopped performing completely.
She accepted a job as secretary and remarried in 1970. Her second husband Victor Van Buel died in 1980. After her retirement in 1982, she agreed somewhat surprisingly to the radio presenter Jos Baudewijn to act in his show "Vragen staat vrij." (Open questions). There she sang Frank Sinatra
's song Ol' Man River
. She got such good responses that she decided to resume her career. She rose in this second career to become a celebrated singer, cherished by the public at large. In 1988, she recorded her last album "Liedjes die ik graag zing" (My favourite songs)
In later years she sporadically recorded some songs, including in 1995 with Coco Jr. In 2000 she finally recorded the soundtrack of the film Shades with Alex Callier of Hooverphonic
and Regi Penxten of Milk Inc.
During her career she appeared regularly in Flemish TV programmes (Klasgenoten, 20 jaar Gaston en Leo, Gaston 80) and TV movies (La Esterella, a diva; Steggerda plays Steggerda). In 2003 she had a last appearance in the short movie "A Piece of Cake".
In 2001 she received the achievement award of Radio 2: Voor een Leven Vol Muziek (For a Life filled with Music) and was admitted to the Hall of Fame of the Flemish Song. She was also appointed to the rank of Officer in the Order of Leopold II
.
In 2004 she presented together with the first Antwerp City poet (Tom Lanoye
), the poem "De kathedraal antwoordt" (The cathedral replies). Although she began to have problems walking at her old age, she continued performing. Occasionally she was back on major stages and did some TV appearances. On January 5, 2007 she sang a duet with Paul Michiels
in the TV show "Gala Gaston 80", honouring the Flemish comedian Gaston Berghmans
at his 80th birthday.
In 2008, she continued to struggle with health problems and had to spend three months in a hospital. She had then to retire to a nursing home, where the aged Flemish actress Yvonne Verbeeck also stayed.
On April 11, 2011 La Esterella died in a hospital in her native city Antwerp. On April 16 her funeral ceremony in the cathedral of Antwerp was attended by a large crowd. On April 18, she got her last resting place, a place of honour in the Antwerp cemetery Schoonselhof.
Flemish
Flemish can refer to anything related to Flanders, and may refer directly to the following articles:*Flemish, an informal, though linguistically incorrect, name of any kind of the Dutch language as spoken in Belgium....
singer. She was best known for her classic "Oh Lieve Vrouwetoren". She had a typical deep voice, causing her to be called sometimes the Belgian Zarah Leander
Zarah Leander
Zarah Leander was a Swedish actress and singer.Leander began her career in the late 1920s, and by the mid 1930s her success in Europe, particularly in Germany and the Scandinavian countries, led to invitations to work in the United States...
. La Esterella was the first Flemish artist who achieved international success.
Biography
La Esterella began her career as a seamstress. She occasionally sang at parties and was thus noticed by the conductor Jacques Kluger. But, when asked, she refused to sing in his band because she ddidn't have parental permission. In 1940 she began participating in song contests in the music hall Oud-België in Antwerp. There she was discovered by her future husband and manager Charly Schleimovitz. She began her career as a singer of popular light classical and romantic songs in several languages. Her voice could span three and a half octaveOctave
In music, an octave is the interval between one musical pitch and another with half or double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referred to as the "basic miracle of music", the use of which is "common in most musical systems"...
s. She had an immediate success with the public. Her husband didn't just arrange the business agreements but also taught her how to become a professional singer, turning her into a perfectionist.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
La Esterella was forced to perform in Germany where she was called "die Kanone". After the war, she became a success with the general public and performed every year during six months from 1948 to 1954 in theatres of British seaside resorts. In 1948 La Esterella already sang in the television studio of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
. She was thus the first Flemish singer ever to appear on TV. In 1948 she also made it in other European countries such as France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
, where she always sung at least one song in the local language.
In 1953 she was offered a recording contract with Philips Records
Philips Records
Philips Records is a record label that was founded by Dutch electronics company Philips. It was started by "Philips Phonographische Industrie" in 1950. Recordings were made with popular artists of various nationalities and also with classical artists from Germany, France and Holland. Philips also...
. From that moment on, the record company advised her to sing in her native Dutch language. In that year, her song "Oh Lieve Vrouwetoren" became an immediate hit. She continued to scored hits, until 1959. In that year her husband became gravely ill and she decided to perform to a lesser degree. When her husband died in 1962, she stopped performing completely.
She accepted a job as secretary and remarried in 1970. Her second husband Victor Van Buel died in 1980. After her retirement in 1982, she agreed somewhat surprisingly to the radio presenter Jos Baudewijn to act in his show "Vragen staat vrij." (Open questions). There she sang Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
's song Ol' Man River
Ol' Man River
"Ol' Man River" is a song in the 1927 musical Show Boat that expresses the African American hardship and struggles of the time with the endless, uncaring flow of the Mississippi River; it is sung from the point-of-view of a dock worker on a showboat, and is the most famous song from the show...
