Aznavour singer biography. Legendary singer dies at home in southern France

The world-famous French chansonnier, Charles Aznavour, today, May 22, celebrates his birthday. Maestro is 91 years old.

He was named the best singer of the 20th century and a monument was erected during his lifetime. More than one generation grew up on the compositions of Charles Aznavour. Composer, poet, writer, actor - one of the most talented Armenians in the world, even at that age, continues to delight the audience with his unique voice and performances.

Aznavour was born on May 22, 1924 in Paris. The artist's parents emigrated to France from Western Armenia during the years of the genocide. The real name of Aznavour is Shakhnur Vaghinak Aznavuryan. Born into a family of ethnic Armenians, emigrants from Georgia who came to France in 1922. Father was born in Akhaltsikhe, Tiflis province of the Russian Empire (Aznavour's paternal grandfather was the governor's cook in Tiflis). Aznavour's mother came from an Armenian merchant family living in Turkey. Charles studied at a children's art school, and later at the TSF central school (Paris). From the age of 9 he sang and played on stage, already in 1936 he made his film debut.

Initially, Aznavour performed in a duet with composer Pierre Roche. Both were noticed by Edith Piaf, and in 1946 Aznavour and Roche took part in her tour of France and the United States. Since that time, Aznavour's professional career as a chansonnier begins. However, a decisive breakthrough to the musical Olympus occurred in 1956, after successful concerts in Casablanca and Paris, where he performed three times a day in the famous Olympia Hall for a long time. In the early 1960s, Aznavour gave concerts in New York's Carnegie Hall and Ambassador Hotel, and later released his first American album at Frank Sinatra's Reprise Records.

Aznavour wrote more than a thousand songs performed by himself, as well as by Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Liza Minnelli, Julio Iglesias and others. Aznavour performed in a duet with Frank Sinatra, Celine Dion, L. Pavarotti, P. Domingo, P. Kaas, L. Minnelli, E. Segara and others. Aznavour is the author of music for the operettas Monsieur Carnaval (1965), Douchka (co-author, 1973) and “Lotrek” (2004). Among the world-famous songs of Aznavour are “La Boheme”, “Mother”, “Eternal Love”, “Unfashionable Joys”, “Youth”, “Yesterday Yet”, “Isabella ”, “She”, “As they say”, “Ave Maria”, “No, I haven’t forgotten anything”, “I already imagined”, “Because”, “Two guitars”, “Take me away”, “You must be able to” , "To die for love", etc. Recently, Charles Aznavour went on a farewell tour of the world.

The connection of the musician with Armenia has always been very strong. Aznavour often visits Armenia, takes part in so many issues regarding his historical homeland, helps her in every possible way. Since May 2009, Aznavour has been Armenia's ambassador to Switzerland and the country's permanent representative at the UN headquarters. We were born as Armenians, and we will die as Armenians,” says the great chansonnier.

The father of five children, caring and loving husband Charles Aznavour is happy. “My secret is optimism, and the guarantee of my happiness is in my family,” says the singer.

Charles Aznavour is a composer, songwriter, performer and actor. But these are not all his talents. Not so long ago, he began to write fiction, and in 2007 his book "My dad is a giant" was published. Before that, only collections with lyrics and an autobiography were published. So, having reached the age of 83, he revealed himself to the world as a talented writer. Biography of Charles Aznavour and facts from life indicate that he is a strong personality. During his long life, he created more than a thousand songs, many of which were performed by such world-class stars as Liza Minnelli, Julio Iglesias, Ray Charles, Edith Piaf, and this is not the whole list.

Biography of Charles Aznavour. Family and childhood

Charles Aznavour was born on May 22, 1924 in a family of artists of Armenian origin. The parents named the boy Shakhnur Vahinak Aznavuryan. A couple of years before his birth, they emigrated to France from Georgia in search of a better life.

But even in Paris they had a hard time, and, despite the hard work of his father in the operetta, and his mother in the boulevard theaters, the family counted a penny.

At a certain point in their lives, Charles Aznavour's parents lost faith in themselves and went into business, opening a small restaurant of Armenian cuisine. Often the owner of the establishment sang in front of visitors, delighting their ears with his colorful voice. This added a special zest to the restaurant.

Little Shakhnur and his sister Aida obediently helped their parents, working for the good of the common cause. But the crisis that covered the country in the 30s also affected the Aznavour family, so the restaurant had to be closed.

Brother and sister were very gifted children. Little Aida played the piano remarkably, and Charles successfully mastered the violin by the age of 5. When he grew up a little, his parents sent him to drama school. Despite the fact that the boy was very shy and nondescript, he could still open up to the public. At first, he participated in extras, and later began to receive the main roles like the young Henry IV from the production of "Margo".

The beginning of the creative path

At first, Charles Aznavour wrote songs for other performers, but in the 40s he had a fateful meeting with the young pianist Pierre Roche. The composer was waiting for his performance in one of the Parisian nightclubs and heard how the young entertainer mistakenly announced their performance as a duet. For fun, they performed several songs previously written by Charles. After that, a strong, fruitful friendship began between the young people.

