Gilles Servat is a

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

singer, born in

Tarbes Tarbes (; Gascon: ''Tarba'') is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region of southwestern France. It is the capital of Bigorre and of the Hautes-Pyrénées. It has been a commune since 1790. It was known as ''Turba'' ...

in southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in 1945, into a family whose roots lay in the

Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

region of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

. He is an ardent promoter ardent of the Breton culture, and sings in both

and Breton, as well as the other

celtic languages The Celtic languages (usually , but sometimes ) are a group of related languages descended from Proto-Celtic. They form a branch of the Indo-European language family. The term "Celtic" was first used to describe this language group by Edward ...

, and was a member of

Dan ar Braz Dan Ar Braz (; born Daniel Le Bras on 15 January 1949 in Quimper) is a Breton guitarist-singer-composer and the founder of L'Héritage des Celtes, a 50-piece Pan-Celt band. Leading guitarist in Celtic music, Dan Ar Braz has recorded as a solo ...

Héritage des Celtes L'Héritage des Celtes (The Celts Heritage) is a 50-piece Pan-Celt band with musicians from Celtic nations, started by two Bretons in the town of Quimper Quimper (, ; br, Kemper ; la, Civitas Aquilonia or ) is a commune and prefecture of t ...

. He is also a

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or w ...

and

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire ...

Early life

He spent his early childhood and teenage years around Nantes and

Cholet Cholet (, , probably from Latin language, Latin ''cauletum'', "cabbage") is a Communes of France, commune of western France in the Maine-et-Loire Departments of France, department. With 54,307 inhabitants (2019), it is the second most populous c ...

, after his father obtains a position of chief of the personnel at the factory Ernault-Batignolles. During this time, he is influenced by

Georges Brassens Georges Charles Brassens (; 22 October 1921 – 29 October 1981) was a French singer-songwriter and poet. As an iconic figure in France, he achieved fame through his elegant songs with their harmonically complex music for voice and guitar and a ...

and

Léo Ferré Léo Ferré (24 August 1916 – 14 July 1993) was a French-born Monégasque poet and composer, and a dynamic and controversial live performer, whose career in France dominated the years after the Second World War until his death. He released so ...

, which shows not only on his writing, but furthermore on his way to think and react to events. After a

baccalauréat The ''baccalauréat'' (; ), often known in France colloquially as the ''bac'', is a French national academic qualification that students can obtain at the completion of their secondary education (at the end of the ''lycée'') by meeting certain ...

in literature, he studied sculpture, painting, drawing and engraving at the

École régionale des beaux-arts d'Angers École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savo ...

, with the goal of becoming a teacher. The rise in popularity of

conceptual art Conceptual art, also referred to as conceptualism, is art in which the concept(s) or idea(s) involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic, technical, and material concerns. Some works of conceptual art, sometimes called ins ...

made him change his career path. He then spent four years in

Angers Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the pr ...

and two in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

, where he worked for some months at the ORTF. He started writing in 1967, to be able to express himself freely and create his repertoire. In

may 1968 The following events occurred in May 1968: May 1, 1968 (Wednesday) * CARIFTA, the Caribbean Free Trade Association, was formally created as an agreement between Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Guyana, and Trinidad and Tobago. * RAF Strike ...

, he discovered the Breton political problems after meeting Serge Bihan, from

Groix Groix (; br, Enez Groe) is an island and a commune in the Morbihan department of the region of Brittany in north-western France. Groix lies a few kilometres off the coast of Lorient. Several ferries a day run from Lorient to Groix. There are ...

