Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Patricia recites Louis Aragon's heartbreaking poem "Il n'y a pas d'amour heureux" (There Is No Happy Love), which has been set to music by a number of famous singers. You can listen to Françoise Hardy's version here.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In this video, you will learn about the famous poet, novelist, and journalist Louis Aragon, who lived in the twentieth century. Many of his poems were set to music by famous French singers such as Georges Brassens, Léo Férré, and Jean Ferrat.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Canada
Cœur de Pirate (Pirate's Heart) sings a cover of Renaud's "Mistral Gagnant." Written for his daughter Lolita, the song revisits Renaud's childhood through the lens of old-time French candies such as Carambars, Car-en-Sacs, Roudoudous, and the titular Mistral Gagnants.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
In her song "Run Run," Indila advises us to slow down and take stock. Are lifelong ambitions and the pursuit of money and success worth the sacrifice? Life in the fast lane might be too costly.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
A black mother who joined the film project launched by Alain Etoundi is critical of movies that don't portray black people accurately and perpetuate stereotypes. She says there's a dearth of good movies with positive role models for young black people.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel finishes up his tour of Auvers-sur-Oise with an appreciation of Vincent Van Gogh, who completed an astounding eighty paintings during his two-month sojourn in the village. In this video, you'll see the inn where the artist stayed during his visit, along with some of the gorgeous stops on the "painters' discovery" tour of Auvers-sur-Oise. It's easy to see why the village was such an inspiration to the impressionists!
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
France
After multiple organizations refused to finance his film Un frère comme moi (A Brother Like Me), Alain Etoundi decided to speak out by making a short film called Allez tous vous faire enfilmer! (Go Film Yourselves!). He criticizes the French film industry for not doing justice to suburban black communities, preferring instead to churn out films with stereotypical black characters.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel introduces us to the town of Auvers-sur-Oise, famous as a source of inspiration for a number of impressionist painters, notably Vincent Van Gogh. He also gives us a sneak peek into the Daubigny Museum, dedicated to the work of the pre-impressionist Charles-François Daubigny.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Patricia sheds a new light on the renowned fable by Jean de La Fontaine, "The Cicada and the Ant." Maybe the cicada isn't such a bad character after all....
Difficulty: Intermediate
Belgium
Stromae sings "Te Quiero" ("I love you" in Spanish). He describes a frustrating relationship that he knows he won't be able to quit.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
France
Patricia recites one of Jean de La Fontaine's most famous fables, "La Cigale et la Fourmi" (The Cicada and the Ant). After spending the entire summer singing instead of storing food, the cicada is starving come winter. She hopes her neighbor the ant can help her....
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Louane added a beautiful touch to Francis Cabrel's 1979 hit "Je l'aime à mourir" (I Love Her to Death) during the French Song Festival in 2015.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
The quaint little town of Montmorency holds a few peculiar surprises, such as a gas station sign with an outdated phone number and a statue of Jean-Jacques Rousseau that's been knocked over multiple times.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
France
Moroccan rapper Lartiste is enjoying a huge success with his hit song "Chocolat." Recorded as a duo with the singer Awa Imani, the song is being played non-stop in the French-speaking world thanks in part to its catchy refrain, cho cho cho chocolat.
Difficulty: Intermediate
France
Daniel Benchimol shows us around Montmorency, a town famous for being the residence of the Enlightenment philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who lived in the "House of Gossips." Montmorency also boasts a medieval communal oven and is near a sulfurous spring that is open to the public!
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