Post by davidhr on Dec 1, 2015 9:41:45 GMT -5
A week of some more media appearances, various TV shows, an album signing appearance, and interviews, as the political climate trended back towards normal.
Lara was on the show “Stars Sous Hypnose” this past week, along with seven other guests, in a show hosted by Arthur with the hypnotist ‘Mesmer’. The idea is that the guests would be hypnotized and then perform all sorts of ‘entertaining acts’. The full video, of two hours and six minutes, is available at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKqU2FeTs8E
Not everybody can be hypnotized, or at least not easily, and Lara and Anthony Kavanagh seemed to be those exceptions. Both of them were then basically reduced to bystanders, and one wonders whether, after a while, Lara was wondering why she was really there (outside of Gerard Pullicino being the show’s producer, and Lara being in promotional mode). Or maybe she and ‘Messmer’ are just friends - she was actually an accomplice of the hypnotist before (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtU3Hv7L5Mg&app=desktop), again without being hypnotized, and ‘Rozenn Roz’ on the MZ FB site pointed out that it was Lara who first introduced him in 2012 on ‘Chabada’. All this would imply that they knew she was not hypnotically-sensitive beforehand, yet invited her anyway.
Outside of a brief plug for her album, her one real involvement occurred at approximately the 1:00 hour mark, when Linda Hardy, Anggun and Jarry were made to think of themselves as Lara’s lovers. Lara’s main task was to ensure that she wasn’t ‘manhandled’ during this episode! She did say, at the end to Arthur, “Well, well, it happened! I always thought so: before I die, I shall try with a woman! And here, thanks to you and Messmer, I just had two! "
Lara did look quite attractive; there are some nice photos of her, looking on [what else?
], at:www.facebook.com/353946178085395/photos/a.776181009195241.1073741855.353946178085395/776181042528571/?type=3&theater
Otherwise, the show was very entertaining and clever. However, it was not just ‘fun and games’ – the ‘haunted house’ segment towards the end really scared the guests, and when they were made to believe that the room was ‘shrinking’, they seemed to be in pain. If nothing else, this indicates the absolutely amazing powers of hypnosis (as well as perhaps some questionable taste on the part of the producers).
Lara also recorded the BelRTL Showcase, which will be broadcast later this week. We have some videos already from it, starting with the promo:
www.facebook.com/belrtl/videos/1083366471695436/?hc_location=ufi
And then from the audience:
Ma vie dans la tienne
vk.com/lf_cp?z=video-121236_171460734%2Ff8a34cab4085fd146f
Releve-toi
www.facebook.com/353946178085395/videos/776146845865324/
Very interesting that she chose to sing this song, which seems to be a natural anthem for France and Belgium at this point in time. Hopefully it has now leapt up in the decision making process as a prospective new single. It got a very big applause on the show! She also sang ‘Quand je ne chante pas’, ‘Ton desir’ and ‘Le coeur qui tremble’. Also interesting that she was singing them live (which she doesn’t usually do with new songs), and with an acoustic backing (that differs from how it sounds on the album).
Some nice pictures of her appearance can be found, thanks to the ‘Lara Fabian est ton autre’ site, at
www.facebook.com/166959643357708/photos/pcb.928858800501118/928858350501163/?type=3&theater
This morning, Lara was on the news show presented by Elise Luset on France 2; she appears starting at about the 38 minute mark, on the video available at:
www.francetvinfo.fr/replay-jt/france-2/13-heures/jt-de-13h-du-mardi-1-decembre-2015_1190229.html
Lara was interviewed about the album, and then presented a nice acoustic rendition of ‘Ma vie dans la tienne’.
In addition, over the weekend Lara had a signing appearance for her new album at the Media Markt in Braine-l’Alleud. A wonderful video of it can be seen at:
www.facebook.com/MediaMarkt.BrainelAlleud/videos/978709982168072/
and another video at:
www.facebook.com/166959643357708/videos/928865360500462/
Lara posted pictures of the flowers she received, visible at:
www.facebook.com/larafabianofficial/photos/pcb.1021399104568253/1021399614568202/?type=3&theater
with the (translated) comment, “Thanks to my fans! What kindness, what generosity! Thank you with all my heart!