In 1946, the already well-known throughout Europe singer Edith Piaf drew attention to the duet of Roche and Aznavour, inviting the musicians to participate in a tour of America. Joint performances in Canada and the USA were a resounding success, and the young musician began to be recognized on the streets. It was from this trip that a new star of French chanson, Charles Aznavour, was lit.

In 1952, he continued solo performances in France, but he was received very indifferently at home. After that, the composer abandoned the idea of ​​independent performance of songs, remaining the author of music and lyrics. He gained fame thanks to his collaboration with Greco, Mistinquet and Patashou. Many songs were also written for Piaf, with whom Aznavour was on friendly terms. He rewrote one American song in the French manner (Jezebel), which, performed by the famous singer, became a real hit.

World recognition

By 1954, the French composer Charles Aznavour had accumulated enough material, and he decided to visit the United States again, this time solo, as a performer of his own creations. The performances were duly appreciated by the Americans, and the chansonnier signed contracts with the Alhambra and Olympia. Musical critics, of course, slandered him, laughing at his cracked voice, but the audience didn’t care much. Charles's natural charm took over. By 1957, Aznavour was loved and recognizable by everyone. For the general public, his performances became a whole event! Soon he decided on a tour of different countries, and the audience accepted him with love.

Acting activity

Over time, Aznavour also showed himself as a film actor, playing in such films as "Head Against the Walls" and "Womanizer". And after the film "Shoot the Pianist", released in 1960, Charles was offered to perform at the American Carnegie Hall. He so impressed the audience of this elite music hall with his playing that even the critics were delighted! Then Charles Aznavour went on a tour around the world and, after traveling for several years, returned home as a world-famous star. He visited countries such as Libya, Greece, Africa, Turkey and the USSR. The discs of the famous chansonnier were sold in millions of copies.

After returning from the tour, Aznavour devoted twelve weeks to playing in the play One Man Show, which included 30 songs. The action of the play took place on the stage of Olympia. At the same time, he managed to play in the play "Paris in August". And six months later, the world saw a new creation of Charles Aznavour - the comedy film "Mr. Carnival", in which the beloved hit "La Boheme" sounded for the first time. A year later, he continued the tour and conquered Latin America. Then Charles alternated tours with performances at home, giving preference to Olympia.

Personal life

Aznavour was officially married three times in his life. He first married in 1946 with Micheline Rugel. The second was concluded in 1955 with Evelina Plesis. In 1968, the third wedding with Ulla Torsel died down in Las Vegas. A year later, the wedding of a happy couple took place in the Parisian Armenian church. According to official figures, Charles has 6 children from different marriages: Seda, Charles, Patrick, Katya, Misha and Nicolas. He believes that his personal life is his fortress, and he lets a few in there. Therefore, about the biography, personal life of Charles Aznavour, only what he allowed to know about himself is known. The family for him is a quiet, cozy little world in which you can relax.

• From the age of nine, Shakhnur began his acting career, performing in Parisian theaters, and at 11 he already received his first major role, playing the little king Henry IV. After 20 years, prophetic words were spoken to him: "You will conquer the world, because you know how to excite." They were said by the great Charles de Gaulle.
• In the 1940s, Aznavour began to earn money in city cabarets, singing cheerful songs about Parisian beauties and wild life. He did it perfectly, but critics clung to his raspy voice and short stature (160 cm). Even the father made fun of his son's voice.
• Over the course of his entire career, Aznavour wrote 800 songs, and among them are such hits as "Eternal Love", "La Boheme", "Ave Maria", "She" and "Isabelle". Many of them were performed in six languages ​​and sold around the world in one hundred million copies.
• In an interview, Charles Aznavour admitted that he never dedicates his own songs to anyone. No wife, no children, not even the great Edith Piaf, believing that there should be a clear line between creativity and personal life.
• On October 3, 2014, the ninety-year-old Aznavour gave a concert in Moscow, on the stage of Crocus City Hall. The concert lasted 2 hours, and the hall was packed with enthusiastic audience.
• On August 24, 2017, Aznavour was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Her serial number is 2618 near the Pantages theater, in which the chansonnier gave a concert almost a year before.
• May 22, 2018 Charles Aznavour will be 94 years old, but he does not like to celebrate his birthday. He believes that the main thing is to live as if you are 30 and continue to create and give love to the audience. In one of the interviews, he promised to perform on stage at the age of 100!

The life of a chansonnier today

For a long career, Charles Aznavour has about 60 roles in the films of many famous directors. The famous Armenian deeply honors his roots, despite the fact that he was born in France. The earthquake that happened in Spitak did not leave the composer's heart indifferent. At his own expense, he created a fund to help the affected residents of the city. And at the end of 2008 he became a citizen of Armenia.

Charles' last album Color Ma Vie was released in 2007 and was presented in different cities of the world, including Moscow.

In the film "Father Gregorio", released in 2004, Aznavour played a major role.

