Silvana Savorelli (30 April 1945 – 8 May 2018), professionally known as Lara Saint Paul and also known as Tanya, was an Italian Eritrean singer, entertainer,

impresario An impresario (from Italian ''impresa'', 'an enterprise or undertaking') is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, Play (theatre), plays, or operas, performing a role in stage arts that is similar to that of a film producer, film or ...

and record producer.

Sanremo Music Festival

Saint Paul's first public performance was in 1962 at the

Festival della canzone italiana The Sanremo Music Festival ( ), officially the Italian Song Festival (), is the most popular Italian song contest and awards ceremony, held annually in the city of Sanremo, Liguria, organized and broadcast by (RAI). It is the longest-running ...

, also known as the Sanremo Music Festival, in Italy. She went by the name of 'Tanya' and performed the ballad "I colori della felicità". Adopting the stage name Lara Saint Paul, she performed in the 1966 Festival delle Rose with the song ''Il pieno'' and was a finalist in the 1967 Festival della Canzone Napoletana for her performance of ''Te faie desidera. Her first big success arrived when she returned to the

Sanremo Sanremo, also spelled San Remo in English and formerly in Italian, is a (municipality) on the Mediterranean coast of Liguria, in northwestern Italy. Founded in Roman times, it has a population of 55,000, and is known as a tourist destination ...

Music Festival in 1968 as one of the two performers of the song ''Mi va di cantare''. The other performer was

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

, and they performed alongside

Lionel Hampton Lionel Leo Hampton (April 20, 1908 – August 31, 2002) was an American jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, and bandleader. He worked with jazz musicians from Teddy Wilson, Benny Goodman, and Buddy Rich, to Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, an ...

. She also participated in Sanremo in 1972 with ''Se non-fosse tra queste mie braccia lo inventerei'' and in 1973 with ''Una casa grande''. She was a finalist three times in the Sanremo Music Festival. In 1988, Lara Saint Paul was a producer and conductor for the Sanremo Music Festival at the Casinò di Sanremo.

Music

Lara Saint Paul has worked with many notable talents in the music industry. Her songs ''Non preoccuparti'' and ''Adesso ricomincerei'' were produced and arranged by American producer

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...

and recorded by an orchestra of Italian musicians, including Pino Presti on electric bass, Angel Pocho Gatti and Victor Bacchetta at the piano, and Tullio De Piscopo on drums, in 1973. In the same year she released an Italian cover version of ''

Killing Me Softly with His Song "Killing Me Softly with His Song" is a song composed by Charles Fox with lyrics by Norman Gimbel. The lyrics were written in collaboration with Lori Lieberman after she was inspired by a Don McLean performance in late 1971. Denied writing cre ...

'', originally composed by Charles Fox and

Norman Gimbel Norman Gimbel (November 16, 1927 – December 19, 2018) was an American lyricist and songwriter of popular songs and themes to television shows and films. He wrote the lyrics for songs including " Ready to Take a Chance Again" (with composer Cha ...

, titled ''Mi fa morir cantando''. Lara Saint Paul has worked and performed with notables such as

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential musicians in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Gen ...

Roberta Flack Roberta Cleopatra Flack (February 10, 1937 – February 24, 2025) was an American singer and pianist known for her emotive, genre-blending ballads that spanned R&B, jazz, Folk music, folk, and pop and contributed to the birth of the quiet storm ...

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

and

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

. Her popular 1977 album ''Saffo Music'', recorded in Los Angeles and produced by Leon Ware, featured

The Pointer Sisters The Pointer Sisters are an American female vocal group from Oakland, California, who achieved mainstream success during the 1970s and 1980s. They have had a repertoire with many genres, they have sold around 50 million records throughout their ...

on backing vocals, guitar by

Ray Parker Jr. Ray Erskine Parker Jr. (born May 1, 1954) is an American guitarist, songwriter, and record producer. As a solo performer, he wrote and performed the theme song for the 1984 film '' Ghostbusters'' and also sounds from the animated series '' The ...

, bass by

Chuck Rainey Charles Walter Rainey III (born June 17, 1940) is an American bass guitarist who has performed and recorded with many well-known acts, including Aretha Franklin, Steely Dan, and Quincy Jones. Rainey is credited for playing bass on more than 1,00 ...

and was mixed by

Bill Conti William Conti (born April 13, 1942) is an American composer and conductor. He is best known for his film scores, including ''Rocky'' (1976), '' Rocky II'' (1979), '' Rocky III'' (1982), '' Rocky V'' (1990), '' Rocky Balboa'' (2006), '' The Karat ...