Some other pictures from this appearance can be seen at:
www.facebook.com/MediaMarkt.BrainelAlleud/photos/pcb.977819608923776/977819335590470/?type=3&theater
She also gave press interviews in ‘La Capitale’ at that location, visible at (http://www2.pic-upload.de/img/28994124/LaCapitale-30.11.15.jpg) (thanks to Lara Fabian – PHQ for the link). Following are the translations:
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Waterloo, My Little Quebec
Conversation: Lara Fabian, writer, composer, singer
This Saturday, the Media Markt of Braine-l”Alleud welcomed Lara Fabian for a signing show. The first person was already present at 0500 to meet his idol…at 1400! We have been able to talk with the singer before her meeting with her fans.
You have chosen Braine-l’Alleud to meet your fans. A choice that is not due to mere chance…
LF: Absolutely not. I live in the Brabant Walloon, in Waterloo. It is therefore a place where I come myself to shop. It seemed to me therefore a just choice because I come from here, I live here.
You seem to be very attached to this region. Am I fooling myself?
LF: No. The Brabant Wallon, that has been a very important contact for me. When I was a girl, I took a bus to Forest which made me traverse all the suburbs to go to school. I came from Ruisbroek-Drogenbos – it is there that I lived during all my childhood – and then I arrived in this space, in this beauty. I remember, very small, I said to myself that one day I would live in Waterloo.
You followed a part of your scholastic course in Berlaymont. What is your best memory?
LF: I am going to give you my best memory for it is the reason why I started to write lyrics. Her name is Leila Du Castillon, and she was my teacher of literature and of French. She has been my inspiration, my first contact with literature. She made me read the Roman by Renart, and plenty of other books. She made me understand the importance of expressing a feeling through words. She was an Iranian, married to someone from Brabant Wallon. It is thanks to her that I wrote my first lyrics.
Are there other teachers who marked your schooling?
LF: Besides her, there was also my tutor, Viviane Lonnoy, who was my sports teacher. These two women metamorphosed my life. Viviane Lonnoy taught me to open up. In sports, I was just nothing, I was tired after two seconds (laughs). She taught me to be in phase with the areas for freedom that they gave and to not be afraid. As to Leila, she taught me the love of words. Great teachers can change the life of a being and I had that chance to meet two of them.
Your daughter Lou has just celebrated her 8th birthday last November 20th. Does she follow the same scholastic course as her mother?
LF: I have preferred for my daughter to have an immersion in English, for I think that it is a very important language. I have proposed to her to enter into another universe than the one that I have known. We don’t always strongly want the same thing for our children. But of course, we passed the campus of Berlaymont, I showed her the school and the place where the bus stopped…
To live in Waterloo was thus a dream which has today become reality…
LF: That’s right. It’s a small side ‘childhood dream’ which is realized. It is five years henceforth that I live there. It is true that I move a lot because of my profession. I am a girl who moves, visits places. I am a true citizen of the world. But I always keep a connection to Waterloo.
What city of Brabant Wallon met your expectations?
LF” You know, I am a little Canadian at heart. At the age of 19, I decided to live for 15 years in Canada. And I confess that, when you are in contact with a nature, a light like the one down there, you want to find its correspondence when you return. I looked for my little Canada, my little Quebec. And for me, the Brabant Wallon and Waterloo have a little side like that. Not in the same obvious propensities of course. But it reminds me of the way of living that one had in Quebec, with the small bakery on the corner, the girl who sells cupcakes, the places where you can still find someone who only sells fruits and vegetables, etc.
Precisely, in speaking of places, where are the places where you like to go out with your family?
LF: I don’t ever go to Brussels. For me, there is all that I need between Waterloo, Lasne and Plancenoit. I have for example, a small crush on Suzy Cook. It is a breakfast place in the 60s style that I find great and truly cool, between Waterloo and Lasne. Otherwise, there is also the small Italian restaurant Zio, on the road to Tervueren. These are some places that I love a lot and where I go regularly with my family.
After 5 years, the inhabitants of the region are habituated to your presence?
LF: Completely! (smiles). The people of Brabant Wallon are hyper-welcoming and very much family. They are very happy to see a personality who they love, but they don’t want to bother her. There is a respect, a sweetness. It is very sweet to live here.