Charles Aznavour / Charles Aznavour (05/22/1924 - 10/01/2018) - French chansonnier, composer, poet, writer and actor of Armenian origin. Being one of the most popular performers in France, he is also well known far beyond its borders. Aznavour created approximately 1400 songs, played in 60 films and sold more than 200 million copies of discs. According to a joint poll by Time magazine and CNN (1998), Aznavour was recognized as the best pop performer of the 20th century.

BIOGRAPHY

Charles Aznavour, birth name Shakhnur Vahinak Aznavourian. Born in Paris on May 22, 1924 in an artistic family, his parents managed to escape from the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman Empire in 1915. They moved to France in 1922. Then they planned to go to the United States, but they were never granted a visa, as a result they remained in France.

Father was born in Akhaltsikhe, Tiflis province of the Russian Empire (Aznavour's paternal grandfather was the governor's cook in Tiflis). Aznavour's mother came from an Armenian merchant family living in Turkey.

He studied at the children's art school, and later - at the central school TSF (Paris). From the age of 9 he sang and played on stage, already in 1936 he made his film debut. Initially, Aznavour performed in a duet with composer Pierre Roche. Both were noticed by Edith Piaf, and in 1946 Aznavour and Roche took part in her tour of France and the United States. Since that time, Aznavour's professional career as a chansonnier begins. However, a decisive breakthrough to the musical Olympus occurred in 1956, after successful concerts in Casablanca and Paris, where he performed three times a day in the famous Olympia Hall for a long time. In the early 1960s, Aznavour gave concerts in New York's Carnegie Hall and Ambassador Hotel, and later released his first American album at Frank Sinatra's Reprise Records. Aznavour wrote more than 1,400 songs performed by himself, as well as by Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Liza Minnelli, Julio Iglesias and others. Aznavour performed in a duet with Frank Sinatra, Celine Dion, L. Pavarotti, P. Domingo, P. Kaas, L. Minnelli, E. Segara and others.

Among the world-famous songs of Aznavour are “La Boheme”, “Mother”, “Eternal Love”, “Unfashionable Joys”, “Youth”, “Yesterday Yet”, “Isabella”, “She”, “As They Say”, “Ave Maria ”, “No, I didn’t forget anything”, “I already imagined”, “Because”, “Two guitars”, “Take me away”, “You must be able to”, “Die for love”, etc.

In 2006, 82-year-old Aznavour went to Cuba, where, together with Chucho Valdes, he wrote the album Color Ma Vie, which was released on February 19, 2007. The world premiere of new songs took place in Moscow, where on April 20, 2007 Aznavour gave the only concert.

At the age of 90, Charles Aznavour performed in Moscow, at the Crocus City Hall, on April 22, 2015. The two-hour concert was a full house.

On August 24, 2017, Aznavour received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. His star became the 2618th and is located next to the Pantages theater, where Aznavour performed in October 2016 with a concert.

On April 25, 2018, Charles Aznavour was hospitalized in St. Petersburg, in connection with which the concert was canceled and rescheduled for April 9, 2019.

ARMENIA

On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, Aznavour and his constant collaborator Georges Garvarents wrote the song "They Fell" (1975). His songs "Autobiography", "Jan" and "Gentle Armenia" were also written on the Armenian theme. Aznavour and his daughter Seda performed "Ashkharums" by Sayat-Nova in Armenian.

Aznavour’s connection with his historical homeland does not end there: in 1988, after the earthquake in Spitak, he founded the Aznavour for Armenia charitable association and organized several campaigns to collect assistance to the victims, in particular, about 90 French singers and actors took part in the recording of the video clip Pour toi Armenia. Aznavour is the Honorary Ambassador of Armenia to UNESCO. A square in Yerevan was named after Aznavour, a monument to him was erected in the Armenian city of Gyumri. National Hero of the Republic of Armenia.

On December 26, 2008, Charles Aznavour became a citizen of Armenia. President Serzh Sargsyan signed a decree on granting citizenship not only to Aznavour, but also to his impresario Levon Sayan.

LITERATURE

In 2007, Charles Aznavour published the book “Mon père, ce géant” by the Flammarion Québec publishing house, which was published a year later by the Moscow publishing house RIPOL Classic in a small edition (3000 copies) under the title “My dad is a giant” (translated by N. A. Svetovidova). This is not the first experience of the musician in fiction: two autobiographies of Aznavour were previously published, as well as collections of lyrics of his songs. The book includes 16 short sketches of everyday life, memoirs, pseudo-biographical, journalistic and fantastic character.

BOOKS

1970 - Aznavour about Aznavour
2004 - "Past and Future"
2015 - “In a loud whisper. Autobiography"

MOVIE CAREER

Aznavour also regularly acts in films: he appeared on the screen in more than 60 films, collaborating with directors such as Rene Clair, Claude Chabrol, Claude Lelouch. The most famous tapes with the participation of Aznavour are “The Testament of Orpheus” by Jean Cocteau “Shoot the Pianist” by Francois Truffaut, “The Tin Drum” by Volker Schlöndorff, as well as “Crossing the Rhine”, “Taxi to Tobruk”, “Horace 62”, “Devil and the Ten Commandments”, “Paris in August” and others. In 1974, Aznavour wrote the leitmotif "She" (subsequently a British No. 1 hit) for the television series The Seven Faces of a Woman.

