He is known for his songs that skillfully combine words and music, and his lively chanting using the art of mime.
(1929-1978) Belgian composer and singer. He was born on April 7, 1929, in Brussels. He came from a Catholic family. After completing his education, he started working in a cardboard factory owned by his family. At the age of 23, he went to Paris and after that, he devoted himself entirely to his musical studies. Although he announced that he had cut his ties with the stage and music in 1966, he returned to the stage two years later with the role of Don Quixote in the musical The Man of the Mancha. After 1967, he was also interested in cinema as an actor and director.
A Cayatte's Les risques du metier, M.Carne's Assassins de l'ordre, C.Lelouch's L'aventure c'est l'aventure are his main films. In 1968, a musical comedy, Jacques Brel is Alive and Well, and Living in Paris, composed of Brel's songs, was staged in New York. Later, Canadian director D Heroux made a movie inspired by this musical, in which Brel also sings from time to time. In 1971 Brel directed the film Frantz, about the daily life and loves of a middle-aged couple, and in 1973, Far West, about a group of friends dreaming of creating a Far West in Belgium. His films did not attract attention. In 1974 he went on a world trip. He died on January 9, 1978, in Bobigny, near Paris.
Combining words and music with great mastery in his songs, Brel draws attention with his plain expression. He reflects on his reaction to established values, especially by ruthlessly criticizing the bourgeoisie ("Les Bourgeois"). The women, who have an important place in the lyrics, work with their cruel and self-seeking aspects, and love brings despair and abandonment. In his songs about childhood, Brel uses the theme of "Far West", which symbolizes a promised but unfulfilled world, aging, and death ("La complainte des vieux amants"), the themes frequently used by Brel, especially in his recent songs. As an artist, his sensitivity to world events can be seen in his songs such as “Quand on n'a que l'amour”, which tells the story of people who resisted with their love against weapons in the Hungarian uprising, and “L'homme dans la chite”, which he dedicated to de Gaulle.
In addition to the original subjects he captured, the narration he used to convey them, the "staging" of the music, and the use of the elements of mime art, are the interesting aspects of Brel's music.
Works of Jacques Brel
Album:
Premieres Chansons, (“First Songs”);
Brel en public, (“Brel on Stage”);
Silhouettes et Poriraits (“Silhouettes and Portraits”) ;
Al'Olympiai (in Olympia”).