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And then…
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Her New Album “Ma vie dans la tienne”
A Declaration to Those Near to Her “without filters”
The month of November has known the launching of the new album of Lara Fabian entitled “Ma vie dans la tienne”. It is the first project of the singer since the forced stopping of her tour, close to two years ago, following some health problems. “Today I go very well. It is no more than a bad memory”, she confides. “That was a difficult moment, certainly. I had to follow quite consequential therapies. But now, two years later, it goes very well and I am delighted to be able to retake my career.”
Lara Fabian characterizes her album as ‘sunny’, even if it equally takes up the most difficult ordeals in life. “I have written it without a filter, in the form of grand declaration to the beings who are close to me. As we age, we finally find words with more precision and simplicity that allow us to talk about ourselves”, she develops. The songs are thus in direct connection with our intimate universe. We find noatably “L’illusionniste’ which speaks of her husband.
Then, if one has to define the message of the album, what would it be?
“Remember that we are all one and the same. And interconnect with each other by passing our emotions, our sensations, our feelings, it is perhaps the best thing to do at the moment. The message, it is to not forget to tell those whom we love that we love them in concrete terms, truly.”
“Laughing Like Crazy”
Work on the album began a year and a half ago, in May 2014. A period which went by very quickly. “ It was a magical meeting with David Gategno and Elodie Hesme, who are the two people with whom I’ve written the album. They are two beings who, strangely, have the same energy as me. We love to live, we love to laugh, we love the very happy aspects of life. But we took full figure all three. To find oneself in a more peaceful place after the many shots, it made us want to live our lives through music twice as loud, with twice as much joy and conviction. So in fact, we spent six months laughing like crazy." And Lara Fabian added: "When writing ‘S’il ne reste qu’un ami", there still was a collective of tears. We were looking for something that we perhaps had still not had the opportunity to let go completely.” The beautiful Lara Fabian will be on stage for the tour of her new album March 18 2016 in Brussels, March 19 in Liege and March 20 in Anvers. Sabrina Berhin
-----------------------------------------------------------
Finally….
-----------------------------------------------------------
Event Maintained Despite the Mood
Lara Fabian Does Not Want to Give in to Panic
The signing show took place as expected.
Since the attacks in Paris, the mood has stretched through the whole country. Some people feared therefore that the star would cancel her signing show expected in the Media Markt of Braine-l’Alleud. “With what is happening at the moment, we are all as citizens in fear”, regrets the singer. “We are all in the act of looking around us, of being afraid that something terrible is going to happen.”
A panic to which Lara Fabian does not want to give in to. “You have to make an act of life and not an act of fear. I believe that as an artist, one should set an example. One must be here, surrounded by others and have the courage of continuing to be that which one is, to live how one has to live”, she confides, some minutes before rejoining her fans come to wait for her in number.
The same thing goes for her tour: “I don’t have any apprehension. Just a burst of joy to share!”, she smiles.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
We have another week of album listings; on ‘Charts in France’, and the new album's position is compared below with her other widely distributed French language studio albums released this century. [The listing for the new album considers total sales, physical + digital; it’s one number better for the physical CDs].
Week 1, 2, 3, 4
‘Ma vie dans la tienne’ : #4, #13, #18, TBD
‘Le Secret': #1, #11, #16 #27
'Toutes le femmes en moi': #3, #6, #9 #13
'Neuf': #3, #6, #5 #6
'Nue': #2, #4, #6 #8
So far, the new album pretty much parallels the history of ‘Le Secret’, rather than the earlier albums. We’ll see if there is a difference come week four. My guess is that in order to really maximize sales in either country, it will require a single for radio play that really excites the audience, for however good the whole album is, nothing beats an attention-grabber. Again, the suggestion here is that ‘Releve-toi’ would fit that definition given the current political climate. The total number of albums sold in France is now at 27,400.
In Belgium, the album opened at #3, and has been at #5 the past two weeks. On iTunes, the numbers as of today are: #46 France; #64 Belgium; #86 Switzerland; #200 Russia.
