CABARET VILLE MAGAZINE. P271 CONT'D FROM P270

TÊTE-À-TÊTE WITH THE GREAT RAQUEL BITTON. Cont'd.
Photo: Raquel with Paul Misraki in Paris,  on January 28, 1998

Raquel: If the singer has that intense desire to treat the text with so much heart, than the melody falls naturally and the trick is done, you've won the heart of the people, but if a singer thinks that Piaf is all about the gargles, the rrrrrrrs, then they fail..
WACJ: If you were not a singer, a diva today, what would you be doing? What occupation or career or job you think you might have considered?
Raquel: I am not a diva, far from that. I would be what I am also, a writer, cinematographer, director.
WACJ: Any regret (s) in life?
Raquel: Yes. That I don't speak Japanese yet.
WACJ: What advice(s) would you give to those aspiring and talented artists who want to become a French Cabaret singer? Particularly, if they have to sing Piaf?
Raquel: They don't have to sing Piaf. The patrimoine of the French chanson is rich with superb songs. It's how you treat the lyrics. Your approach to it will dictate how far you'll go. Storytelling is quite an art.
WACJ: And to the professional singers who currently sing Piaf?
Raquel: Don't stop but look further in that era…so many writers…great ones..
WACJ: Raquel, how do you spend you time in San Francisco? Shopping? Cinema? Reading?
Raquel: All of the above of course, plus working my craft at least 5 hours a day. Being a mother to 2 beautiful teenagers who are my best critics. Writing always,  writing stories and  scripts.
WACJ: What do you do for fun, Raquel?
Raquel: I hike, I walk, I swim in the ocean..
WACJ: Are you fun?
Raquel: Very fun. There's such a thin line between tragedy and comedy.
WACJ: Last question. What are you thinking about now?
Raquel: My film on the life and songs of Edith Piaf has been selected by major film festivals around the world. Next week I start in Denver for the American Premiere. It's called "Piaf…her story...her songs…". It has 20 of her songs that reflect her life beautifully, then there's a luncheon with the people that knew her, loved her, worked with her. Francis Lai, Marcel Cerdan Junior, Michel Rvigauche, Doris Contet (Wife of composer Henri Contet), Monique Chauvigny (The wife of Piaf's lifelong conductor), Jacqueline Boyer (Her mother was Lucienne Boyer, her father was Jacques Pills (he married Piaf in 1952, Dietrich was the witness). We drank a lot of good wine and shared intimate stories, stories never told before…it's all in the film..
WACJ: Can I ask one more question? Just one?
Raquel: Mais bien sure! (But of course !)
WACJ: If by miracle, Piaf comes back to life. What is the first thing you will do, intend to do or the first thing you will think about? I know, you might say, you will rush to meet her. But tell me something else….
Raquel: We'll go out on the town. I'll show her beautiful San Francisco. We'll have my favorite Pizza, we'll go to a Cabaret, we both will sing a song impromptu, dazzle the crowd and disappear in the night, living the crowd baffled. Was that Raquel with Piaf? Have I drunk too much??
de Lafayette: Raquel, thank you…thank you so much for this tête-à-tête…it shall remain for ever a sweet and enlightening moment in my life.
Raquel: You are so sweet. Now it's your turn to let me know who you are.

de Lafayette: For now, Raquel, I am one of your fans.

End of the article and interview.