“Elevator music has virtues: you can hear it everywhere!“: the French pianist Richard Clayderman, adored abroad, is capable of self-mockery. At 68, he is back with a 35th studio album on February 25, Forever Love, bringing together previously unreleased songs and adaptations of love-themed songs by the likes of Ed Sheeran, Coldplay, Adele, the Bee Gees, Stevie Wonder and Whitney Houston. An album that he will defend on stage with a new tour which this year will pass through Latin America, the United States, Canada and China.
Nicknamed the “Mozart from the Walkman“by Renaud in a 1981 song, sacred”prince of romanticism” by former First Lady Nancy Reagan, the artist revealed in 1977 by the haunting melody of Ballad for Adeline (sold over 22 million copies in 38 countries), has never left the scene since. He claims to date more than 2,000 concerts, 1,400 recordings and 90 million albums crowned by 340 gold and platinum discs.
Followed by two million people on Facebook, one of the most popular pianists in the world still can’t believe it: “I was very surprised by the success. I was Thierry Le Luron’s pianist and the composer Paul de Senneville offered me one day to adapt to the piano Ballad for Adeline. We said to ourselves ‘we’ll see what happens’… “, he recalls. “It was a terrible detonator for my career. However, we were in the middle of the disco period… This very simple melody, which has become universal, has touched people’s hearts. Since then, I have never stopped… “, confides Richard Clayderman, 68 years old.
His cover of “I Just Called to Say I Love You” by Stevie Wonder
He started playing at the age of five, his father being a piano teacher and giving lessons on the family instrument placed in the living room. “I was naturally drawn. He gave me the basics and I was admitted to the Conservatory when I was twelve“, recalls Richard Clayderman, who has accompanied several artists including Thierry Le Luron. “He imposed me on the shows. I owe him a lot…“, he continues.
After the success of Ballad for Adeline, he performed thirteen times at the prestigious Salle Pleyel, then dedicated to classical music. “I’ve always had detractors… Classical musicians still don’t understand, except those who accompany me on stage. At the end of the concert, they realize the fervor of the public. It’s a little revenge“, says Richard Clayderman.
Her 2022 Valentine’s Day Surprise With “Perfect Symphony”
He is delighted that the public can be interested in the classical repertoire through his music: “My greatest reward is the children who start playing the piano with my pieces“, explains the one who still considers himself as “a modest performer“. He praises the work of the composer Paul de Senneville who, if he does not play any instrument, “has a knack for finding melodies that speak to people“.”My job is to transcribe them for the piano and to interpret them. I try hard to make it sound right“, he describes.
Despite everything, he regrets that success abroad has taken him away from France. “I am somewhere between a classical pianist and a popular music pianist. This title of Prince of Romanticism given to me by Mrs. Reagan goes very well with the music I play. In France, it’s a little pejorative, while abroad, France is the homeland of romanticism“, emphasizes the musician who lives in Paris. “It is well known: no one is a prophet in his country…“, he smiles.