Concerning Russia: The ‘Lara Fabian Connecting People’ site had the following (translated) statement: “You've probably already noticed, but after the show "Le soir autour du monde" in the Russian press there began to emerge many articles devoted to Lara. An interview with Lara for the newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets", is available at (http://www.mk.ru/culture/2015/11/23/lara-fabian-mama-nazvala-menya-v-chest-geroini-pasternaka.html)” Here’s the (approximate) translation:
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Lara Fabian: "Mama named me after the Pasternak heroine"
The star told the "MK", as in 2013, that she almost lost her hearing, what she most valued in men, and why she does not want to get Russian citizenship
November 23, 2015
Shows of Lara Fabian differ completely, with the absence of ballet and dancers, as well as decorations. The singer appears on stage in the classic dresses with a minimum of makeup and jewelry. The world star Lara Fabian on the eve of the release of her album "Ma vie dans la tienne” gave an exclusive interview to "MK".
-Lara, you're still not accustomed to hear compliments – you turned red, when they said that you were beautiful! But it's true!
LF: Thanks for the compliment!
- It seems that you have had everything going on as usual. After all, even as a child you do not have to choose your own path - one points to your father, with whom you were performing at first.
LF: I can not say it was easy. Like everyone else, I was going through ups and downs. But I think the main thing - to learn from one’s mistakes and not repeat them in the future. Since childhood, I was clear which way I choose. Music has always been my passion. At 5 years old, I confidently told my dad that I'm a singer. Not "I will become a singer", but "I am a singer." To some extent we can say that the music chose me.
- You sing in English, French, Italian, Spanish, Turkish and Russian languages. You performed in prestigious concert halls in different countries, among them New York, "Carnegie Hall" and the Parisian "Olympia" and the Kremlin Concert Hall in Moscow. The audiences are all different. Do you feel any discomfort due to the fact that many, for example, because of ignorance of the language, do not understand what the song says?
LF: Each country is unique, each has its own musical culture. It also affects the way contact is made with the audience during concerts. Sometimes it happens that in the same country, the audience reacted very differently to the concerts. It is impossible to predict how the public will react to today. For me, every concert is an opening, a new meeting with the public.
And then, the audience understands the words or not - it is not the most important thing. Music connects us, it is sometimes better than words, helps to establish this important relationship between the artist and her fans.
- You are preparing to release an album, "Ma vie dans la tienne”. What is it with the cover design? And does the Russian different from the English-language version of the album?
LF: The album "Ma vie dans la tienne" - a traditional album for the French, pop music with modern sounds of 2015. Many people have already heard it, compare this work with my albums Pure and Nue and singing Je t'aime, Immortelle, J'y crois encore. This album reflects the person I am today, but at the same time, the one whom I have always been. Cover has been designed using the technology of "augmented reality." This cover “comes alive" in your hands. So, if you have not yet started listening to the album, you can imagine what emotions will accompany you while listening to this album.
- To uncover a secret, you voiced Ariel in the Disney movie or not? Very similar voice, but your name in the credits I have not noticed.
LF: I do the voice for Disney. I do not Ariel, I do Esmeralda in the Canadian version of the animated film "Notre Dame de Paris". I also sang the song, which became soundtracks for several films: in "Artificial Intelligence" and Spielberg's film "Final Fantasy."
- Over the years, each performer is changing repertoire, and even the manner of execution. For example, you become more relaxed in conveying to the audience the musical material, but in your texts there has remained the same poignancy. Is it connected with your family life?
LF: Voice changes over time. I continue to study singing, it is an important aspect of my work. At the same time the voice - it is a means of expressing what I want to convey to the public. My texts reflect what is happening in my life. After all, except that I'm a singer, writer and composer, I am also a wife and mother.
- Tell us about your daughter Lou. You as a child, your father took on tour, and do you take her? Does she have a musical talent?
LF: My daughter is still very small, she goes to school. She is with me at some concerts, but I can not take her on tour, because then she will miss school. Lou is very talented, but I do not think that her passion is for music. With her, she is more attracted to gastronomy, she likes to cook.
- I know that the fact you were named Lara is not accidental. Probably, after the program "Mademoiselle Zhivago" your Russian fans came up with information about the origin of the name. What was it really?
