Post by davidhr on Feb 21, 2017 8:52:51 GMT -5
Lara clarified what she’s been up to this past week with an iconic picture of her standing on the Spanish steps in Rome with the caption “Roman Holiday". The picture can be seen at
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/a.215378125170359.50343.201065806601591/1445614602146699/?type=3
As you probably already know, Lara’s phrase is borrowed from the 1953 film ‘Roman Holiday’, starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck. What’s more, that film made the Spanish Steps famous to an American audience. The ~138 steps climb a steep slope between the Piazza di Spagna at the base (the long, triangular Spanish square named after the Spanish Embassy to the Holy See)... to the Piazza Trinità dei Monti, dominated by the Trinità dei Monti church at the top (the twin tower church seen in the picture). At the time it was built (1723-1725), that church was under the patronage of the Bourbon kings of France. So the 'Spanish steps' were actually built with French funds. Actually, the steps just reopened in September 2016 after some reconstruction.
Lara then followed that with some more pictures at iconic places, e.g.:
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/pcb.1446610845380408/1446609912047168/?type=3&theater
This one shows the Trevi Fountain, situated in the Piazza di Trevi . It’s the home of a world famous legend that states that tossing a coin over your shoulder into the water guarantees that you will one day return to Rome. The fountain was completed in 1762 and features seahorses, a chariot, horses, and tritons, among other features.
Another picture looks like it has the appearance of a post card, with the faces of Gabriel and Lara pasted in front of the Roman Coliseum,
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/pcb.1446610845380408/1446609915380501/?type=3&theater
and then Lara by herself in front of the Coliseum,
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/pcb.1446610845380408/1446609978713828/?type=3&theater
Fans greeted these pictures as you might expect, wishing her a happy vacation, and some hoping for a concert in Italy one of these years.
Hopefully it has been an enjoyable time for both her and Gabriel (and her daughter, if she went with them, although it is the time of year when school is in session).
When in Rome…food cannot be far behind, and Lara posted a picture of Italian pasta on her Instagram site, with the caption, “Italian pasta…art not food”, at
In the same spirit, Lara also posted a link to her famous video with Laura Paussini for the song ‘La Solitudine’ filmed on those same Spanish Steps, available at
www.youtube.com/watch?v=CebvCWsoU1I&feature=youtu.be
It included the caption, “A beautiful memory from Rome, shared with the magnificent Laura Pausini. Arrivederci Roma.” You may note that it has close to 16 and ½ million views, just 100,000 less than the official video. That also makes it Lara’s fifth most popular video on youtube, behind three different versions of Je t’aime and one of Je suis malade.
The song was originally recorded by Laura Pausini in 1993 as a cut on her first, self-titled album. It was performed that same year for the first time at the Sanremo Music Festival, where it won in the newcomer’s competition. It reached the top of the Italian charts (despite some negative reviews), and is now recognized as an “Italian standard”. In a Europe-wide release, it reached the top of the Dutch and Belgian singles charts, and the top five on the French singles chart.
Although she didn’t write it (it was written by Federico Cavalli and Pietro Cremonesi), she said it was very autobiographical, and it recorded exactly what she was going through at the time.
You also may know that Lara and Laura never recorded it in the studio. They had the chance in 2013 when Laura asked Lara to sing it with her for her second compilation album “20 - The Greatest Hits”, celebrating Laura's 20th year career anniversary. For those who are unfamiliar with it, here is the story, as first reported in the News Update of 12/19/13, based on comments from Laura Pausini’s news conference (still available at www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVjvf6xpFUA):
-------------------------------------------------
With respect to their duet, Laura wanted them to sing "La Solitudine", and asked that Lara provide a French version of the song. Lara, however, wanted to change the words, feeling that she could not now sincerely write a song about a woman fearing she could not go on after losing her man… Laura, however, felt that was the song, and didn’t want it changed. Then Lara suggested they sing ‘Io canto’, because she had seen it on the DVD of Laura at San Siro in Milan, liked it, and there already was a French version. So they recorded "Io Canto / Je Chante".
--------------------------------------------------
For Je chante/Io canto, the Italian/French lyrics were written by Riccardo Cocciante and Marco Luberti, while Cocciante wrote a French only version. One can hear that duet at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLU4TihOQ_A
In addition to Laura Pausini’s album, it also appeared on Lara's Collector’s Edition of ‘Le Secret’.