In the famous Soviet political detective "Tehran-43" (1981), the hit of Aznavour and Harvarents "Life in Love" sounds. A special place in the acting work of Aznavour is occupied by Atom Egoyan's film "Ararat", dedicated to the Armenian genocide in 1915.

Aznavour also participated in the first season of The Muppets.

SELECTED FILMOGRAPHY

1958 - Head against the wall / La Tête contre les murs (Ertuven)
1959 - Oh, what a mambo! /Oh! Qué mambo (cameo)
1960 - Testament of Orpheus / Le Testament d'Orphée (a curious person)
1960 - Shoot the pianist / Tirez sur le Pianiste (Charlie Kohler / Edward Saroyan)
1960 - Crossing the Rhine / Le Passage du Rhin (Roger Perrin)
1960 - Taxi to Tobruk / Un Taxi pour Tobrouk (Samuel Goldman)
1962 - The Devil and the Ten Commandments / Le Diable et les Dix Commandements (Denis Moks, Katrina's brother)
1963 - Look for an idol / Cherchez l'idole (cameo)
1968 - Sweet tooth / Candy (hunchback)
1971 - The lion's share / La Part Des Lions (Eric)
1974 - Ten little Indians / Ten little Indians (Raven)
1976 - Sky Riders / Sky Riders (Inspector Nicolidi)
1979 - Tin drum / Die Blechtrommel (Sigismund Markus)
1982 - Magic Mountain / La Montagne magique (Nafta)
1982 - Ghosts of the Hatter / Les Fantômes du chapelier (Cahudas)
1982 - From whom is David running? / Qu'est-ce qui fait courir David? (Leon)
1983 - Edith and Marcel / Édith et Marcel (cameo, uncredited)
1987 - Nail Eater / Mangeclous (Jeremy)
1987-1992 - Chinese / Le Chinois (Charles Cottrell)
2002 - Ararat / Ararat (Edward Saroyan)
2004 - Father Goriot / Le Père Goriot (Jean-Joachim Goriot)

PERSONAL LIFE

He married for the first time on March 16, 1946 - to Michelin Rugel, for the second time - on October 28, 1955 - to Evelyn Plessis, for the third time - on January 11, 1967 - to Swede Ulla Torsel.

Six children: Seda (Patricia, b. 1947), Charles (b. 1952), Patrick (1956-1981), from the last marriage - Katya (b. 1969), Misha (b. 1971), Nicolas (b. 1977) .

ABOUT CHARLES AZNAVOUR

Charles de Gaulle: "You will conquer the world because you know how to excite".

Maurice Chevalier: “Charles Aznavour is the greatest dramatic talent. He immediately conquers a person. He is the greatest in his art."

Yves Salg: “This voice, which seems to be on the verge of disaster and can become hoarse and silent at any time, the majestic voice of a shortness of breath, but courageously conquering the summit, the deaf and torn voice of a wounded bird, dropping wondrous love songs on the stage along with feathers, this writhing in agony stradivarius, this voice of a seemingly extinct volcano, which pours out words rather to the heart than to the ear ... is heard all over the world.

MEMORY

In Yerevan, a square is named after Aznavour, and the house-museum of Charles Aznavour is also opened in this city. In the Armenian city of Gyumri, a monument was erected to him.

AWARDS AND RANKS

• Order of the Legion of Honor, cavalier degree (February 9, 1989).
• Order of the Legion of Honor of the degree of an officer (March 28, 1997).
• Order of the Legion of Honor of the degree of commander (December 31, 2003).
• National Order of Merit, Commander Degree (November 14, 2000).
• Gold Medal of the City of Paris from the City Hall of Paris (1968).
• Grand Medal of French Song from the French Academy (1995).
• Title "Honorary Citizen of Yerevan" (Armenia, 1996).
• The title of "Honorary Citizen of Gyumri" (Armenia, 2001).
• The title of "National Hero of Armenia" with the award of the Order of the Fatherland (Armenia, 2004).
• Order of Leopold officer degree (Belgium, 2004).
• Order of Canada honorary officer degree (Canada, 2008).
• National Order of Quebec officer degree (Canada, 2009).
• Badge of honor "For outstanding contribution to the strengthening of cultural ties between Russia and France" (Russia, 2010).
• Badge of the Russian Foreign Ministry "For Contribution to International Cooperation" (Russia, 2014).
• Order of the Crown of the degree of commander (Belgium, 2015).
• Wallenberg Medal from the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation (Israel, 2017, jointly with sister Aida Aznavour).
• Order of the Rising Sun with Golden Rays with Rosette (Japan, 2018).
• Edison Award (1963, 1971, 1980).
• Golden Lion Award from the Venice Film Festival (1971).
• Prize "Grand Prix du Disque" from the Academy of Charles Cros (1973).
• Songwriters Hall of Fame induction (1996).
• Award "Victoires de la musique" in the category "best singer of the year" (1997).
• Honorary Cesar Award from the Academy of Arts and Cinematography Technologies (1997).
• Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the live performance category (2017).

