Annie Ebrel (born 1969) is a traditional

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally ** Breton people ** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Ga ...

singer of traditional ''

Kan ha diskan is probably the most common type of traditional music of Brittany. It is a vocal tradition ( translates from Breton as, roughly, ''call and response singing''). The style is the most commonly used to accompany dances. It has become perhaps the ...

'' (dance songs) and ''

Gwerz Gwerz (, "ballad", "lament", plural ''gwerzioù'') is a type of folk song of Brittany. In Breton music, the ''gwerz'' tells a story which can be epic, historical, or mythological. The stories are usually of a tragic nature. The gwerz is characte ...

'' (ballads).

Background

Annie Ebrel was born in 1969 in the village of

Lohuec Lohuec (; br, Lohueg) is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department of Brittany in northwestern France. Population Inhabitants of Lohuec are called ''lohuécois'' in French. See also *Communes of the Côtes-d'Armor department The follow ...

, near Callac,

Côtes-d'Armor The Côtes-d'Armor (, ; ; br, Aodoù-an-Arvor, ), formerly known as Côtes-du-Nord ( br, Aodoù-an-Hanternoz, link=no, ), are a department in the north of Brittany, in northwestern France. In 2019, it had a population of 600,582.

department, part of the historic region of

Cornouaille Cornouaille (; br, Kernev, Kerne) is a historical region on the west coast of Brittany in West France. The name is cognate with Cornwall in neighbouring Great Britain. This can be explained by the settlement of Cornouaille by migrant princ ...

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

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 ...

, to a family of farmers. Through her grandfather Jean Ebrel, she is the second cousin of

Louise Ebrel Louise Ebrel (27 July 1932 – 30 March 2020) was a Breton singer whose parents Eugénie Goadec (one of the Goadec Sisters) and Job Ebrel were themselves singers. Her repertoire was composed of traditional Breton songs, either for dancing ('' ...

, who is a daughter of Eugénie Goadec, one of The Goadec Sisters.

Career

In 1983, Ebrel began learning her craft with Yannick Larvor as well as singers (Marcel Le Guilloux) and .. In 1989, Ebrel participated in the album ''Aux sources du Barzaz Breizh'', which brought her to public attention. In 1992, she performed with Voix de Bretagne, which showcased three generations of Breton artists. In 1996, she began performing with Italian double-bassist

Riccardo Del Fra Riccardo Del Fra (born February 20, 1956, Rome) is an Italian jazz double-bassist, bandleader, composer, and arranger. Del Fra first played guitar, then switched to upright bass when he was sixteen years old. He studied at a conservatory, playe ...

. Most often, Ebrel performs with other artists, both singers in a cappella and musicians. However, in 1995, Ebrel released her first solo album ''Tre ho ti ma hini'' and in 2004 created the solo show ''Une Voice Bretonne'' (A Breton Voice). In 2012, Ebrel performed with the Annie Ebrel Quartet including Pierrick Hardy,

Olivier Ker Ourio Olivier Ker Ourio (born 1964 in Paris, from a family originally from Réunion) is a jazz musician of Breton ancestry known for playing Chromatic harmonica. He has worked with Bruce Arnold, Franck Amsallem, David Kikoski, and Annie Ebrel among ...

, and Bijan Chemirani. In 2013, Ebrel celebrated her career of three decades with a performance in

Saint-Nicodème Saint-Nicodème (; ) is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department of Brittany in northwestern France. Population Inhabitants of Saint-Nicodème are called ''nicodémois'' in French. See also *Communes of the Côtes-d'Armor department The ...

, resulting in an album ''30 ans de chant''. Festivals where Ebrel performed including the

Vieilles Charrues Festival The Vieilles Charrues Festival (french: Festival des Vieilles Charrues, ; br, Gouel an Erer Kozh, ; literally: Old Ploughs Festival) is held every year in mid-July in the city of Carhaix, located in western Brittany, France. This festival is the ...

(1999),

Festival de Cornouaille The Festival de Cornouaille (or just Cornouaille Kemper) is an annual festival taking place in Quimper, a city in the south-west of Brittany, a western region of France. The festival begins on the third Sunday of July and lasts for one week. It has ...

(2014), and

Fest Noz A Fest Noz (Breton for ''night festival'') is a Breton traditional festival, with dancing in groups and live musicians playing acoustic instruments. Although it is all too easy to write off the ' and ''fêtes folkloriques'' as modern inventions, ...

(2015). In 2018, Ebrel performs twice on the

BBC Alba BBC Alba is a Scottish Gaelic-language free-to-air public broadcast television channel jointly owned by the BBC and MG Alba. The channel was launched on 19 September 2008 and is on-air for up to seven hours a day with BBC Radio nan Gàidheal s ...