Here’s the English translation of La Solitudine (thanks to tariqsj83):
------------------------------------------------------
The Loneliness
Marco’s gone and he won’t be back
The 7:30 train without him
Is a metal heart without soul
In the gray morning cold city
At school the seat is empty,
Marco’s inside me
I feel his sweet breath among my thoughts
Great distances seem to divide us
Yet you make my heart beat strong
I wonder if you will think about me
If you’ll talk about me to your folks
If you hide just like me
So that you don’t have to look at anyone
Locked up in your room you don’t want to eat
As you tighten your pillow against your chest and you cry
But you still don’t know how hard the loneliness will hit you
Marco, in my diary I have a picture of you
Your eyes are boyish and a bit shy
I just have to reach in my heart and I feel you there
Among my favorite subjects: English and Math
Your father whispers with his co-workers in the other room
He got a new job and you have to leave because of him
I bet he never once let you have a say in this
He said: “One day he will understand me”
I wonder if you will think about me
If you will talk about me to your friends
I don’t want you to suffer any longer for me
But I know it isn’t easy
School is too much to bare
And when I get home it’s even worse
I’m not in the mood to study as all my thoughts are about you
There is no way to split up our life together
Just wait for me there, my love, but I’m not sure what to do
The loneliness dividing us
And my internal silence
It would be devastating to split up our life together
So just wait there for me because I just can’t live without you
There’s just no way we can split up our story
Just wait for me there, my love, but I’m not sure what to do
The loneliness dividing us
And my internal silence
It would be devastating to split up our life together
So just wait there for me because I just can’t live without you
There’s just no way we can split up our story
------------------------------------------------
And here’s the translation of “Je chante/Io canto” (from lyricstranslate.com/en/je-chante-i-sing.html-0)
--------------------------------------------------
I Sing
The mist which lays in the morning,
A stone path of the hill,
The falcon which will rise,
The first ray which will come,
The snow which will be melt
Running towards the sea.
The imprint of the head on the pillow,
The slow and uncertain steps of a child,
The look of the serenity,
The hand which will be stretched,
The joy of who will wait
For this and that it will come.
I sing,
The hands in pocket and I sing,
The voice in holiday and I sing,
The band in the head and I sing,
I run in the wind and I sing,
The whole life and I sing,
The spring and I sing,
My prayer and I sing,
For someone who will listen to me,
I want to sing,
Always sing.
The smell of the coffee in the kitchen,
The house all full of the morning,
And the lift which doesn't work,
The love to my city,
People who will smile
Along the street,
The branches which are intertwined in the sky,
An old man who walks always alone.
The summer which will pass then,
The wheat which will mature,
The hand which will pick it up,
For this and that it will come.
I sing,
The hands in pocket and I sing,
The voice in holiday and I sing,
The band in the head and I sing,
I run in the wind and I sing,
The whole life and I sing,
The spring and I sing,
The last evening and I sing,
For someone who will listen to me,
I want to sing,
Always sing,
Sing.
I sing,
The hands in pocket and I sing,
The voice in holiday and I sing,
The whole life and I sing,
I run in the wind and I sing,
I sing,
The whole life and I sing,
I sing,
For someone who will listen to me,
For someone who will listen to me,
For someone who will listen to me.
-------------------------------------------------------
It’s clear why Lara would have no objection to the lyrics for the second song, and perhaps also why she did not want to write a French version of the lyrics of ‘La Solitudine'. [Perhaps they should just have sung the duet in Italian, as they did live on the video which appeared on a French TV show]. It does seem to be a great shame that a studio recording of them singing it together was never made, given how popular it has become. Given the number of views of their live duet, imagine how many it could have sold…In contrast, the (audio) duet with Laura Pausini of ‘Je chante/Io canto’ on youtube, has 71,000 views.
Since Lara is on vacation, one presumes the English language album is finished, or as much as can be done at this time. If it is truly to be released in the fall, which is some seven months away, one wonders how Lara is going to spend the intervening period. Tour dates are always possible, but we’ve heard that one has to make arrangements at least six months and more generally one year ahead of time for concert halls – and Lara’s team indicated that no future concert dates have yet been finalized. She could always promote the new single, if indeed it is still set for a June release; but where would that be, in France/Belgium for an English language song? In English speaking countries, where the media doesn’t know her? All developments that will play themselves out, one way or another, as the year progresses.
Meanwhile, the one concert that is planned, in London in March, is getting some publicity. Here’s an article announcing it (thanks to the Lara Fabian Web site for the link, www.wallonia.co.uk/events/events-calendar-2017/lara-fabian-eventim-apollo-london/):
----------------------------------------------------------
Lara Fabian, with more than 25 million albums sold worldwide, one of the best-selling artists of her generation, will play her first show ever in the UK in March at the Eventim Apollo in London!
The Belgian born artist is currently on a one-year-tour around the world and will make a stop in London. Don’t miss the chance to see her in Live!