MUSIC

- I do not dedicate my songs to anyone. Not Edith Piaf, not my wife, not my children. Never... My songs are another part of my life. My personal life is one thing and my work is another- said Charles Aznavour in an interview.

SELECTED DISCOGRAPHY

1952 Aznavour and Pierre Roche
1953 - Jezebel
1953 Jezebel 2
1955 - Le feutre taupe
1956 Sur ma vie
1957 Bravos du Music-Hall
1958 - C'est ça
1958 - J'aime Paris
1961 - Je m'voyais déja
1962 - Il faut savoir
1963 Qui?
1963 - La mamma
1965 Hier encore
1965 - Aznavour 65
1966 - La bohème
1966 - De t'avoir aimée
1967 Entre deux rêves
1967 - Desormais
1970 - E fu subito Aznavour
1972 - Idiote je t'aime
1974 - Visages de l'amour
1974 - A Tapestry Of Dreams
1976 - Voilà que tu reviens
1976 - Sings Aznavour
1977 - Je n'ai pas vu le temps passer
1978 - We were happy then
1980 - Autobiography
1982 - Une première danse
1983 - Aznavour and Dimey
1986
1988 - Com'è Triste Venezia
1988 - Seda & Charles Aznavour chantent traditionnel armeniens
1992 - Aznavour 92
1992 - The Old Fashioned Way
1994 - Toi et moi
1995 - Embrasse-moi
1995 - Etre
1995 - Du und ich
1996 Aznavour Chante Noel
1997 - Plus bleu
1998 - Jazznavour
2000 - Aznavour 2000
2001 - Chansons De Films
2003 - Je voyage
2003 Plus Bleu Que Tes Yeux
2004 — Das beste auf Deutsch
2005 - Insolitement vôtre
2007 Colore Ma Vie
2007 - Tu Pintas Mi Vida
2008 - Duos
2009 - Charles Aznavour & The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra
2011 - Toujours
2015 - Encores

French singer Charles Aznavour.

Charles Aznavour (real name - Shanur Varinag Aznavourian) was born on May 22, 1924 in Paris into an Armenian family. His parents moved from Turkey to France in 1915 after the events connected with the Armenian genocide.

From early childhood, Aznavour performed in front of the public - in a restaurant of Caucasian cuisine, which was opened by his parents. He read poetry, sang and played the violin, and at the age of nine he was accepted into the troupe of one of the Parisian theaters. During the Second World War, he took part in the resistance movement, and in 1947 he began his career as a singer (chansonnier).

At first, both the audience and the critics were extremely unfriendly towards the young performer. Creativity Aznavour received recognition only 10 years later, largely due to the support of Edith Piaf, who at that time was at the height of her fame. According to Aznavour himself, he learned from her everything that can be learned about the art of chansonnier.

chansonnier

He performed his songs not only in French, but also in English, Spanish and Italian. In 1964, Aznavour organized the first world tour, which included Turkey, Lebanon, Greece and the USSR, and has been constantly touring ever since. I have repeatedly visited Russia (the last time was in April 2018).

It is generally accepted that the singer made a real revolution in the French music scene. Aznavour turned all his songs into mini-performances, while he could perform the same song several times in a row in different ways, changing intonations, gestures and general mood. In addition, he popularized the duo genre. Aznavour performed with more than 50 celebrities, including Mireille Mathieu and Liza Minnelli.

Charles Aznavour has more than 1.3 thousand songs on his account. They were performed by Ray Charles, Liza Minnelli, Fred Astaire and many other famous artists.

In 1998, he was recognized as the best pop singer of the 20th century by Time magazine and CNN. In France, he was called the "Napoleon of chanson". The total number of albums sold exceeded 1.8 million.

Theater and cinema

In 1965, Aznavour staged his first musical "Monsieur Carnival" on the Parisian stage, in which one of his most famous songs, "La Boheme", was performed. This was followed by an operetta and a musical dedicated to the French artist Henri Toulouse-Lautrec (2000).

Since 1955, Charles Aznavour has successfully acted in films with such directors as Rene Clair, Francois Truffaut, Claude Lelouch. In 1960, he received a prize at the Cannes Film Festival for his role in André Caillat's Tomorrow is My Turn. The most famous films with his participation: "Shoot the pianist", "The Devil and the Ten Commandments", "The Tin Drum", "The Hatter's Ghosts", "Edith and Marcel". In total, he played more than 70 roles.

In some films, Aznavour acted as a screenwriter.

Author of books

Charles Aznavour was also recognized as a writer. His first literary experience was his travel diary in Spain, then in 1991 he published a collection of song texts and short prose called "A Word for a Poster", in 2003 a book of memoirs "Time of the Advanced" was published, and in October 2005 a collection of short stories was published. "Pictures of my life". Subsequently, seven more books were published, including an autobiographical novel.

Other activities

In 1991, Aznavour acquired the rights to publish many popular French songs, including recordings by Edith Piaf. Since then, he has successfully invested in show business.
Aznavour actively participated in charity events for various regions of the world, but considered the assistance to Armenia as the main project. He started doing this work after the earthquake in Spitak in 1988. Then he founded the charitable association Aznavour for Armenia.

