From Belgium with amour

The Age

Friday April 1, 2011

Jessica Nicholas Reviewer

MICHELINE VAN HAUTEM - LA MUSIQUE OF JACQUES BREL Rating: 3.5/5Salon, Melbourne Recital Centre, until April 2 BELGIAN chansonnier Jacques Brel died in 1978, but his songs still leap with vitality, especially in the hands of gifted interpreters such as Micheline Van Hautem. Van Hautem has spent much of the past decade delving into Brel's repertoire, and it's clear she feels strongly connected to the music and lyrics of her Belgian compatriot. Accompanied only by the acoustic guitar of Ben Hauptmann, Van Hautem ushers us deftly into Brel's world - a world of melancholy and sorrow, but also mischievous humour and savage irony. Singing in French, Flemish and English, she moves seamlessly from one language to another, often within the same song. She even offers us an Afrikaans version of Ne Me Quitte Pas, breathing life into lyrics whose painful sting has been dulled by familiarity.As the show progresses, Van Hautem shifts her style to reflect the darkening mood. Tender ballads (Les Vieux, Voir Un Ami Pleurer) and playful parodies (Les Flamandes) give way to tougher material, and Van Hautem's delivery becomes intense and theatrical. The bitterness of Au Suivant is powerful, as is the bawdy sailor's spirit of Amsterdam.Van Hautem's reliance on a single guitar as accompaniment limits the show's dramatic potential, even though Hauptmann - a Melbourne musician called in to replace Van Hautem's Belgian accompanist - does an exceptional job. The addition of a second instrument would have created a richer acoustic environment.

© 2011 The Age

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