. She got such good responses that she decided to resume her career. She rose in this second career to become a celebrated singer, cherished by the public at large. In 1988, she recorded her last album "Liedjes die ik graag zing" (My favourite songs)
In later years she sporadically recorded some songs, including in 1995 with Coco Jr. In 2000 she finally recorded the soundtrack of the film Shades with Alex Callier of Hooverphonic
Hooverphonic
Hooverphonic are a Belgian rock/pop group, formed in 1995. Though early on categorized as a trip hop group, they quickly expanded their sound to the point where they could no longer be described as a lone genre, but rather encompass alternative, electronica, electropop, rock, and mixture of others...
and Regi Penxten of Milk Inc.
During her career she appeared regularly in Flemish TV programmes (Klasgenoten, 20 jaar Gaston en Leo, Gaston 80) and TV movies (La Esterella, a diva; Steggerda plays Steggerda). In 2003 she had a last appearance in the short movie "A Piece of Cake".
In 2001 she received the achievement award of Radio 2: Voor een Leven Vol Muziek (For a Life filled with Music) and was admitted to the Hall of Fame of the Flemish Song. She was also appointed to the rank of Officer in the Order of Leopold II
Order of Leopold II
The Order of Leopold II is an order of Belgium and is named in honor of King Léopold II. The decoration was established on 24 August 1900 by Leopold II as king of the Congo Free State and was in 1908, upon Congo being handed over to Belgium, incorporated into the Belgian awards system...
.
In 2004 she presented together with the first Antwerp City poet (Tom Lanoye
Tom Lanoye
Tom Lanoye [lan-WA] is a Belgian novelist and poet who works in Antwerp and Cape Town . He gained widespread popularity in the early 1980s as part of the new generation of young Flemish novelists that included Herman Brusselmans and Kristien Hemmerechts...
), the poem "De kathedraal antwoordt" (The cathedral replies). Although she began to have problems walking at her old age, she continued performing. Occasionally she was back on major stages and did some TV appearances. On January 5, 2007 she sang a duet with Paul Michiels
Paul Michiels
Paul Michiels is a Belgian singer and songwriter who became popular for his work with the Belgian music group Soulsister. He has earned the nickname Polle Pap, a name he inherited from a childhood job as a milkman in his hometown of Heist-op-den-Berg, where he was born.Paul started out with a...
in the TV show "Gala Gaston 80", honouring the Flemish comedian Gaston Berghmans
Gaston Berghmans
Gaston Berghmans is a Flemish actor and comedian. He and Leo Martin formed a comic duo called Gaston and Leo.-Youth:...
at his 80th birthday.
In 2008, she continued to struggle with health problems and had to spend three months in a hospital. She had then to retire to a nursing home, where the aged Flemish actress Yvonne Verbeeck also stayed.
On April 11, 2011 La Esterella died in a hospital in her native city Antwerp. On April 16 her funeral ceremony in the cathedral of Antwerp was attended by a large crowd. On April 18, she got her last resting place, a place of honour in the Antwerp cemetery Schoonselhof.
Singles (incomplete)
- Und wieder geht ein schöner Tag zu Ende (1942/43)
- Alleen door jou (1952)
- Oh! Lieve Vrouwe toren (1953)
- Voor een kusje van jou (1953)
- Het lied van mijn hart (1953)
- Eeuwig (1953)
- Dank (1953)
- Alle moeders (1954)
- In je hart (1954)
- Kom bij mij (1954)
- 't Is zo goed (1954)
- Ave Maria (1955)
- Goedenacht... tot morgen (1955)
- Zachtjes, zachtjes (1955)
- Mandolino (1955)
- Heden en verleden (1955)
- Weldra komt de dag (1955)
- Zonneschijn voor iedereen (1955)
- Arrivederci Roma (1956)
- La luna (1956)
- Refrein (1956)
- Ga hand in hand (1956)
- Bij het open vuur (1956)
- Het lied van Lima (1957)
- Klimrozen bloeiden (1957)
- Verliefde ogen (1957)
- Steeds denk ik aan jou (1958)
- Maria's kind (1958)
- Rozen vallen uit de hemel (1959)
- Liefdesvreugd, liefdesleed (1959)
- Het liedje zonder woorden (1959)
- De dag dat ons kindje komt (1959)
- Mexicaans liefdeslied (1959)
- Zeg de waarheid (1960)
- Vieni, vieni, qui (1960)
- Carnaval in Madrid (1962)
- Heimwee (1984)
- Do you know what it means (1999)
Albums
- De gouden stem van La Esterella (1, 2 en 3) (1969, 1970 en 1971)
- Het beste van La Esterella (1974)
- Liedjes die ik steeds graag zong (1988)
- De levende legende (1989)
- Het beste van La Esterella (1997)
- Oh Lieve Vrouwe toren (2002)