 Photo by Jennifer Jacovitch Autumn is my favorite time of year. I love the cool, foggy mornings and the mild afternoons of the Virginia weather. And the leaves, turning from green to a beautiful red, orange and gold. I love the melancholy that the season brings.The dead leaves of fall that cover the earth so it can sleep, only to wake up again in spring; change that comes before a new beginning. And I love how it has inspired poets and song writers to create songs that have become unforgettable classics. Like Johnny Mercer’s “Autumn Leaves”, that was originally written by Hungarian-French composer Joseph Kosma, with lyrics by French poet Jacques Prévert in 1945. Ever since I discovered the original version, as sung by Yves Montand in the movie “Les Portes de la Nuit”, I’ve never gone back. I hope you enjoy my version of “Autumn Leaves”…….
By Jennifer Jacovitch ([email protected])  Photo by Denny King. A new collaboration with the multi-talented Matty Metcalfe gives Paulien the opportunity to share her music in a more intimate setting. And with a little imagination and the sound of Matty’s accordion, listeners will feel like they’re in a romantic spot in the heart of Paris: the city of love, light and passion. So sit back and listen…. you are already there!
By Jennifer Jacovitch ([email protected])  Photo by Jack Looney. “A French, American Songbook” is the theme of singer Paulien’s latest initiative; it consists of a series of French tunes that have become classics on both sides of the ocean, either original or in translation. Songs like ‘La Vie en Rose’, ‘Les Feuilles Mortes’ (Autumn Leaves), ‘La Mer’ (Beyond the Sea) and ‘Que Reste t-il de nos Amours’ (I Wish You Love) are among the familiar tunes that are on the list. Songs that let the audience dream away a little and experience the music they know and love in a wonderfully new and different way. Paulien doesn’t just simply sing these songs, she feels them deeply, for she picks the ones that have a history and all together tell a story.
Backed by bandleader and pianist Tony Nalker and the East Coast’s finest jazz musicians, Paulien has tried out her new repertoire on an audience in the DC area, receiving calls for encores at Washington’s famous Blues Alley and other venues. The project brings Paulien back to her first love in music, la chanson française, or the very first effort she made, when at the age of twelve she won a local competition with a French song in her home town in The Netherlands and the French embassy at the time awarded her with a recording deal. |
PaulienA place for me (and occasionally a guest author) to share news and updates, as well as other various thoughts and musings. Archives
September 2016
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