Info:
Lara Fabian in concert
15/03 – 19h30
Eventim Apollo
45 Queen Caroline St, London W6 9QH
She was born in Belgium in 1970 and began to sing at a very young age. After finishing her studies in Belgium, Lara Fabian moved to Montreal and began her own label and publishing company, Productions Clandestines. Her first French-language album came out in Canada in 1991 and was very successful. In February 1998, Fabian received the Discovery of the Year award during the Victoires de la Musique Gala. The live album Fabian released in 1998 secured her international popularity, it was a huge success across the globe, reaching number 1 in the US Heatseeker chart and rocketed to the top of the French charts. Her public kept on growing with the release of new albums and the shows she made in Europe and America.
In 2010, she wanted to discover a more eastern universe and set up a new ambitious project called “Mademoiselle Zhivago”, sung in 4 languages and written in collaboration with a Russian composer. It had a tremendous success in Eastern and Northern Europe.
In 2013, Lara came back to her French-speaking audience that has never abandoned her with a new original album called “Le Secret”. She also won the heart of a younger generation, which is touched by the sincere vision the singer has about life, love and the world changing around her… Following several sold out concerts in North America and Europe in autumn 2014 and spring 2015, Lara announces the release of new French album in 2015: “Ma vie dans la tienne”.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Notice the promo had nothing about the new English album, although it reads as if it was written several years ago; it’s not even clear which ‘world tour’ they are referring to. As boiler plate, it may be inappropriate to read too much into it. But it does (again) raise the question of whether Lara will introduce any of the new English songs at her London concert; this question was also brought up by a fan in response to Lara’s Italian pictures. Remember, we were informed last year that Lara would be touring North America ‘early in 2017’, so the London date could well have been planned when the English album promotion was predicted to be well under way. As it is, Lara may be in the position of having her ‘world tour’ for the English album have as its first stop an English speaking country where she doesn’t actually sing anything from it. As Yogi Berra once said, “Prediction is difficult, especially of the future”.
The most interesting pictures of the week were all those Lara herself provided, linked to above. However, there is a wonderful video that LaraF Gr. posted of Lara singing in 10 languages (that’s relevant to basically all the above discussions in this Update); it can be found (thanks to Anthony Vhl on the MZ FBII site for the link) at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fDcCM2-4W8
Lara may currently be vacationing in Rome, but her influence is increasingly being felt all around the (linguistic) world.
David
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/a.215378125170359.50343.201065806601591/1445614602146699/?type=3
As you probably already know, Lara’s phrase is borrowed from the 1953 film ‘Roman Holiday’, starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck. What’s more, that film made the Spanish Steps famous to an American audience. The ~138 steps climb a steep slope between the Piazza di Spagna at the base (the long, triangular Spanish square named after the Spanish Embassy to the Holy See)... to the Piazza Trinità dei Monti, dominated by the Trinità dei Monti church at the top (the twin tower church seen in the picture). At the time it was built (1723-1725), that church was under the patronage of the Bourbon kings of France. So the 'Spanish steps' were actually built with French funds. Actually, the steps just reopened in September 2016 after some reconstruction.
Lara then followed that with some more pictures at iconic places, e.g.:
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/pcb.1446610845380408/1446609912047168/?type=3&theater
This one shows the Trevi Fountain, situated in the Piazza di Trevi . It’s the home of a world famous legend that states that tossing a coin over your shoulder into the water guarantees that you will one day return to Rome. The fountain was completed in 1762 and features seahorses, a chariot, horses, and tritons, among other features.
Another picture looks like it has the appearance of a post card, with the faces of Gabriel and Lara pasted in front of the Roman Coliseum,
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/pcb.1446610845380408/1446609915380501/?type=3&theater
and then Lara by herself in front of the Coliseum,
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/pcb.1446610845380408/1446609978713828/?type=3&theater
Fans greeted these pictures as you might expect, wishing her a happy vacation, and some hoping for a concert in Italy one of these years.
Hopefully it has been an enjoyable time for both her and Gabriel (and her daughter, if she went with them, although it is the time of year when school is in session). When in Rome…food cannot be far behind, and Lara posted a picture of Italian pasta on her Instagram site, with the caption, “Italian pasta…art not food”, at
http://instagram.com/p/BQpdv9RhwKI
In the same spirit, Lara also posted a link to her famous video with Laura Paussini for the song ‘La Solitudine’ filmed on those same Spanish Steps, available at
www.youtube.com/watch?v=CebvCWsoU1I&feature=youtu.be
It included the caption, “A beautiful memory from Rome, shared with the magnificent Laura Pausini. Arrivederci Roma.” You may note that it has close to 16 and ½ million views, just 100,000 less than the official video. That also makes it Lara’s fifth most popular video on youtube, behind three different versions of Je t’aime and one of Je suis malade.
