de La Rochelle - French Accent Magazine

Nr 13 – June-July 2008
The French Scene — Les
Francofolies
de La Rochelle
Les Francofolies (literally: French craziness) is one of the most famous music festivals in
France. It takes place every year in La Rochelle during the month of July. It is an annual
celebration of French music and song and includes more than 100 live concerts during a sixday period in various venues in the city and features a wide range of music, including folk,
rock and jazz. So, if you are planning a trip this July to the western part of France, stop by the
Francofolies between July 11th & July 16th 2008. And we would also highly recommend that
you arrive a few days before or stay a few days after to visit the beautiful city of La Rochelle!
Les Francofolies was started in 1985 by Jean-Louis Foulquier, a creative artist, radio host and
man of multiple talents with a curious mind and endless energy. After a slow start, the
festival has since grown each year and has now achieved the status of being THE festival
where the most talented French singing artists participate every July. Artists such as Renaud,
Francis Cabrel, Johnny Hallyday, Léo Ferré, Francis Lalanne, Patricia Kaas, Patrick Bruel,
and many more, have performed there. In addition, duos and artists on the international scene
from Louisiana, Acadia or Québec make the pilgrimage to La Rochelle each year – this is also
what makes this French music festival so exceptional and unique.
The fundamental idea behind the organization of Les Francofolies is to choose each year one
well known French artist figure in the music industry and have that person decide who will
join in on the concert stage. It is organised as such in order to communicate a genuine idea:
friends are invited first!
Each year, this event has helped launch new talent from France, Switzerland, Belgium,
Africa, West Indies or Canada. Many CDs have also been recorded during the live concerts,
some of which have achieved gold record status.
Today, Les Francofolies festival is highly respected and renowned not only for its longevity
but also for its artistic passion to promote contemporary music of French expression before
crowds of true French music fans who wish to see their favourite artists and to discover new
ones.
The 2008 Festival line-up includes Vanessa Paradis, Stacey Kent, Yaël Naim, Bernard
Lavilliers, Thomas Dutronc and Camille. It will take place from July 11th to 16th.
Vincent Anthonioz
Official website: www.francofolies.fr
La Rochelle Tourist Office (in English): www.holidays-la-rochelle.co.uk
Je suis un homme
Je suis un homme de Cro-Magnon
Je suis un singe ou un poisson
Sur la terre en toute saison
Moi je tourne en rond, je tourne en rond.
Je suis un seul puis des millions
Je suis un homme au cœur de lion
A la guerre en toute saison
Moi je tourne en rond, je tourne en rond.
Je suis un homme plein d'ambition
Belle voiture et belle maison
Dans la chambre ou dans le salon
Moi je tourne en rond, je tourne en rond.
Je fais l'amour et la révolution
Je fais le tour de la question
J'avance, avance à reculons
Et je tourne en rond, je tourne en rond.
Tu vois, j'suis pas un homme,
Je suis le roi de l'illusion
Au fond, qu'on me pardonne
Je suis le roi, le roi des cons.
Je fais le monde à ma façon
Coulé dans l'or et le béton
Corps en cage, jeté en prison
Moi je tourne en rond, je tourne en rond.
Assis devant ma télévision
Je suis de l'homme, la négation
Pur produit de consommation
Oui, mon compte est bon
Mon compte est bon.
Tu vois, j'suis pas un homme,
Je suis le roi de l'illusion
Au fond, qu'on me pardonne
Je suis le roi, le roi des cons.
C'est moi, le maître du feu,
Le maître du jeu, le maître du monde
Et vois ce que j'en ai fait,
Une terre glacée, une terre brûlée,
La terre des hommes que les hommes abandonnent.
Je suis un homme au pied du mur
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Comme une erreur de la nature
Sur la terre sans d'autres raisons
Moi je tourne en rond, je tourne en rond.
