- A group of confined artists improvised in Rennes to give birth to a song "Co Rennes a Virus".
- Initiated by pianist Edouard Leys, the project was broadcast this Thursday "to give balm to the heart" of confined France.
- Sixty-five musicians and singers and around thirty dancers participated.
Smiles, good humor, music, dance. Yes, it does this video good. Set up by Rennes artists subject to confinement like everyone else, the Co-Rennes-a-virus project is a breath of fresh air in this strange period of withdrawal. For ten days, 65 musicians and singers have been working on making an original piece of music. Released this Thursday at 6 p.m., the eight-minute long title was entirely composed by artists caulked at their home to fight against the spread of Covid-19.
The idea germinated in the mind of Edouard Leys, a pianist based in Rennes. “When we announced the first containment measures, I realized that we could no longer play music with friends, that we could no longer share it. I had a kind of flash and I wanted to edit a collaborative track, ”says the musician. Edouard then decides to send a few emails and messages to his usual network. “I had slipped around twenty seconds of piano to start the machine. But I didn't want to compose alone. I wanted it to be collective ”.
"He didn't know what he was getting into"
The magic of confinement did the rest and very quickly, the pianist was left with hundreds of tracks composed in the four corners of the city. Saxophone, drums, guitar, bass recorded by a computer, mobile phone or more professional equipment. Whatever the means, as long as it sounds. "He didn't know what he was getting into, or whether people were going to respond. It's so 21st century to make a song from a distance. It makes you want to create songs with people from all over the world, ”says Maël Morel, saxophonist from the Natâh Big Band who participated in this We are the world version of confined Brittany.
The result is stunning. In ten days, the Rennes scene managed to put together a very rhythmic piece with groove and funk accents sometimes sung, sometimes rapped. Da Titcha, Marion Rouxin, Leila (without her Koalas), members of Pied de la Pompe or groups Lo'jo or Songo agreed to film themselves in their confinement. "It is only a small part of the Rennes scene but it shows how huge it is", rejoices Edouard Leys. The conductor of this project now hopes that the video will bring “a little balm to the hearts” of confined people.
For the artists, who saw all their concert dates or rehearsals canceled in April, this Co-Rennes-a-Virus project was also an opportunity to get to know each other, to exchange views and to “get out” of confinement. “Beyond artistic creation, the most important thing is the connection between musicians that this project allowed. It reflects this unalterable need to continue doing things together, ”says Lucas Elzière, singer of the group MoHican who participated in the project. Yes, Rennes remains a rock city.
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