The song was originally recorded by Laura Pausini in 1993 as a cut on her first, self-titled album. It was performed that same year for the first time at the Sanremo Music Festival, where it won in the newcomer’s competition. It reached the top of the Italian charts (despite some negative reviews), and is now recognized as an “Italian standard”. In a Europe-wide release, it reached the top of the Dutch and Belgian singles charts, and the top five on the French singles chart.
Although she didn’t write it (it was written by Federico Cavalli and Pietro Cremonesi), she said it was very autobiographical, and it recorded exactly what she was going through at the time.
You also may know that Lara and Laura never recorded it in the studio. They had the chance in 2013 when Laura asked Lara to sing it with her for her second compilation album “20 - The Greatest Hits”, celebrating Laura's 20th year career anniversary. For those who are unfamiliar with it, here is the story, as first reported in the News Update of 12/19/13, based on comments from Laura Pausini’s news conference (still available at www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVjvf6xpFUA):
-------------------------------------------------
With respect to their duet, Laura wanted them to sing "La Solitudine", and asked that Lara provide a French version of the song. Lara, however, wanted to change the words, feeling that she could not now sincerely write a song about a woman fearing she could not go on after losing her man… Laura, however, felt that was the song, and didn’t want it changed. Then Lara suggested they sing ‘Io canto’, because she had seen it on the DVD of Laura at San Siro in Milan, liked it, and there already was a French version. So they recorded "Io Canto / Je Chante".
--------------------------------------------------
For Je chante/Io canto, the Italian/French lyrics were written by Riccardo Cocciante and Marco Luberti, while Cocciante wrote a French only version. One can hear that duet at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLU4TihOQ_A
In addition to Laura Pausini’s album, it also appeared on Lara's Collector’s Edition of ‘Le Secret’.
Here’s the English translation of La Solitudine (thanks to tariqsj83):
------------------------------------------------------
The Loneliness
Marco’s gone and he won’t be back
The 7:30 train without him
Is a metal heart without soul
In the gray morning cold city
At school the seat is empty,
Marco’s inside me
I feel his sweet breath among my thoughts
Great distances seem to divide us
Yet you make my heart beat strong
I wonder if you will think about me
If you’ll talk about me to your folks
If you hide just like me
So that you don’t have to look at anyone
Locked up in your room you don’t want to eat
As you tighten your pillow against your chest and you cry
But you still don’t know how hard the loneliness will hit you
Marco, in my diary I have a picture of you
Your eyes are boyish and a bit shy
I just have to reach in my heart and I feel you there
Among my favorite subjects: English and Math
Your father whispers with his co-workers in the other room
He got a new job and you have to leave because of him
I bet he never once let you have a say in this
He said: “One day he will understand me”
I wonder if you will think about me
If you will talk about me to your friends
I don’t want you to suffer any longer for me
But I know it isn’t easy
School is too much to bare
And when I get home it’s even worse
I’m not in the mood to study as all my thoughts are about you
There is no way to split up our life together
Just wait for me there, my love, but I’m not sure what to do
The loneliness dividing us
And my internal silence
It would be devastating to split up our life together
So just wait there for me because I just can’t live without you
There’s just no way we can split up our story
Just wait for me there, my love, but I’m not sure what to do
The loneliness dividing us
And my internal silence
It would be devastating to split up our life together
So just wait there for me because I just can’t live without you
There’s just no way we can split up our story
------------------------------------------------
And here’s the translation of “Je chante/Io canto” (from lyricstranslate.com/en/je-chante-i-sing.html-0)
--------------------------------------------------
I Sing
The mist which lays in the morning,
A stone path of the hill,
The falcon which will rise,
The first ray which will come,
The snow which will be melt
Running towards the sea.
The imprint of the head on the pillow,
The slow and uncertain steps of a child,
The look of the serenity,
The hand which will be stretched,
The joy of who will wait
For this and that it will come.
I sing,
The hands in pocket and I sing,
The voice in holiday and I sing,
The band in the head and I sing,
I run in the wind and I sing,
The whole life and I sing,
The spring and I sing,
My prayer and I sing,
For someone who will listen to me,
I want to sing,
Always sing.
The smell of the coffee in the kitchen,
The house all full of the morning,
And the lift which doesn't work,
The love to my city,
People who will smile
Along the street,
The branches which are intertwined in the sky,
An old man who walks always alone.
The summer which will pass then,
The wheat which will mature,
The hand which will pick it up,
For this and that it will come.