LF: My mom gave me the name of Lara after the heroine of the novel "Doctor Zhivago". She saw the film when she was pregnant with me, and realized that she really liked that name. I think it really suits me.
- It is in this program you first sang the song "Love Is Like a Dream," which in our country is known by Alla Pugacheva. Why was this song chosen? Have you heard a song by Pugacheva? Do you know her?
LF: When we started to work with Igor Krutoy, I said that I wanted to sing a song in Russian. He gave me to hear many well-known Russian songs, but at once the choice fell on "Love Is Like a Dream". It's an incredible story! In her amazing energy! I heard this song for the first time in a recording by Alla Pugacheva. A wonderful performance! We crossed a few times, but never closely, not to talk, so I do not even know how Alla responded to my performance.
- Tell us about your first meeting with Igor Krutoy.
LF: We met in 2009, when I was in Moscow with concerts in Operetta Theater. Igor gave me a CD with music. Many of the songs I liked. I wrote poems to them, and we started working on our album "Mademoiselle Zhivago", which after some time was born. The new album also features two songs written together with Igor.
- Some time after the concert in the Kremlin, the whole world had spread the news that you leave the scene for health reasons. How true is this information?
LF: During a tour of France in 2013, with me there was an accident, I got injured in an acoustic accident and almost lost my hearing. At stake was my career, which could end at one point, so we had to suspend the tour. Thanks to the treatment I was able to gradually restore hearing. So all this is now just an unpleasant memory.
- I once read that you once loved Barbra Streisand. Many artists, reaching fame, are afraid to talk about it. You at one time even released an album dedicated to women, who change your creative way. You are not afraid to confess your love?
LF: Why are they afraid to show love? I think we often forget to tell our loved ones that they are very important for us. My album ‘Ma vie dans la tienne’ - a declaration of love to my family. There is a song dedicated to my daughter, my husband, my best friend. As for the artists that I like, I do not see why not admire them, and why not to share it.
- One of the most popular videos from your concerts is a composition 'Je t'aime' where the audience sang for you "We love you". Say, you really could not sing a song after that or is it a PR stunt?
LF: I think even if you want to prepare in advance like that, the fact is that you will not succeed. My fans have prepared this surprise for me, but I knew about it. I was moved to tears. How else to react when you stand in front of thousands of the audience that sings a declaration of love?
- Now on the big screen comes the film ‘Un Soir Autour Du Monde’, where you represent your best work in an acoustic version. Not many actors can so take the risk. In memory pops a concert of Michael Jackson. How did you decide on such a bold step?
LF: This movie - shooting the final concert of the international tour, with which I traveled around the world. I had the opportunity to present my best songs with amazing musicians in many countries and cities, from Berlin to Sofia from Helsinki to Los Angeles. The last concert of the tour was in Prague, this is the concert that was filmed. I wanted to memorialize this audience as a gift to the fans in those countries, where we were able to come with this show. It's like a postcard during the trip, to say thank you. After all, if I travel with these songs all over the world, it is because of the public. I would like to say thank you and to the Russian public, with whom we have not met at concerts, but the meeting at which I am always happy to wait for.
- Each artist is pursued by gossip and speculation. It is said that you have bought an apartment in Moscow, that a long time ago at a Moscow concert you are attacked by a fan. And that you compete with Celine Dion. What of this is true?
LF: For me, it is surprising to hear such speculation. It is not true. Celine Dion - a terrific actress, whom I admire and whose career is completely different from mine. I expressed it in a letter this admiration, and sang her a song on my album 'Toutes les femmes en moi' which I dedicated to artists that influenced me and my career. Some fans like to compare artists. But I do not understand why some people say this about the competition: we have no one to compete with, we are not athletes and politicians.
- Do you have a business in our country? And do you propose to change nationality in favor of our country?
LF: I was born in Belgium, my dad is Belgian, so I have the Belgian nationality. I lived a long time in Quebec, after which I received Canadian citizenship. But I'm still the Belgian. I love Russia, but do not understand why should I become a citizen of this country. I am a singer, writer and composer, any other "business" I have neither in Russia, nor in other countries.
- For many years you had a personal diary. Now you run the page on social networks. They replace it?
