Piaf

Neil J Ross (22Apr12): “Piaf” performed by Christine Bovill at the Lemon Tree Studio, Aberdeen – Saturday 21 April 2012 It was simply breathtaking how expressively and powerfully Christine Bovill captured the authentic sound of Edith Piaf in the tribute show “Piaf” at Aberdeen’s Lemon Tree Centre on Saturday. A student of both French and music, and an expert on Piaf, Bovill brought tremendous depth of understanding both of the music and of the life of Edith Piaf to the performance. The evening did not focus excessively on Piaf’s tragically short life but was a tour de force of Piaf songs. In front of a blue and red illuminated curtain and with a microphone, Bovill sang (just like Piaf herself) in a black dress, superbly accompanied on the piano by Seh Ho. Piaf’s music was quintessentially Parisian, always having about it an air of the “Le Gerny” nightclub in the 1930’s where Piaf first enjoyed wide public success. Most of the songs in Bovill’s performance were in French, and I felt that this is where Bovill’s strength l