Pierre Roche (27 March 1919 – 29 January 2001) was a pianist, singer and composer, better known for his duo with Charles Aznavour (1943–1950). Roche and Aznavour met at a music hall and debuted on stage with their own songs in 1944. Edith Piaf noticed them and hired them for a tour in

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 ...

with the Compagnons de la chanson. Charles Aznavour then decided to pursue a solo career in order to expand his repertoire, while his pianist settled in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. In the 1970s, Aznavour invited Pierre Roche to join him on Olympia's stage to perform together.

Biography

Born in

Beauvais Beauvais ( , ; pcd, Bieuvais) is a city and commune in northern France, and prefecture of the Oise département, in the Hauts-de-France region, north of Paris. The commune of Beauvais had a population of 56,020 , making it the most populous ...

, in the north of France, Pierre Roche resided 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. S ...

in 1942 when he met a young singer by the name of Varenagh Aznavourian. In 1947, Georges Ulmer won a Grand Prix with one of their songs, "J'ai bu". The duo recorded few 78 rpm discs which had some local success. Then they joined Edith Piaf in her tour. After a cold reception in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

they went to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

where they succeeded at the end of 1948 and decided to extend their stay in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. In May 1949, Charles Trenet recommended them to Gérard Thibault, the owner of fashionable cabaret Chez Gérard. Roche met young singer Jocelyne Deslongchamps, who would later be known as "Aglaé". She became his wife, and the duo Roche and Aznavour split up. After more than a decade of international tours, the couple settled permanently in Quebec in 1963. Roche died of cancer in January 2001.Pierre Roche
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Discography

* ''Boule de gomme ; Je suis amoureux'', with Charles Aznavour – Quality P 042, 1948 * ''Le Feutre taupe ; Départ Express'', with Charles Aznavour – Polydor 560072, 1948 * ''J'ai bu ; Voyez c'est le printemps'', with Charles Aznavour – Polydor 560071, 1948 * ''Tant de monnaie ; Je n'ai qu'un sou'', with Charles Aznavour – Polydor 560077, 1949 * ''Les Cris de ma ville ; Retour'', with Charles Aznavour – Quality P004 * ''En revenant de Québec ; Il pleut'', with Charles Aznavour – London 25016 * ''Ma prairie fleurie ; Les Filles de Trois-Rivières'' – Alouette CF 750

References

External links

Roche at IMDB
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roche, Pierre 1919 births 2001 deaths French male songwriters French songwriters Male songwriters French male actors Canadian male songwriters 20th-century French male singers French male singer-songwriters French singer-songwriters