by Genevieve Williams
"I love Paris in the springtime,
I love Paris in the fall,
I love Paris in the winter, when it drizzles,
I love Paris in the summer, when it sizzles.
I love Paris every moment,
Every moment of the year,
I love Paris,
Why, oh why, do I love Paris,
Because my love is near."
Cole Porter, "I Love Paris"
Glamour, culture, and romance: these have been the purview of Paris for centuries, and this is as true of the city's musical heritage as of anything else about it. A center of art and culture, an ancient city whose landmark Eiffel Tower implies a distinctly modern aspect. Rub shoulders on the streets of Paris and you might, before someone spots you as the tourist you are, understand why so many musicians made their way here, and wrote songs, operas, entire symphonies about what they found.
Cultural Classics
Paris has been considered a cultural center for centuries, and that applies to music as much as to anything else. The City of Light, as it's been called since the Enlightenment, was a destination and inspiration for classical composers, many of whom wrote works in honor of Paris, and many of whom lived there at one time or another. The Académie Royale de Musique, founded in the late 17th century, was only the most official of concert venues established during the French Baroque, when a tradition of concerts in both public and private spaces began to take shape. The Concert de la Loge Olympique commissioned Haydn's "Paris" symphonies (Nos. 82-87) in the late 18th century, and Mozart's "Paris" Symphony (K. 297) was premiered in 1778 in the city that gave the work its name.The French Revolution interrupted much of Paris' cultural life, though "La Marseillaise," which became the French national anthem, was composed by Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle in 1792. New musical organizations established during the Revolution, such as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique, later broadened their purpose and became part of the city's cultural life, while venues such as the Chapel Royal reopened once the revolutionary fervor died down. By the mid-19th century, Paris was the destination for composers, where they felt compelled to make their names: Fryderyk Chopin, Franz Liszt, and Richard Wagner all came to Paris to establish themselves, even if, like Wagner, they had a severe love-hate relationship with the city and its people. (That, however, probably says more about Wagner than about Paris.)
Hector Berlioz, whose works are among the crown jewels of French music, lived through most of the cultural and governmental upheavals of the 19th century. He completed the Symphonie Fantastique, probably his best-known work, during the July Revolution of 1830: "I dashed off the final pages of my orchestral score to the sound of stray bullets coming over the roofs and pattering on the walls outside my window." The damage done both to the city itself and to its cultural life as a result of a century of turmoil led to the founding of the Société Nationale de Musique to help rebuild Paris' musical life. Early members included Georges Bizet, whose opera Carmen is considered one of the masterworks of French opera, and Gabriel Fauré, whose career spanned virtually the entire Romantic period. As the 19th century ended and the 20th began, Paris remained a major cultural center, for composers both from France (Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel) and from elsewhere (Igor Stravinsky, whose Le Sacre du Printemps premiered at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in 1913).
Songs of Paris
In the 20th century, Paris was as much a center for popular culture as it was for traditional classical music. It is perhaps significant that American composer George Gershwin, who crossed the boundaries between classical and popular more than any other composer, followed in tradition's footsteps and composed a paean to the City of Light, appropriately titled An American in Paris, which premiered at Carnegie Hall in 1928. Of this work, the composer wrote: "[A]n opening section, in which an American visitor strolls about Paris and 'absorbs the French atmosphere,' is followed by a rich blues with a strong rhythmic undercurrent," meant to symbolize the composer's homesickness, before the music again delves into the sounds and textures of Paris.The inclusion of a blues line, however, was singularly appropriate; following the First World War, a large number of American blacks found their way to Paris where, in general, there were fewer issues of segregation and racism than in the US. Among them were composers and musicians, and as Paris embraced American jazz, a growing number of American musicians lived and worked in Paris. Among them was Cole Porter, whose time in Paris informed much of his work from then on, and whose song "I Love Paris" became a classic expression of the feelings of gaiety and romance the city inspired. The song was written for the 1953 musical Can Can, which was in turn named for a scandalous dance performed in the artsy Montmartre neighborhood before the turn of the century: a setting and story that inspired further retellings, including the 2001 film Moulin Rouge (merely the sixth movie with that name).
Other composers who made their way to Paris included Duke Ellington, Sidney Bechet, and Kenny Clarke. Paris was also very receptive to the blues, and Chicago blues guitarist Luther Allison spent many years there, finding a warmer reception in France than in his own country. Argentinian jazz musician and composer Gato Barbieri wrote the score for the 1971 Bernardo Bertolucci film Last Tango in Paris, including the title song, and European jazz star Django Reinhardt spent years living and working in the city. The songwriting team of Jean Franc Nohain and Alec Siniavine, who wrote for Reinhardt, among others, were in turn responsible for "Paris, Tu N'as Pas Changé," performed by pop cabaret performer Jean Sablon.
Cabaret is one of France's great contributions to modern popular music. Though considered rather old-fashioned these days, during its heyday it had a reputation for avant-garde musical experimentation on the one hand, and great licentiousness on the other…a bit like jazz's reputation in the States during the golden age of Harlem. Its performers, however, including the legendary Edith Piaf, frequently became the most popular stars of French music: Maurice Chevalier, Yves Montand, Josephine Baker, and Charles Trénet all emerged from this tradition. Trénet's "La Romance de Paris" is an eloquent statement for what draws people to Paris: "C'est la romance de Paris/Au coin des rues, elle fleurit/Ça met au coeur des amoureux/Un peu de rêve et de ciel bleu" ("That's romance in Paris/At every corner it blooms/It puts in lovers' hearts/A little dream and blue skies").
Likewise, the classic "Under Paris Skies," which has been recorded by just about everyone from Benny Goodman to Karrin Allyson brings home the particular combination of refinement and romance that is, for many, their lasting impression of Paris. Allyson puts it like this: "For me, this song is a painting of Paris--romantic and idealized--the Paris of our dreams. Lovers walking arm in arm near Notre Dame Cathedral, crossing the bridges along the Seine, hearing accordions along the way--all under Paris skies."
Or, as Ann Sothern sang in Lady Be Good: "The last time I saw Paris, her heart was warm and gay/I heard the laughter of her heart in every street café/The last time I saw Paris, her streets were dressed for spring/And lovers walked beneath those trees, and birds found songs to sing."
Genevieve Williams is a freelance writer specializing in music, book reviews, and film. She is a former music editor for Amazon.com and a regular contributor to Blues Revue.