He was the Honorary Ambassador-at-Large of Armenia for Humanitarian Affairs, the Permanent Representative of Armenia to UNESCO. After he was granted citizenship of Armenia in December 2008, he was the permanent representative of this country to the UN Office and other organizations in Geneva and at the same time the Ambassador of Armenia to Switzerland.

Awards

Aznavour's activities are marked by many high awards. Among them are the French Orders of the Legion of Honor and "For Merit", as well as the film award "Cesar". In 2004, Armenia awarded him the title of National Hero.

In January 2009, the chansonnier was awarded a special award from the International Recording and Music Market for an "impressive professional career", in April 2012 - an award from the Tree of Life Charitable Foundation for the Revival of the National, Cultural and Spiritual Heritage (CIS).

Personal Information

For a long time he lived in Switzerland, also owned houses in France, Morocco and other countries.

He first married in 1946, his wife was Micheline Rugel. The family had a daughter Seda (1947) and a son Charles (1952). In 1955, Evelina Plesis became his wife, in this marriage a son, Patrick, was born (1956). Since 1967 he has been married to Swede Ulla Türsel. The family has a daughter Katya (1969), sons Misha (1972) and Nicolas (1977).

Charles Aznavour

Charles Aznavour (French Charles Aznavour; Armenian Շառլ Ազնավուր). Real name - Shahnur Vahinak Aznavuryan Born May 22, 1924 in Paris - died October 1, 2018 in Paris. French pop singer, composer, poet, film actor of Armenian origin.

Shakhnur Aznavourian, who became widely known as Charles Aznavour, was born on May 22, 1924 in Paris to an Armenian family.

Father - Mamigon Misha Aznavuryan, half Georgian, half Armenian, singer (baritone), originally from Akhaltsikhe, Tiflis province.

Mother - Kiar Baghdasaryan, had Armenian and Turkish roots, from a merchant family, an actress by profession. Her entire family was slaughtered during the Armenian genocide in Turkey.

The paternal grandfather was the governor's cook in Tiflis.

Aznavour's ancestors emigrated from Georgia, in 1922 they settled in the capital of France.

After the Aznavour family settled in Paris, they rented a small apartment on the second floor of the house number 36, rue Monsieur-le-Prince, in the heart of the Latin Quarter. Charles and his sister slept on a cot. The father, who had a good voice, in the early years of emigration earned money by performing at holidays, weddings, and fairs. As Charles said, he always sang in public with his eyes closed - he later adopted this manner from him.

The family lived poorly, but hospitably, their house was always full of guests. Charles remembered for the rest of his life how touchingly his father treated his mother, he always took care of her. "We were happy without any special goods, amenities and things - nothing but ourselves, laughter and mutual love," he recalled.

The main entertainment of little Charles was cinema, incl. he also fell in love with Soviet films, the names of which he remembered for the rest of his life - “Lenin in October”, “Battleship Potemkin”, “Maxim's Youth”. He recalled that although he did not understand the text, he liked to watch the actors play emotionally.

From an early age he worked - at one time he traded with his father in the city market. Later, my father got a job managing a small cafe in the very heart of Paris - on Rue Cardinal Lemoine. Opposite was a theater school where acting and singing skills were taught, and performances were given in the evenings. And Charles became a frequent visitor to this small theater. Then, at the age of 9, he himself became a participant in productions.

He made his film debut in 1936 in one of the extras.

However, the main thing for him was singing. Initially, Aznavour performed in a duet with composer Pierre Roche. She noticed them both, and in 1946 Aznavour and Roche took part in her tour of France and the United States. Since that time, Aznavour's professional career as a chansonnier begins.

Edith Piaf made him get a nose job. He recalled: “I still don’t understand - what irritated her so much in my nose? Nose like a nose ... But at the insistence of Edith, I had to go to the outstanding (as she introduced him) American plastic surgeon Irving Goldman, who allegedly worked wonders with I didn’t even begin to be indignant - I trudged to the clinic with an unsteady gait and left a few hours later with a sticker in half my face ... A few days later, having removed the patch, I returned from America to Paris and ... Edith didn’t "I found out. The operation changed my life dramatically. Thanks to her, I believed that from now on I would dare to sing love ballads, which I used to write by order for other singers."

By the way, there were rumors about their romance, but Aznavour himself noted that they were connected by "something like love friendship, alliance, brotherhood, but we have never been in the same bed."

Truly widespread fame came to him in 1956 - after successful concerts in Casablanca and Paris, where he performed three times a day in the famous Olympia Hall for a long time.

In the early 1960s, Aznavour gave concerts in New York's Carnegie Hall and Ambassador Hotel, and later released his first American album at Frank Sinatra's Reprise Records. Aznavour wrote more than a thousand songs performed by himself, as well as by Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Liza Minnelli, Julio Iglesias and others.

Aznavour performed in a duet with Frank Sinatra, Celine Dion, Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, Patricia Kaas, Liza Minnelli, Helen Segara, Mireille Mathieu and others.