LF: They can not be compared. The very phrase "personal diary" carries its essence: it is personal, it belongs to only one person. As for social networks, it is a means of communication that allows me to keep in touch with the public, without passing through the traditional means of mass media.
- Tell me, do you learn about whether someone is your friend in joy or in trouble?
LF: A friend is known in friendship. No matter whether you are experiencing moments of joy, or are in trouble. This is the one you can rely on in any situation.
- What do you consider the strengths and weaknesses in a woman?
LF: The same as that of a man - the ability to love and the ability to express themselves.
- In some cases, is a woman rescued by the way she looks, in heels, for example?
LF: Women as well as men, sometimes just want to please themselves, others, to draw attention to a particular person. But the main thing - to feel comfortable in this image.
- Do you remember your first love?
LF: Of course, this is a very important emotion in everyone's life.
- Do you not want to write an autobiography?
LF: Who knows, maybe one day, when I'm 80, I want to share what was going on in my life. But as long as I do not have time for this, I prefer to devote time to create memories for the future, and not to talk about the past.
- You were born on 9 January. Just before our country celebrates Christmas. How does your family celebrate Christmas? How do you come to the choice of a gift? And what is for you the most precious gift?
LF: I celebrate Christmas with my family. The most important gift for me - those that money can not buy, it is the presence of loved ones nearby.
- It has long been a tradition in Russia, where the girl must be careful. It is in the yuletide (January)that one should be very cautious about the rites, because everything comes true. Have you ever had such things? And how much do you believe in destiny and omens?
LF: It depends on what you mean by "fate". Everything in our life happens for a reason. But I think that we are building our own destiny. We make decisions that affect the way things are going in the future, meet people who we could not meet, if at some point we do not make those decisions.
- What do you value most in a man?
LF: The love and support. Everyone takes their own way.
Lily Sharlovskaya
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As usual with Lara, very interesting answers.
Still on Russia: Thierry Palomares on the MZ FB site claims that Lara has recorded an album with Igor Krutoi, who wrote the music, and that it has been blocked for the last year. The impression was that he and Lara had a ‘falling out’. It was implied that on account of this, Lara will instead be going to give concerts in Tokyo this summer. All of this is hard to verify independently, and of course Krutoi wrote the music for the two bonus songs, which would seem to invalidate it. Nevertheless, we do know that Lara had prerecorded some new songs with Krutoi (that were lip-synched on various ‘New Wave’ shows), suggesting they may have been made for a yet-to-appear album. And Lara did pass up the latest New Wave festival, for whatever reason. Nevertheless, this long press interview, and the playing of the movie in Russia, would seem to indicate she is not abandoning the Russian market, regardless of the current political climate. Lara’s touring schedule for next year so far lists three shows in Eastern Europe in April – two in Romania, and one in Bulgaria. It will be interesting to see whether any shows in Russia wind up being scheduled.
In other news, Isabelle Morizet, on the France 3 program "Les grands du Rire" made the following (translated) comment about Lara: "Lara is a child of the ball.... The Big Belgian voice always has had the ambition to export far away.... When Lara arrived in the U.S. and tried to break through there, the producers of Celine Dion ‘arranged’ that there were not two great voices of this type on the market". A video of Isabelle’s appearance (thanks to the MZ FB site) can be seen at: www.facebook.com/thierry.palomares.7/videos/10207088400879851/
Interesting photo(s) of the week: from Lara’s rehearsal for the BTL showcase:
vk.com/lf_cp?z=photo-121236_394936792%2Falbum-121236_224460621%2Frev
and
www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1680099862277306&set=gm.1234305366595970&type=3&theater
Then from the Media Markt appearance, courtesy of the Operation Fan Club Lara Fabian site, at:
www.facebook.com/OperationFanClubLaraFabian/photos/a.674006339373232.1073741828.673991206041412/866924353414762/?type=3&theater
A few more promotional activities in the coming week – Lara will participate in the program SALUT LES TERRIENS" on CANAL, the recording of which will take place on December 3rd. As noted earlier, the BelRTL Showcase will be broadcast later this coming Friday; hopefully there will be some high quality videos; it’s nice that other songs from the album will be getting airplay.
David