. One of her 1970s tracks, ''So'', is featured on several current popular

lounge music Lounge music is a type of easy listening music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It may be meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place, usually with a tranquil theme, such as a jungle, an island paradise or outer space. The ra ...

compilations. The largest markets for her music outside of Italy and Europe are

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, Brazil and Japan, and she also performed and released successful albums in the

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc (Combloc), the Socialist Bloc, the Workers Bloc, and the Soviet Bloc, was an unofficial coalition of communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America that were a ...

, such as her Bulgarian releases of ''Recital at the Festival of the Golden Orpheus'' in 1972, ''Saffo Music'', and ''Bravo'' in 1981. The majority of her work was released in Italy on the record label Company Discografica Italiana (CDI) and later LASAPA, both of which she owned with her husband, Italian producer and

showman Showman can have a variety of meanings, usually by context and depending on the country. Australia Travelling Funfair, showmen ("showies") are people who run amusement and side show equipment at regional shows, state capital shows, events ...

Pier Quinto Cariaggi.

Aerobic dance

In 1982, she brought the

aerobics Aerobics is a form of physical exercise that combines rhythmic aerobic exercise with stretching and strength training routines with the goal of improving all elements of fitness (Flexibility (anatomy), flexibility, Muscle, muscular strength, and ...

craze to Italy, working closely with actress and fitness guru

Jane Fonda Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an American actress and activist. Recognized as a film icon, Jane Fonda filmography, Fonda's work spans several genres and over six decades of film and television. She is the recipient of List of a ...

. The video, bookSaint Paul, Lara. (1984) Aerobica: il mio programma di aerobic dance, Milano: Idealibri, , , OCLC 219975437 and music album, titled ''Aerobic Dance'' and ''Aerobica Aerobica'', and a music single titled ''A A AA Aerobica'', were parts of an exercise program with songs performed by Lara Saint Paul. The program was a huge hit and went on to achieve cult status in Italy. ''Aerobic Dance'' won a

Gold Record Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

in Italy for sales. A clothing line and ''The Aerobic Center'' fitness clubs licensed with the name Lara Saint Paul were also created that featured the aerobics program.

Television and later years

Lara has been featured in many television specials in Italy and around Europe, starting with the variety show ''Quelli Della Domenica'' in 1968, for

RAI (), commercially styled as since 2000 and known until 1954 as (RAI), is the national public broadcasting company of Italy, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. RAI operates many terrestrial and subscription television channels a ...

. A 1970–1971 edition of the RAI network TV show '' Canzonissima'' featured Lara Saint Paul, bringing Italian film and music personalities together on TV. The 1992 ''Lara Superspecial'' show spectacular for Eurovisione and

RAI 2 Rai 2 is an Italian free-to-air television channel owned and operated by state-owned public broadcaster RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana. It is the company's second television channel, and is known for broadcasting '' TG2'' news bulletins, ta ...

was broadcast all over Europe and in 19 countries, featuring

Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, and dancer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli has received numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, ...

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte ( ; born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927 – April 25, 2023) was an American singer, actor, and civil rights activist who popularized calypso music with international audiences in the 1950s and 1960s. Belafonte ...

and

Luciano Pavarotti Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...

. This highly successful television special received a special prize from the Italian critica televisa. The ''Lara Superspecial'' orchestra was arranged by Gian Marco Gualandi, who also participated in Lara Saint Paul's 1992 European Tour. As Lara Cariaggi, in 1995 she co-produced and wrote the television documentary ''Pavarotti: The Best is Yet to Come'' with her husband Cariaggi. It was an extensive biography about the life of their friend, opera singer Luciano Pavarotti, and Lara was the interviewer for the documentary. In later years, she was on Italian television for retrospectives featuring the life of

. Sinatra and his wife Barbara were personal friends of Lara Saint Paul, and Sinatra's return to Italy in 1986 after 24 years abroad had been orchestrated by Lara Saint Paul's husband, Pier Quinto Cariaggi, who had also organized Sinatra's 1987 Italian tour. On the Rete 4 network in 2005, Lara was the guest star on

Iva Zanicchi Iva Zanicchi (; born 18 January 1940) is an Italian pop singer and politician. She has a mezzo-soprano voice and is nick-named by the press as the "Eagle from Ligonchio" (). Biography Iva Zanicchi was born in Ligonchio, in the province of ...

