Interview with French singer A demain Claudine:
How did you come up with the name “petit-Bal”?
“petit-Bal” comes from the song title “le petit bal perdu”
Who are the band members?
Claudine Cochet-Muchy (interviewee), bassist Kent Weber, guitarist Walter Sopicki, and accordionist Scott Slocum. Click here for bios.
When did your band form?
The band started on March 2011 as a trio and june as quartet. Our first gig was on July 14th, 2011 at Hardware Café. Our first song was “autumn leaves”.
Tell me a little bit about the unusual nature of your group, and why it has become such a success story here in Buffalo.
I am a singer from France, and am here as an expatriate visa for my husband. We are an authentic group of musicians and singer. Very unusual to Buffalo.
What’s it like to perform live?
For me : Giving and receiving from the audience, make me feeling alive,…
When did you know that you would become a singer?
Singing is just part of myself. I knew I’ll be a singer, I enjoy to do it… singing came naturally to me, then choir at primary school. In my family my uncle was a jazz trombone player professionally, and my grandfather was an opera singer for fun. We had a tradition of singing at family or friends reunions.
What is your style of singing?
Cabaret Left Bank – French well known songs from 60’s 70’s etc. The music? “French cabaret songs, the repertoire evokes cabarets, jazzy influence and Parisian street from the years 1950 to 1970 and more recent tunes.”
What singers do you most admire?
I admire Barbara (born Monique Andrée Serf), La Callas (opera singer), Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday…
Were you schooled in music?
No specific singing school, just some training to improve my voice with some singing teachers.
What is your day job?
My other passion is “education”, i was an educator for young kids in daycare
Where are you playing out these days?
I think we like to perform at Merge, I like Hardware too. I also like The Tralf.
This evening (Wednesday, August 14, 2013) we are playing at Pan American Bar and Grill at The Hotel Lafayette from 7pm-10pm as part of the Jazz, Rhythm and Blue series every Wednesday.
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If you play in a group/band (or solo) here in Buffalo, and have an upcoming gig at a venue(s) in the city, consider sending buffalo rising an email requesting to be emailed a Q&A interview that we can then post, along with concert dates. It’s a fun and easy way to get your name in front of another audience that is interested in learning about the local music scene. The requirements are:
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