Je suis un homme et je mesure
Toute l'horreur de ma nature
Pour ma peine, ma punition,
Moi je tourne en rond, je tourne en rond
Je suis un homme et je mesure
Toute l'horreur de ma nature
Pour ma peine, ma punition,
Moi je tourne en rond, je tourne en rond
Moi je tourne en rond, je tourne en rond
Totem, 2007
Isabelle Truchis de Varennes, otherwise known simply as Zazie, is a French singer and song
writer who was born on April 18, 1964 in Paris. Her stage name was inspired by the novel
Zazie dans le métro by Raymond Queneau. Zazie has become one of France’s most popular
singers and appeals to all age groups. She has produced many albums and has written for
quite a few famous French singers. Part of her reputation is based on her very pure, pleasant
and generous personality. It is not uncommon to see her take part in concerts for the benefit
of various charities such as Les Enfoirés, Ensemble contre le Sida and Sol En Si.
Although she started out as a model, music was her real love. She played the violin for 10
years and also played the guitar. She started composing songs and then made her first album
Je, tu, ils in 1992; it turned out to be a success and Zazie earned a Victoire de la musique
(French music awards) in 1993 for female revelation of the year. Her career really took off at
this point and her second album Zen was released in 1995. It contained many hits, such as
Larsen, Zen, Un point c’est toi and Homme Sweet Homme.
Zazie has been approached by many French-speaking artists to write songs such as Pascal
Obispo, the famous Johnny Hallyday (Allumer Le Feu), his son David Hallyday, Florent
Pagny, Patricia Kaas, Jane Birkin and Isabelle Boulay. Most recently, she has written songs
for Calogero, Axel Bauer & Julie Zenatti.
In 2001, Zazie released her fourth album La Zizanie and then was awarded another Victoire
de la musique for Best Female artist". In August 2002, her daughter Lola was born. Zazie
went on tour and her live album Ze Live was released in 2003. She came back in late 2004
with her fifth studio album Rodéo. Her next album in 2007, Totem, with beautiful lyrics and
music, quickly rose to number one on the French charts. The song Je suis un homme (which
talks about the foolishness of the men who are destroying the planet) was the first single
released from this album and is today a major success in France.
Vincent Anthonioz
You can watch the video clip of this song here:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=DcBIX6ptLmY
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Madame Augustine
Je suis Madame Augustine
Palette de couleurs
Ces jours je dois me lever
de bonne heure,
Pour colorier toutes les fleurs,
Les plumes des oiseaux
migrateurs,
Colorier les parfums,
Et les saveurs.
Quel travail, mais c’est
le bonheur
Quel travail, mais c’est
le bonheur
Children’s song written by Frédéric, from Carambole
Chosen by Alexandra
A Selection of books
Buying a House in France
The 2008 edition of this valuable and informative guide, first published in 2003, features a
presentation of our learning programme Learn French at Home, written by its founder, Céline
Anthonioz, who is also a co-editor of French Accent Magazine.
For those of our readers who haven’t seen it yet, this handbook (which is the only one of it’s
kind to be updated annually) provides a wealth of information of direct interest to expatriates
who intend to buy a property in France. You will find inside:
- A step-by-step guide to the buying process.
-Advice and guidance from legal, financial and property experts.
-Advice on taxes, wills, surveys, permits and fees.
-The best regional profiles you will find, including the latest trend information.
-Advice on how to build or renovate a house.
-Essential insider tips to save time and money.
-Stories and anecdotes from people who have done it.
-What you can get for your money region by region.
By Andre De Vries and Michael Streeter, Crimson Publishing. £12.99.
Discover The Louvre together
The very first of a new collection in France (the next one, which will appear soon, will be on
the Musée d’Orsay in Paris). This captivating and very well-done educational book is
conceived for children (8-12 years) and their families. It is a mixture of a very clear and
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nicely illustrated spiral guide of 9 galleries of the Paris museum Le Louvre, that parents can
discover and read with their kids, and of 18 discovery cards for children, together with special
magnifying glasses to read them. And in an annex, an Activity Book with 16 activities and
games. An excellent way to interest young people in art and culture, and that adults will also
find very interesting.
By Seonaid McArthur and Valérie Lagier, Ed. Gallimard Education, 2008. 18.50 €.
A French version of the same guide exists: Découvrir Le Louvre en famille. Same publisher.
On se fait la bise?
