Music of France
Troubadour songs of chivalry and courtly love were composed in the Occitan language between the 10th and 13th centuries, and the Trouvère poet-composers flourished in Northern France during this period.
Jean Philippe Rameau, a prominent opera composer, wrote an influential treatise on musical theory, especially in the subject of harmony; he also introduced the clarinet into his orchestras.
In the late Renaissance and early Baroque period, a type of popular secular vocal music called Air de cour spread throughout France.
In the late 19th century, pioneers such as Georges Bizet, Jules Massenet, Gabriel Fauré, Maurice Ravel and Claude Debussy revitalized French music.
The latter was a leading figure of Serialism while Messiaen incorporated Asian (particularly Indian) influences and bird song and Dutilleux translated the innovations of Debussy, Bartók and Stravinsky into his own, very personal, musical idiom.
A collection of folk songs compiled by Hersart de la Villemarqué, Barzaz-Breizh re-branded and promoted Breton traditions and helped ensure their continuity.
Sonneurs couples, consisting of a bombard and a biniou (bagpipe), is usually played at festoù-noz (Fest Noz) celebrations (some are famous, such as Printemps de Chateauneuf Archived 2004-03-31 at the Wayback Machine).
Modern Breton folk music includes harpists such as Anne-Marie Jan, Anne Auffret and Myrdhin, while singers Kristen Nikolas, Andrea Ar Gouilh and Yann-Fanch Kemener have become mainstream stars.
Bernard Blanc and Jean Blanchard, along with Éric Montbel from Lyon, were among the musicians who formed the basis of La Bamboche and Le Grand Rouge.
These performers refer to a former tradition collected and restored by figures such as Etxahun Iruri (1908–1979) where singing improviser poets (bertsolaris) played an important role in popular culture.
Corsican musical instruments include the caramusa (cornemuse bagpipe), cetera (16-stringed lute), mandulina (mandolin), pifana (a type of gemshorn) and urganettu (diatonic accordion).
The era lasted through to the 1930s and saw the likes of Édith Piaf, Charles Trenet, Maurice Chevalier, Tino Rossi, Félix Mayol, Lucienne Boyer, Marie-Louise Damien, Marie Dubas, Fréhel, Georges Guibourg and Jean Sablon.
During the 50s and 60s, it was the golden age of Chanson Française: Juliette Gréco, Mireille Mathieu, Georges Brassens, Jacques Brel, Gilbert Bécaud, Monique Serf (Barbara), Léo Ferré, Charles Aznavour and Alain Barrière.
In the 1980s, French pop fused international genres with artists like Vanessa Paradis and Mylène Farmer, alongside the rise of chanson nouvelle, led by Etienne Daho and Alain Bashung.
This period also saw the rise of variété française, with artists like Céline Dion and Zazie gaining international acclaim while staying rooted in French culture.
The Cancan, also called French-Cancan, is a high-energy and physically demanding musical dance, traditionally performed by a chorus line of female dancers who wear costumes with long skirts, petticoats, and black stockings.
Some of the most important artists included: Édith Piaf, Juliette Gréco, Mireille Mathieu, Jacques Brel, Georges Brassens, Gilbert Bécaud, Monique Serf (Barbara), Léo Ferré, Charles Aznavour, Salvatore Adamo and Dalida plus the more art-house musicians like Brigitte Fontaine.
During the 1970s, new artists modernized the chanson Française (Michel Fugain, Renaud, Francis Cabrel, Alain Souchon, Jacques Higelin, Alain Chamfort, Joe Dassin) and also in the 80s (Étienne Daho, Têtes Raides) till now (Benjamin Biolay, Zaz, Vincent Delerm, Bénabar, Jean-Louis Murat, Miossec, Juliette, Mano Solo, Jacques Higelin, Matthieu Chedid, Mathieu Boogaerts, Daniel Darc, Maurane, Christina Goh, Renan Luce).
Singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg began as a jazz musician in the 1950s and spanned several eras of French popular music including pop, rock, reggae, new wave, disco and even hip hop.
Most famous Yéyé stars include Johnny Hallyday, Eddy Mitchell, Richard Anthony, Dick Rivers and the popular girls such as France Gall, Sheila, Sylvie Vartan, and artists who fuse various music genres such as Chantal Goya, Dalida or Claude François.
The more commercial and pop part of Chanson is called Variété in French, and included Vanessa Paradis, Patricia Kaas, Patrick Bruel, Marc Lavoine, Pascal Obispo, Florent Pagny, Francis Cabrel, Étienne Daho, Alain Souchon, Laurent Voulzy and Jean-Jacques Goldman.
The superstar status of diva Mylène Farmer inspired pop-rock performers such as Zazie, Lorie, Alizée, and R&B singers like Nâdiya and Ophelie Winter.
More recently, the success of musical television shows have spawned a new generation of young pop-music stars including Nolwenn Leroy, Grégory Lemarchal, Christophe Willem, Julien Doré and Élodie Frégé.
Aficionados worldwide were enamoured by recordings such as Ange's Le Cimetiere des arlequins, Pulsar's Halloween, Shylock's Ile de Fievre, Atoll's L'Araignee-Mal and Eskaton's Ardeur.
French heavy metal bands include Gojira, Dagoba, Anorexia Nervosa, Hacride, Eths, Loudblast, Carcariass, Massacra, Gorod, Kronos, Yyrkoon, Benighted, Necrowretch,[3] and Fairyland.
The French electro-pop duos Air and Daft Punk and techno artists Laurent Garnier and David Guetta found a wide audience in the late 1990s and early first decade of the 21st century, both locally and internationally.
Through the nineties, the music grew to become one of the most popular genres in France with huge success of the pioneers (IAM, Suprême NTM) and newcomers (Ministère Amer, Oxmo Puccino, Lunatic).
Others such as Salvatore Adamo, Axelle Red, Lara Fabian, Maurane, Selah Sue, Frédéric François and Annie Cordy have also enjoyed some success in France and other French-speaking countries.
Notable singers that have performed in France included: Céline Dion, Diane Tell, Cœur de pirate, Garou, Isabelle Boulay, Lynda Lemay and many others.
The song was released in 1997 as her debut international single in 33 countries worldwide, and made the charts in Europe (#1 in Italy), America (#16 in USA Billboard), and Asia (#1 in Indonesia, #3 in Malaysia).