, and makes a parallel with the struggles a friend from

Occitania Occitania ( oc, Occitània , , or ) is the historical region in Western and Southern Europe where the Occitan language was historically spoken and where it is sometimes still used as a second language. This cultural area roughly encompasse ...

told him about. In an interview published in the magazine Autrement in 1979, he states that Paris allowed the various communities of regional minorities to meet and create links between themselves. In 1969, he stays on the island of

to perform there all summer, which became a key moment in his relationship with Brittany. There, he lived with the working class, reads the book ''Ar en deulin'' by

Yann-Ber Kalloc'h Yann-Ber Kalloc'h (born ''Jean-Pierre Calloc'h'' in French; 21 July 1888 – 10 April 1917) was a Breton war poet who wrote in both Breton and French. Life Yann-Ber Kalloc'h was born on the island of Groix, near Lorient, on July 24, 1888. He wa ...

, understood his roots and decided to sing them. He first met Glenmor while performing at ''Chez Pouzoulic'', the café of the island. The famous

bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise ...

joined him on stage for a few songs and said "Who said bardism was dead?" afterwards. At the end of summer, he came back to Paris for work, and performed regularly at the café ''La Ville de Guingamp'' (in

Montparnasse Montparnasse () is an area in the south of Paris, France, on the left bank of the river Seine, centred at the crossroads of the Boulevard du Montparnasse and the Rue de Rennes, between the Rue de Rennes and boulevard Raspail. Montparnasse has bee ...

), where he was discovered by the owner of the ''Ti-Jos'' who invited him to play there. For more than two years, he busked by playing every evening at the ''Ti-Jos'', a meeting place for the Bretons living in Paris. It is there that sung ''

La Blanche Hermine ''La Blanche Hermine'' ( French for "The White Ermine") is a 1970 song by French singer Gilles Servat with lyrics affirming the Breton identity. It was first published on the eponymous album from 1971, which was certified gold. Calling for an arme ...

'' for the first time in 1970. Living in Paris made him feel more Breton and he said he discovered his "bretonnitude" there and gave him the inspiration for the song ''Montparnasse blues''. He also began to learn the Breton language with the associaiton Kêr Vreizh. Leaving a career as a civil servant in the PTT administration, he became a professional musician, motivated by the discovery of

Alan Stivell Alan Stivell (; born Alan Cochevelou on 6 January 1944) is a French, Breton and Celtic musician and singer, songwriter, recording artist, and master of the Celtic harp. From the early 1970s, he revived global interest in the Celtic (specifically ...

. Gilles Servat also joined the

Goursez Vreizh Goursez Vreizh (officially Breudeuriezh Drouized, Barzhed hag Ovizion Breizh) is the national gorsedd of Brittany ("Breizh" in Breton). It often has delegates from the Welsh gorsedd and Gorsedh Kernow in Cornwall. The Breton organisation is itsel ...

.' In

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

, He moved to

Career

His music evokes the Isle of

, off the coast of

Morbihan Morbihan ( , ; br, Mor-Bihan ) is a department in the administrative region of Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan (''small sea'' in Breton), the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastl ...

. His music was originally inspired by the works of Breton musicians Glenmor and

. The title song from his first album, ''

'', the White Ermine being the national

emblem An emblem is an abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a king or saint. Emblems vs. symbols Although the words ''emblem'' and '' symbol'' are often use ...

of Brittany, became an

anthem An anthem is a musical composition of celebration, usually used as a symbol for a distinct group, particularly the national anthems of countries. Originally, and in music theory and religious contexts, it also refers more particularly to short s ...

for

Bretons The Bretons (; br, Bretoned or ''Vretoned,'' ) are a Celtic ethnic group native to Brittany. They trace much of their heritage to groups of Brittonic speakers who emigrated from southwestern Great Britain, particularly Cornwall and Devon, ...

. In the 1990s he became part of the ''Héritage des Celtes'', led by

Dan Ar Braz Dan Ar Braz (; born Daniel Le Bras on 15 January 1949 in Quimper) is a Breton guitarist-singer-composer and the founder of L'Héritage des Celtes, a 50-piece Pan-Celt band. Leading guitarist in Celtic music, Dan Ar Braz has recorded as a solo ...

and featuring the most famous names in

Celtic music Celtic music is a broad grouping of music genres that evolved out of the folk music traditions of the Celtic people of Northwestern Europe. It refers to both orally-transmitted traditional music and recorded music and the styles vary considera ...

