French jazz singer and recording artist Raquel Bitton is recognized as the foremost singer of French music in America today and has been internationally reviewed as the greatest interpreter of the music from the Edith Piaf repertoire.Born in Marrakesh, Morocco, Ms. Bitton was already enthralling audiences at the Casino de Marrakesh (where the classic film Casablanca was partially shot) at the age of 11. When she was a teenager, Raquel and her family moved to San Francisco where she began her American career, focusing on the songs from the French l’Age d’Or. She discovered her French repertoire by dusting off her father’s old records that he brought with him to America.
Raquel was drawn to the passionate melodies and lyrics of the romantic period of the 1930’s and 1940’s and quickly mastered many of the songs from the era of Charles Trenet, Jean Sablon, and Josephine Baker, to name a few. Raquel’s insatiable appetite for songs of the heart led her to the Edith Piaf songbook. Raquel became not only an expert historian on the life and songs of Edith Piaf, but also a renowned interpreter of her music, singularly able to capture the complete essence of one of the great vocalists of the 20th Century.
Raquel is currently performing her hit show, Raquel Bitton sings Edith Piaf, her story…her songs, at notable concert halls throughout North America. The tour opened in January 2000 with 3 sold-out performances at Carnegie Hall(Capacity 3000 seat theater).
In this presentation, Bitton celebrates the extraordinary life of the legendary Piaf through her songs. A 20-piece orchestra backs Bitton’s one-woman tribute to the “little sparrow.” Elegant orchestrations are arranged by long-time collaborator Bob Holloway. Bitton tells stories of Piaf’s life that mirror the timeless songs that catapulted Piaf from singing in the streets of Paris as a child to becoming the highest paid entertainer in the world at the time. Bitton’s unique, heartfelt renditions (sung in French) and her powerful delivery take her audience on an intensely moving and emotional journey.
Singing in French and English, Raquel has developed a variety of additional elegant French-themed presentations including “Pops goes to Paris,” “Postcards from Paris,” “Chansons d’Amour,” and “In a Jazzy Mood.”
Raquel Bitton has recorded 6 albums to date: “I Wish You Love”, “Changes”, “Dream a little dream” and “In a Jazzy Mood” (in collaboration with the legendary composer Paul Misraki), and most recently, Raquel Bitton Sings Edith Piaf: The Golden Album. Liz Smith, Syndicated Columnist, said, “RAQUEL BITTON’S CD TRIBUTE TO EDITH PIAF IS TERRIFIC!”
This recording can be found on the OMTOWN label of Higher Octave Music, a division of NARADA records.
And “Dream a little dream”