Chanson: The French Singer-Songwriter from Aristide Bruant to the Present Day (Ashgate Popular and Folk Music Series) - Hardcover

Hawkins, Peter

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0754601021 ISBN 13: 9780754601029

Publisher: Routledge, 2000

Synopsis

’En France, tout finit par des chansons’ is the well-known phrase which sums up the importance of chanson for the French. A song tradition that goes back to the Middle Ages and troubadours of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, chanson is part of the texture of everyday life in France - a part of the national identity and a barometer of popular taste. In this first study of chanson in English, Peter Hawkins examines the background to the genre and the difficulties in defining what is and what is not chanson. The focus then moves to the development of the singer-songwriter of chanson from 1880 to the present day. This period saw the emergence of national icons from Aristide Bruant at the end of the nineteenth century through to internationally recognized musicians such as Jacques Brel and Serge Gainsbourg. Each of these figures used chanson to express the particular moral dilemmas, tragic situations and moments of euphoria particular to themselves and their times. The book provides bibliographies, discographies and details of video recordings for each of the singer-songwriters that it discusses. It is both an essential reference guide to the genre and a useful case history of the adaptation of an ancient form to the demands of the modern mass media.

About this title

About the Author

Peter Hawkins, University of Bristol, UK

Review

'Well-researched, agreeable to read, modestly ambitious, this book should prove invaluable for those who already teach or study chanson and will very probably prompt others to do the same.' Modern Language Review

Edition details

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0754601021
• ISBN 13: 9780754601029
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 246