. In 1998 he released the album "Touche pas à la Blanche Hermine" ("Don't Touch The White Stoat") as a defiant stand against the French '' National Front'' who had used Servat's song ''La blanche Hermine'' during its meetings. Servat sings in Breton, French and English. Servat is also an actor and writer; he has authored several novels inspired by Celtic myths and legends. He is also a campaigner for the

Breton language Breton (, ; or in Morbihan) is a Southwestern Brittonic language of the Celtic language family spoken in Brittany, part of modern-day France. It is the only Celtic language still widely in use on the European mainland, albeit as a member of ...

and a supporter of the '' Skol Diwan'' Breton language schools.

Albums

* 1970: La Blanche Hermine (The White Ermine) * 1971: Ki du (Black Dog) * 1972: L’hirondelle (The Swallow) * 1974: La liberté brille dans la nuit (Freedom Shines in the Night) * 1976: Le pouvoir des mots * 1977: Chantez la vie, l’amour et la mort (Sing to life, love and death) * 1979: L’or et le cuivre (Gold and Copper) * 1980: Hommage à René-Guy Cadou (Homage To Rene-Guy Cadou) * 1981: Gilles Servat en public (Gilles Servat Live) * 1982: Je ne hurlerai pas avec les loups (I will not howl with the wolves) * 1985: La douleur d’aimer * 1988: Mad in sérénité (Mad in Serenity) * 1992: Le fleuve (The River) * 1993: L’albatros fou (The Foolish Albertros) with Triskell * 1994: Les albums de la jeunesse (Albums of Youth) * 1995: A-raok mont kuit (Before Leaving) * 1996: Litanies pour l’an 2000 (Litanies for the Year 2000) ''a compilation album'' * 1996: Sur les quais de Dublin (On the Quays of Dublin) * 1998: Touche pas à la Blanche Hermine (Don't Touch the White Ermine) * 2000: Comme je voudrai ! (As I wish!) * 2003: Escales (Stopovers) ''a 'Best of' album'' * 2005: Sous le ciel de cuivre et d'eau (Under the Copper and Water Sky) * 2006: Sensation uest_artist_on_the_title_track_of_this_album_by_ uest_artist_on_the_title_track_of_this_album_by_Anúna">Anúna.html"_;"title="uest_artist_on_the_title_track_of_this_album_by_Anúna">uest_artist_on_the_title_track_of_this_album_by_Anúna*_2010
Gilles_Servat
40_ans_de_succès_best_of *_2011:_Ailes_et_îles_(Wings_and_isles,_word_play_with_"She_and_he") *_2013:_C'est_ça_qu'on_aime_vivre_avec_(That's_what_we_like_to_live_with) Also_features_on_(amongst_others): *_1993:_Again_(Alan_Stivell_album).html" ;"title="Anúna.html" ;"title="Anúna.html" ;"title="uest artist on the title track of this album by Anúna">uest artist on the title track of this album by Anúna">Anúna.html" ;"title="uest artist on the title track of this album by Anúna">uest artist on the title track of this album by Anúna* 2010
Gilles Servat
40 ans de succès best of * 2011: Ailes et îles (Wings and isles, word play with "She and he") * 2013: C'est ça qu'on aime vivre avec (That's what we like to live with) Also features on (amongst others): * 1993: Again (Alan Stivell album)">Again (

) * 1994:

and The

* 1995: L’Héritage des Celtes en concert * 1997: L’Héritage des Celtes - Finisterres * 1998: L’Héritage des Celtes - Zénith * 1999: Bretagnes à Bercy

Notes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Servat, Gilles 1945 births Living people People from Tarbes Breton musicians French people of Breton descent Breton-language singers