Did you know that in France?:
-It is usual to shake the hand of a person you meet in a professional appointment (and not only
professional);
-You can say rebonjour if you meet the same person 2 or 3 times in the day, but you don’t
shake hands again;
-You should never ask personal questions on the first encounter (or even the second, or
third…) such as: “Are you married”? “Do you have kids?”, etc.
-You should never offer red flowers to a French woman, unless you want to express your
love…
These are but a few examples of what you will find in this very interesting guidebook of
etiquette. But much more interesting than the French customs, which are just briefly
mentioned, the book tells one how to behave in each circumstance throughout the world. It is
not only informative but sometimes very funny. Starting with the subject of the title: On se
fait la bise? (Shall we give each other a kiss?), the author analyses how we do it, not only in
France but also in Belgium, Brazil, Egypt, Germany, Russia, and other places.
Mark McCrum, Editions du Seuil, 2008. 14.80 €
As the book is a translation from English, those who would find it difficult to read in French
may prefer the original: Going Dutch in Beijing. The International Guide to Doing the Right
Thing. Profile Books, London, 2007.
21 June: Fête de la musique
“Music Day”, which takes place on 21 June, in the UK and in more than 100 countries on the
five continents, is a very special day for the French. This is probably because it was the
French who first created this Fête de la musique, which very quickly became extremely
popular.
The idea for the creation of this musical event came from the American musician Joel Cohen
in 1976, while he was working for the French cultural radio station France Musique. His first
suggestion was that the radio station organize what he called Saturnales de la musique:
musical groups playing in the streets on the evening of 21 June, the first day of summer and
the longest day of the year. After the French elections in 1981 when the Socialist François
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Mitterrand was elected president, his Minister of Culture, Jack Lang, decided to pick up and
adapt this idea, and to suggest that it be celebrated in the same manner all over the country.
The principle was very simple: to encourage all musicians or groups of musicians to take to
the streets of their city/village and play or sing. And it was supposed to be for the pleasure of
the entire population, which would have free access to every such event organized
everywhere.
It was an immediate success, and it has become a major musical extravaganza every year in
France. On 21 June it will be rare to stroll through the streets of any city, or even the tiniest
village, without encountering musicians on your way, and, of course, many major events are
organized on or around this date by the cities themselves. Thousands of music festivals and
concerts can be found all over France, with sometimes up to a hundred in major cities like
Paris, Marseille or Lyon. An official poster is issued each year by the Ministry of Culture,
which has even created a special website*, on which a list of the major concerts is published.
But only a few of them are listed as most are improvised, or not announced to the mayor of
the city, in keeping with the original spirit of the event. And the Fête de la musique has now
become and international phenomenon as well.
Some of these festivals coincide with the Fêtes de la Saint-Jean (St-John’s) which are still
celebrated the same day in some parts of France, especially in Provence.
* www.fetedelamusique.culture.fr
Familiale — Jacques Prévert
For this issue’s short literary text we have chosen a prose poem by one of
France’s most beloved poets, Jacques Prévert. Prévert’s poems are all quite
easily understood, on the surface, at least, because he uses everyday vocabulary
and eschews any recourse to fixed rhyme schemes or metre. His subjects are
taken from everyday life and his readers can easily relate. In this particular
poem, the poetic quality is enhanced by his repetition of certain key phrases that
echo in our minds long after we have read the poem.
La mère fait du tricot
Le fils fait la guerre
Elle trouve ça tout naturel la mère
Et le père qu’est-ce qu’il fait le père ?
Il fait des affaires
Sa femme fait du tricot
Son fils la guerre
Lui des affaires
Il trouve ça tout naturel le père
Et le fils et le fils
Qu’est-ce qu’il trouve le fils ?
Il ne trouve rien absolument rien le fils
Le fils sa mère fait du tricot son père des affaires lui la guerre
Quand il aura fini la guerre
Il fera des affaires avec son père
La guerre continue la mère continue elle tricote
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Le père continue il fait des affaires
Le fils est tué il ne continue plus
Le père et la mère vont au cimetière
Ils trouvent ça naturel le père et la mère
La vie continue la vie avec le tricot la guerre les affaires
Les affaires la guerre le tricot la guerre
Les affaires les affaires et les affaires
La vie avec le cimetière.
Jacques Prévert
Paroles,
Editions Gallimard
1949.
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