Angélique Kidjo & Alexandre Tharaud
»Les mots d’amour« – Reflektor Angélique Kidjo
A love of life
Both artists are very fond of French chansons, and even if they seem to make an odd combination at first glance, it turns out that this is a musical match made in heaven: singer Angélique Kidjo, who thinks increasingly along conceptual lines, and the French pianist Alexandre Tharaud. One of Europe’s finest and most sensitive classical pianists, Tharaud has also gained a reputation among film lovers for his role in Michael Haneke’s film »Amour«; in recent years, he has established a loyal audience in Hamburg too.
In 2020 the two musicians met for the first time in Paris at a programme designed by Kidjo called »An African Odyssey«; they played two songs by Barbara and Charles Aznavour and established a deep mutual understanding straight away. Their programme »Les mots d’amour«, which they worked up together during the second lockdown, is not a celebration of gems from the seemingly inexhaustible repertoire of jaunty and frivolous chansons, as one might think – a genre where the French are always portrayed as an easy-going people.
Kidjo and Tharaud want to include the pain and suffering that love can bring as well: they look at topics like domestic violence and abuse, and how an unshakeable love of life can help society’s unfortunates to cope with even the harshest circumstances. »Love is writ large here,« says Kidjo. Definitely one of the insider tips of her brimming »Reflektor« programme. A rare chance to hear this great and committed pop artist in the intimate setting of a song recital.
Performers
Angélique Kidjo vocals
Alexandre Tharaud piano
Programme
»Les Mots d´Amour«
Estimated end time
19:30
Festival
Reflektor Angélique Kidjo