I sing,
The hands in pocket and I sing,
The voice in holiday and I sing,
The band in the head and I sing,
I run in the wind and I sing,
The whole life and I sing,
The spring and I sing,
The last evening and I sing,
For someone who will listen to me,
I want to sing,
Always sing,
Sing.
I sing,
The hands in pocket and I sing,
The voice in holiday and I sing,
The whole life and I sing,
I run in the wind and I sing,
I sing,
The whole life and I sing,
I sing,
For someone who will listen to me,
For someone who will listen to me,
For someone who will listen to me.
-------------------------------------------------------
It’s clear why Lara would have no objection to the lyrics for the second song, and perhaps also why she did not want to write a French version of the lyrics of ‘La Solitudine'. [Perhaps they should just have sung the duet in Italian, as they did live on the video which appeared on a French TV show]. It does seem to be a great shame that a studio recording of them singing it together was never made, given how popular it has become. Given the number of views of their live duet, imagine how many it could have sold…In contrast, the (audio) duet with Laura Pausini of ‘Je chante/Io canto’ on youtube, has 71,000 views.
Since Lara is on vacation, one presumes the English language album is finished, or as much as can be done at this time. If it is truly to be released in the fall, which is some seven months away, one wonders how Lara is going to spend the intervening period. Tour dates are always possible, but we’ve heard that one has to make arrangements at least six months and more generally one year ahead of time for concert halls – and Lara’s team indicated that no future concert dates have yet been finalized. She could always promote the new single, if indeed it is still set for a June release; but where would that be, in France/Belgium for an English language song? In English speaking countries, where the media doesn’t know her? All developments that will play themselves out, one way or another, as the year progresses.
Meanwhile, the one concert that is planned, in London in March, is getting some publicity. Here’s an article announcing it (thanks to the Lara Fabian Web site for the link, www.wallonia.co.uk/events/events-calendar-2017/lara-fabian-eventim-apollo-london/):
----------------------------------------------------------
Lara Fabian, with more than 25 million albums sold worldwide, one of the best-selling artists of her generation, will play her first show ever in the UK in March at the Eventim Apollo in London!
The Belgian born artist is currently on a one-year-tour around the world and will make a stop in London. Don’t miss the chance to see her in Live!
Info:
Lara Fabian in concert
15/03 – 19h30
Eventim Apollo
45 Queen Caroline St, London W6 9QH
She was born in Belgium in 1970 and began to sing at a very young age. After finishing her studies in Belgium, Lara Fabian moved to Montreal and began her own label and publishing company, Productions Clandestines. Her first French-language album came out in Canada in 1991 and was very successful. In February 1998, Fabian received the Discovery of the Year award during the Victoires de la Musique Gala. The live album Fabian released in 1998 secured her international popularity, it was a huge success across the globe, reaching number 1 in the US Heatseeker chart and rocketed to the top of the French charts. Her public kept on growing with the release of new albums and the shows she made in Europe and America.
In 2010, she wanted to discover a more eastern universe and set up a new ambitious project called “Mademoiselle Zhivago”, sung in 4 languages and written in collaboration with a Russian composer. It had a tremendous success in Eastern and Northern Europe.
In 2013, Lara came back to her French-speaking audience that has never abandoned her with a new original album called “Le Secret”. She also won the heart of a younger generation, which is touched by the sincere vision the singer has about life, love and the world changing around her… Following several sold out concerts in North America and Europe in autumn 2014 and spring 2015, Lara announces the release of new French album in 2015: “Ma vie dans la tienne”.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Notice the promo had nothing about the new English album, although it reads as if it was written several years ago; it’s not even clear which ‘world tour’ they are referring to. As boiler plate, it may be inappropriate to read too much into it. But it does (again) raise the question of whether Lara will introduce any of the new English songs at her London concert; this question was also brought up by a fan in response to Lara’s Italian pictures. Remember, we were informed last year that Lara would be touring North America ‘early in 2017’, so the London date could well have been planned when the English album promotion was predicted to be well under way. As it is, Lara may be in the position of having her ‘world tour’ for the English album have as its first stop an English speaking country where she doesn’t actually sing anything from it. As Yogi Berra once said, “Prediction is difficult, especially of the future”.
The most interesting pictures of the week were all those Lara herself provided, linked to above. However, there is a wonderful video that LaraF Gr. posted of Lara singing in 10 languages (that’s relevant to basically all the above discussions in this Update); it can be found (thanks to Anthony Vhl on the MZ FBII site for the link) at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fDcCM2-4W8
Lara may currently be vacationing in Rome, but her influence is increasingly being felt all around the (linguistic) world.
David