''Port'' episode on Brittany, singing the

(ballad) "Robardig," accompanied by Mischa MacPherson as well as hosts

Julie Fowlis Julie Fowlis (born 20 June 1978) is a Scottish folk singer and multi-instrumentalist who sings primarily in Scottish Gaelic. Early life Fowlis grew up on North Uist, an island in the Outer Hebrides, in a Gaelic-speaking community. Her moth ...

and

Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh (born 1978) is a musician and singer from County Kerry, Ireland. Until 2016, she was the lead singer for the traditional music group Danú, and from that year on she has been half of the electronica duo Aeons. Biography ...

, and then "Une dispute" (An Argument) as second voice to

Erik Marchand Érik Marchand (born 1955) is a Breton traditional singer and player of the treujenn-gaol (Breton clarinet). Although born in Paris, his family was of Breton origin, hailing from Quelneuc, Brittany. Influenced by the music of Manuel Kerjean, ...

. Ebrel continues to perform, mostly in Brittany, France, Celtic areas like Scotland, as well as Spain, Italy, Scandinavia, Canada, and the USA. Ebrel is the subject of "Annie Ebrel, ou «une chanteuse traditionnelle bretonne»?" by François Picard of the

Sorbonne University Sorbonne University (french: Sorbonne Université; la Sorbonne: 'the Sorbonne') is a public research university located in Paris, France. The institution's legacy reaches back to 1257 when Sorbonne College was established by Robert de Sorbon ...

Works

;Albums (solo) * 1995 : ''Chants en breton'', (

Coop Breizh Coop Breizh is a Breton cultural company founded in 1957 by Kendalc'h confederation, based in Spézet, Brittany, France. Specialized in the production, the publishing and the literary and musical distribution, it propose articles related to Breton ...

) * 1996 : ''Tre ho ti ha ma hini'', (Coop Breizh) * 1996 : ''Dibenn'' (An Naër Production) * 1998 : ''Voulouz loar... Velluto di luna'' (Coop Breizh) * 2013 : ''30 ans de chant'' * 2021 : ''Lellig'' (Coop Breizh) ;Albums (Annie Ebrel Quartet) * 2008 : ''Roudennoù'' (Coop Breizh) ;Albums (collaborations) * Christian Duro Soner Fisel * 1989 : ''Sources du

Barzaz Breiz ''Barzaz Breiz'' (in modern spelling ''Barzhaz Breizh'', meaning "Ballads of Brittany": ''barzh'' is the equivalent of "bard" and ''Breizh'' means "Brittany") is a collection of Breton popular songs collected by Théodore Hersart de la Villemar ...

aujourd'hui'' * 1993 : ''Voix de Bretagne'' (France 3, Le Quartz Brest) * 1994 : ** ''Quand les bretons passent à table'' ** ''Just a Traveller'' with

Youenn Gwernig Youenn Gwernig (10 May 1925 – 29 August 2006; born in Scaër, Douarnenez) was a Breton-American poet, writer and singer. He was a painter, sculptor and a TV presenter on the French channel France 3. He was born in 1925 in the town of Scaër ( ...

* 1995 : ''Kleg Live'' * 1997 : ''Kan Ha Diskan'' with

Yann-Fañch Kemener Yann-Fañch Loeiz Kemener (April 7, 1957 – March 16, 2019) was a traditional singer and ethnomusicologist from Brittany, born in Sainte-Tréphine, Côtes-d'Armor, France. Known in French as Jean-François Louis Quémener. He took part in re ...

(Coop Breizh) * 1998 : ''Voulouz Loar/Velluto di luna'', gant

(Coop Breizh) * 2000 : ''Er roue Stevan'' (gant Roland Becker) * 2003 : ''Ephemera'' (gant Jacques Pellen) * 2004 : ''Un devezh ba kerch Morvan'' (gant Marcel Le Guilloux) (Coop Breizh) * 2012 : ** ''Tost ha pell'' with Lots Join (Coop Breizh) ** ''Teir'' with Nolùen Le Buhé and Marthe Vassallo (Coop Breizh) * 2018 : ''Paotred'' with Nolùen Le Buhé and Marthe Vassallo (Coop Breizh)

References

External links

BBC Alba "Port" - "Robardig"

BBC Alba "Port" - "Robardig"
(RealPlayer)
Annie Ebrel - Vidêos et Press écrite

Annie Ebrel (Discographie)

1969 births Living people People from Côtes-d'Armor Breton-language singers {{France-music-bio-stub