Charles Aznavour and Mireille Mathieu - Eternal love

Among the world-famous songs of Aznavour are “La Boheme”, “Mother”, “Eternal Love”, “Unfashionable Joys”, “Youth”, “Yesterday Yet”, “Isabella”, “She”, “As They Say”, “Ave Maria ”, “No, I didn’t forget anything”, “I already imagined”, “Because”, “Two guitars”, “Take me away”, “You must be able to”, “Die for love”, etc.

He also became famous as a film actor. He worked with such directors as Rene Clair, Claude Chabrol, Claude Lelouch. The most famous tapes with the participation of Aznavour are Jean Cocteau's Testament of Orpheus, Francois Truffaut's Shoot the Pianist, Volker Schlöndorff's Tin Drum, Crossing the Rhine, Taxi to Tobruk, Horace 62, The Devil and Ten Commandments”, “Paris in August”, “Kandai and the Last Adventurers”, “Time of the Wolves”, “Magic Mountain”, “Ten Little Indians”, “Long Live Life”, “Paris”, detective series “Chinese”.

Charles Aznavour in "Shoot the Piano Player"

Charles Aznavour in the film "Ten Little Indians"

Charles Aznavour in the film "Magic Mountain"

Aznavour participated in the first season of The Muppets.

In 1974, Aznavour wrote the leitmotif "She" (subsequently a British No. 1 hit) for the television series The Seven Faces of a Woman.

In the famous Soviet political detective "Tehran-43" Aznavour's and Garvarents' hit "Life in Love" sounds. A special place in the acting work of Aznavour is occupied by Atom Egoyan's film "Ararat", dedicated to the Armenian genocide in 1915.

Charles Aznavour in the movie "Ararat"

Maintains ties with the historical homeland. On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, Aznavour and his constant collaborator Georges Garvarents wrote the song “They fell”. His songs "Autobiography", "Jan" and "Gentle Armenia" were also written on the Armenian theme. Aznavour and his daughter Seda performed "Ashkharums" by Sayat-Nova in Armenian.

In 1988, after the earthquake in Spitak, he founded the Aznavour for Armenia charitable association and organized several campaigns to collect aid for the victims.

Aznavour is the Honorary Ambassador of Armenia to UNESCO. A square in Yerevan was named after Aznavour during his lifetime, a monument to him was erected in the Armenian city of Gyumri. National Hero of the Republic of Armenia.

In 2006, 82-year-old Aznavour in Cuba, together with Chucho Valdes, wrote the album "Color Ma Vie", which was released on February 19, 2007. The world premiere of new songs took place in Moscow, where on April 20, 2007 Aznavour gave the only concert.

On October 3, 2014, at the age of 90, Charles Aznavour performed in Moscow at the Crocus City Hall. The two-hour concert was a full house.

On April 25, 2018, Charles Aznavour was hospitalized in St. Petersburg, in connection with which the concert was canceled and rescheduled for April 9, 2019.

Height of Charles Aznavour: 160 centimeters.

Personal life of Charles Aznavour:

Was married three times. Has six children.

First wife - Micheline Rugel. He married her on March 16, 1946. In a marriage that lasted a little over five years, a daughter Seda (born May 21, 1947) and a son Charles (born 1952) were born.

The daughter of Seda Aznavour is a famous French-Armenian singer and artist.

Seda Aznavour - daughter of Charles Aznavour

The second wife is Evelyn Plessis. The marriage had a son, Patrick (1956-1981).

Aznavour called the first two marriages a mistake of youth.

Charles Aznavour and second wife Evelyn Plessis

The third wife is Olle Thorsel, Swedish. They got married on January 11, 1967. The couple played the wedding in Las Vegas, and upon arrival in France, they also got married in the Armenian church. The singer said: “It is impossible to marry and make her be exactly the same as yourself. You need to look for and find compromises, constantly choose how to live and think. It is especially important how to think. It is not difficult for me - I saw how my parents. Although it was easier for them, of course - both mother and father are Armenians, although from different countries: my father is from Georgia, and my mother is from Turkey. I am French of Armenian origin, my parents belonged to the Armenian church, and Ulla "Swede from a Protestant family. But this does not bother us, Protestants are correct, straightforward. It is not customary for them to think one thing and say another - I like this trait of her character."

Three children were born in the third marriage: daughter Katya (born 1969), as well as sons Misha (born 1971) and Nicolas (born 1977).

Son Misha Aznavour is a French writer, actor, poet, singer and musician.