's show ''Io tra di voi'' and sang some Sinatra duets with singer

Bobby Solo Roberto Satti (born 18 March 1945), known professionally as Bobby Solo, is an Italian singer-songwriter and musician. Singing career In 1964, Solo participated in the Sanremo Music Festival with the song " Una lacrima sul viso" ("A Tear on your ...

for a musical tribute to Sinatra. In 2007, on RAI TG1, Lara starred on the '' Uno Mattina'' studio broadcast. In 2008, Lara performed on the Italian television program ''I Migliori Anni'', broadcast by Rai Uno in collaboration with

Endemol Endemol B.V. (stylized in all lowercase) was a Dutch-based media company that produced and distributed multiplatform entertainment content. The company annually produced more than 15,000 hours of programming across scripted and non-scripted gen ...

Italia and hosted by

Serena Grandi Serena Faggioli (Bologna, 23 March 1958), known professionally as Serena Grandi, is an Italian actress, famous as a sex symbol in Cinema of Italy, Italian cinema of the 1980s and 1990s. She was a popular pin-up model in Italy. During her film car ...

. Lara performed live in June 2008 for ''La Notte della Solidarietà'' with a concert at the

PalaSharp PalaTrussardi, later known as PalaVobis, PalaTucker, Mazda Palace and PalaSharp, was an indoor arena located in Milan, Italy. The seating capacity was 8,479 and it hosted concerts and sporting events. It was built in 1985 to replace two pre-existi ...

in Milan. The event benefited WOPSEC, the World Organization of Pediatric Surgery for Emerging Countries.

Viva Hollywood and the Merit of Achievement Award

The Italian awards show ''Viva Hollywood'' for

, a production of Lara Saint Paul's husband Pier Quinto Cariaggi and his company Galenter Management Ltd., was co-presented and co-produced by Lara Saint Paul. It started in 1988 and every year brought Hollywood stars to Italy to present them with a Merit of Achievement Award for their work. It was a success for the Italian RAI network and had very high annual ratings.

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress of film, television, and theater. Regarded as one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, she was noted for her willingness to play unsympatheti ...

received the first award in 1988. The nominees stayed at the five star

Villa d'Este The Villa d'Este is a 16th-century villa in Tivoli, Lazio, Tivoli, near Rome. It is a masterpiece of Italian architecture and garden design, famous for its terraced hillside Italian Renaissance garden and the ingenuity of its architectural featu ...

hotel in Cernobbio and were awarded a bronze statuette for lifetime achievement at the televised awards show. Some of the guests, such as

Kirk Douglas Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; December 9, 1916 – February 5, 2020) was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in '' The Strange Love of Martha Ivers'' (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. ...

, had a personal meeting with

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

at the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

arranged for them by Lara Saint Paul and Cariaggi. Image:Lara_and_luciano_pavarotti.jpg, Lara Saint Paul, opera singer Luciano Pavarotti and Lara's husband, producer Pier Quinto Cariaggi. Lara Saint Paul and Cariaggi produced and wrote a documentary on Pavarotti titled ''The Best is Yet to Come''. File:Lara Saint Paul and Quincy Jones.jpg, Lara Saint Paul and Quincy Jones in Los Angeles California. Quincy Jones produced and arranged the songs ''Non preoccuparti-Adesso ricomincerei'' for Lara Saint Paul.

Death

Lara Saint Paul died of cancer, aged 73, on 8 May 2018 in

Casalecchio di Reno Casalecchio di Reno ( Bolognese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy. History Casalecchio's name is derived from ''Casaliculum'' ("collection of little houses"), and from the presence of ...

References

External links

Official websiteLara Saint Paul: La voce delle donneLara Saint Paul: SanRemoStory (Italian)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Paul, Lara 1946 births 2018 deaths People from Asmara 20th-century Italian women singers 21st-century Italian women singers Eritrean emigrants to Italy 20th-century Eritrean women singers Italian impresarios Eritrean people of Italian descent Italian pop singers Italian television personalities Italian television producers Italian women television producers