“Chanter” (Singing)
“Chanter” sings the praises of Song in its many guises and forms—songs that celebrate, songs that soothe, songs that inspire, songs that mourn, songs that remember, songs that unite. In a way, “Chanter” does for Singing what “Savoir aimer” does for Loving—both songs dissect the many forms of their subject. Most of all, though, it expresses the irrepressible urge to sing that animated Florent Pagny throughout his career.
The titles of two songs written by Pascal Obispo and Lionel Florence that appear on this website both consist exclusively of verb infinitives: “Savoir aimer” and “Chanter.” While infinitives are normally translated literally with “to” as in “To know to love” and “To sing,” in French infinitives are often used as nouns. In English, we call them gerunds, which are verbs ending in “ing” and treated as nouns: “Knowing how to love” and “Singing.”
Although Pascal Obispo composed the music for this song and Lionel Florence wrote the lyrics, they captured exquisitely the personality of its performer, Florent Pagny. He went from Burgundy to Paris as a young man doing odd jobs and looking for work in the film industry but eventually focused on his inherent talent, which was the unusual 6-octave range of his "baryton-Martin" voice. He wrote some songs early in his career, but recognized that his skill was not in music composition or words but in vocal performance and leveraging the distinctive qualities of his voice.
Ultimately, his exceptional success in the French music industry arose from finding a variety of channels for singing. These came from revivals of his own songs, collaborations with composers and lyricists who provided material, covers of classic French “chansons” made famous in earlier years, and duets with other contemporary artists. This song, “Chanter,” expresses the essence of his personality and the intrinsic drive that it provided for his success in the music industry. The 13 lines that begin with the word “pour” endow the entire song with a purposeful tone that the upbeat melody carries forward. It can be seen as a granular portrait of the performer himself. The video depicts an artist futilely attempting to capture a static portrait of Florent whose compulsive singing eludes all such efforts.
The song has 7 Verses, 3 Choruses and an Outro. Verses have 4 lines, Choruses are 7 lines. The structure is: VVV/Chorus/VV/Chorus/VV/Chorus/Outro. Verses 1 and 3 repeat as Verses 6 and 7; the 3 Choruses are the same. The song’s tempo is fast-paced in sync with the video’s depiction of an artist painting and dance movements.
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Verse Chanter, pour oublier ses peines Pour bercer un enfant, chanter Pour pouvoir dire “je t'aime” Mais chanter tout le temps Verse Pour implorer le ciel ensemble En une seule et même église Retrouver l'essentiel… et faire Que les silences se brisent. Verse En haut des barricades Les pieds et poings liés Couvrant les fusillades Chanter sans s'arrêter Chorus Et faire s'unir nos voix, Autour du vin qui ennivre, Chanter quelqu'un qui s'en va, Pour ne pas cesser de vivre Quelqu'un qui s'en va Pour ne pas cesser de vivre… Verse Chanter, celui qui vient au monde, l'aimer Ne lui apprendre que l'Amour En ne formant qu'une même ronde Chanter encore et toujours… Verse Un nouveau jour vient d'éclore Pouvoir encore s'en émerveiller Chanter malgré tout toujours plus fort Ne plus faire que chanter Chorus Et faire s'unir nos voix Autour du vin qui ennivre Chanter quelqu'un qui s'en va Pour ne pas cesser de vivre Oh oh oh Je ne sais faire que chanter Pour quelqu'un qui s'en va Pour ne pas cesser de vivre Verse Chanter, pour oublier ses peines Pour bercer un enfant, chanter Pour pouvoir dire “je t'aime” Et chanter tout le temps Verse En haut des barricades Les pieds et poings liés Couvrant les fusillades Chanter sans s'arrêter… Chorus Et faire s'unir nos voix Autour du vin qui ennivre Chanter quelqu'un qui s'en va Pour ne pas cesser de vivre Oh oh oh Je ne sais faire que chanter Pour quelqu'un qui s'en va Pour ne pas cesser de vivre Outro Oh oh oh Oh oh oh |
Verse Sing, to forget your pains To rock a child, sing To be able to say “I love you” But sing all the time Verse To beg the sky together In one very same church Find the essential…and ensure That the silences break Verse Atop the barricades Hands and feet bound Covering the volleys Singing without stopping Chorus And unite our voices Around intoxicating wine Sing someone who's leaving So as not to stop living Someone who's leaving So as not to stop living… Verse Sing, the one who's born, love him Teach him only love By forming only one round Sing again and forever… Verse A new day has just dawned Still able to be amazed Sing always louder despite everything Do no more than sing Chorus And unite our voices Around intoxicating wine Sing someone who's leaving So as not to stop living Oh oh oh I know only to sing For someone who's leaving So as not to stop living Verse Sing, to forget your pains To rock a child, sing To be able to say “I love you” But sing all the time Verse Atop the barricades Hands and feet bound Covering the volleys Singing without stopping… Chorus And unite our voices Around intoxicating wine Sing someone who's leaving So as not to stop living Oh oh oh I know only to sing For someone who's leaving So as not to stop living Outro Oh oh oh Oh oh oh |
NB:
1)seule et même: means “one and the same” or “very same.”
2)Pour ne pas: “so as not to,” “in order not to,” “lest,” “to avoid.”
3)ne savoir faire que: “only know how to do.” “Savoir-faire” is “know-how” (i.e. “can”) and “ne…que” is called a “restrictive negative” that means “only” and “que” replaces “pas.” The “ne” always precedes the verb, while the “que” precedes the word that is restricted. A somewhat less elegant way to say “only” would be to use “seulement.”
4)Couvrant les fusillades, chanter sans s'arrêter: these lines evoke iconic images of the French revolution where revolutionary songs covered incessant volleys of gunfire.
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