Filmography of Charles Aznavour:

1958 - Head against the wall (Tête contre les murs, La)
1959 - Minesweepers (Dragueurs, Les) - Joseph
1959 - Shoot the pianist (Tirez sur le pianiste) - Charlie Kohler and Edouard Saroyan
1959 - Why are you coming home so late? (Pourquoi viens-tu si tard?)
1960 - Taxi to Tobruk (Un taxi pour Tobrouk) - Samuel Goldmann
1960 - Crossing the Rhine (Passage du Rhin, Le) - Roger
1960 - Testament of Orpheus (Testament d "Orphée, Le) (uncredited)
1961 - Lions on the loose (Lions sont lâchés, Les) - Charles (uncredited)
1961 - Horace 62 (Horace 62) - Horace Fabiani

1962 - Why Paris? (Pourquoi Paris?)
1962 - The Devil and the Ten Commandments (Diable et les dix commandements, Le) - Denis Moks
1963 - Greetings from Zurich (Grüsse aus Zürich)
1963 - American Rat (Rat Trap)
1965 - Tom's Pretender (Thomas l "imposteur)
1965 - The transformation of woodlice (La Métamorphose des cloportes)
1965 - Look for an idol (Cherchez l "idole)
1968 - Sweet Tooth (Candy)
1969 - Adventurers (Adventurers, The) - Marcel Campion
1970 - Games (The Games)
1970 - Time of the Wolves (Le temps des loups) - Kramer, Police Commissioner
1971-1974 - Saturday night (Samedi soir)
1971 - Beautiful monster (Un beau monstre) - Leroy, inspector
1971 - The lion's share (Part des lions, La)
1973 - Blockhouse (The Blockhouse)
1974 - Ten Little Indians (Ein Unbekannter rechnet ab) - Michael Raven
1976-1981 - The Muppet Show (Muppet Show, The)
1976 - Sky Riders (Sky Riders) - Nikolidis, inspector
1976 - Madness of the bourgeoisie (Folies bourgeoises)
1979 - Tin drum (Blechtrommel, Die) - episode
1981 - Who makes David fuss? (Qu "est-ce qui fait courir David?) - Leon
1982 - The Hatter's Ghosts (Les Fantômes du chapelier)
1982 - Magic Mountain (Zauberberg, Der) - Nafta
1983 - Edith and Marcel (Édith et Marcel) - episode (uncredited)
1984 - Long live life! (Viva la vie!) - Edouard Takvoryan
1988 - Mangeclous - Jeremy
1989 - Chinese (Chinois, Le) - Charles Cottrell, nicknamed "Chinese"
1989 - Charles Aznavour. Armenia 1989 (documentary)
1990 - Maestro (Maestro, Il)
2001 - Laguna (Laguna)

2002 - Ararat (Ararat) - Edward Saroyan
2004 - Father Goriot (Père Goriot, Le) - Goriot
2006 - My colonel (Mon colonel)

Voiced by Charles Aznavour:

1971 - The Selfish Giant (short)

Charles Aznavour's vocals in the cinema:

1972 - Beaches of Etretat (Galets d "Étretat, Les)
1980 - Tehran-43 (Téhéran 43)

The works of Charles Aznavour in cinema as a composer:

1957 - Ladies Prefer Mambo (Ces dames préfèrent le mambo)
1962 - Four Truths (Les Quatre vérités)
1962 - The Devil and the Ten Commandments (Diable et les dix commandements, Le) (uncredited)
1963 - Millet for the birds (Du mouron pour les petits oiseaux)
1967 - Bikini Conspiracy (S.O.S. Conspiración Bikini) - author of the song "Venecia sin tí"
1999 - Notting Hill (Notting Hill)
2002 - The Truth About Charlie (Truth About Charlie, The)

Discography of Charles Aznavour:

1953 - Jezebel
1955 - Le feutre taupe
1956 - Sur ma vie
1957 - Bravos du Music Hall
1958 - C "est ça
1961 - Je m "voyais deja
1962 - Il faut savoir
1963 - Qui?
1963 - La mamma
1965 - Hier encore
1965 - Aznavour 65
1966 - La bohème
1966 - De t "avoir aimée
1967 - Entre deux rêves
1967 - Desormais
1972 - Olympia 72 (live)
1972 - Idiote je t "aime
1974 - Visages de l "amour
1976 - Voilà que tu reviens
1977 - Je n "ai pas vu le temps passer
1978 - Olympia 78 (live)
1980 - Autobiography
1982 - Une première danse
1983 - Aznavour and Dimey
1987 - Palais des congres 1987 (live)
1990 - The old fashioned way
1990 - She
1991 - Aznavour italiano (4 CDs)
1991 - Aznavour chante en espagnol (3 CDs)
1992 - Aznavour 92
1994 - Toi et moi
1995 - Aznavour - Minelli au Palais des Congrès de Paris, 1991 (live)
1995 - Palais des Congres 1994 (live)
1995 - You and me
1996 - Du und ich
1996 - Roche & Aznavour
1996 - Charles Aznavour au Carnegie Hall, 1995 (live)
1997 - Plus bleu
1998 - Jazznavour
1998 - Olympia 1968 (live)
1998 - Olympia 1980 (live)
1999 - Palais des congres 97/98 (live)
2000 - Aznavour 2000
2000 - Palais des congrès 2000 (live)
2003 - Je voyage
2004 - Bon anniversaire Charles! (2 CDs)
2005 - Palais des congres 2004 (live)
2005 - Insolitement vôtre

Bibliography of Charles Aznavour:

1970 - Aznavour about Aznavour
2004 - Past and Future
2015 - In a loud whisper. Autobiography