Victoria Garance Alixe Legrand (born May 28, 1981) is a
French-American musician, best known as the lead vocalist, songwriter and keyboardist of the
dream pop
Dream pop (also typeset as dreampop) is a subgenre of alternative rock and neo-psychedelia that emphasizes atmosphere and sonic texture as much as pop melody. Common characteristics include breathy vocals, dense productions, and effects such as ...
duo
Beach House
Beach House is an American musical duo formed in Baltimore, Maryland in 2004. The band consists of Victoria Legrand (vocals, keyboards) and Alex Scally (guitar, keyboard, backing vocals).
Their self-titled debut album was released in 2006 t ...
.
Early life
Legrand was born 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 ...
, France, the daughter of painter Olivier Legrand (
fr) and niece of the French composer
Michel Legrand
Michel Jean Legrand (; 24 February 1932 – 26 January 2019) was a French musical composer, arranger, conductor, and jazz pianist. Legrand was a prolific composer, having written over 200 film and television scores, in addition to many son ...
and vocalist
Christiane Legrand
Christiane Legrand (21 August 1930 – 1 November 2011) was a French soprano.
Biography
Legrand was born in Paris. Her father Raymond Legrand was a conductor and composer renowned for hits such as ''Irma la douce'', and her mother was Mar ...
of
The Swingle Singers
270px, The Swingles at the Black Forest Voices Festival in Kirchzarten, Germany">Kirchzarten.html" ;"title="Black Forest Voices Festival in Kirchzarten">Black Forest Voices Festival in Kirchzarten, Germany on 29 June 2019
The Swingles are a v ...
. She spent her early years in Paris until age six, when her family moved to the United States, first briefly living in
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, before relocating to rural
Cecil County
Cecil County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland at the northeastern corner of the state, bordering both Pennsylvania and Delaware. As of the 2020 census, the population was 103,725. The county seat is Elkton. The county was ...
.
The family subsequently moved to
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, where Legrand spent her adolescent and teenage years.
She is fluent in both
French and
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
.
[
Legrand studied ]piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...
throughout her early life and adolescence, and, as a teenager, performed in a Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
cover band. She graduated from the Shipley School
, motto_translation = Courage for the deed; Grace for the doing
, address = 814 Yarrow Street
, location =
, region =
, city = Bryn Mawr
, county =
, st ...
in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
Bryn Mawr, pronounced ,
from Welsh for big hill, is a census-designated place (CDP) located across three townships: Radnor Township and Haverford Township in Delaware County, and Lower Merion Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It i ...
in 1999, and subsequently attended Vassar College
Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely follo ...
, where she majored in drama. After graduating in 2003, she relocated to Paris to study acting at the International Theatre School of Jacques Lecoq. After becoming "disenchanted with theater school" and more interested in songwriting and in musical artists such as Le Tigre
Le Tigre (, ; French for "The Tiger") is an American electronic rock band formed by Kathleen Hanna (of Bikini Kill), Johanna Fateman and Sadie Benning in 1998 in New York City. Benning left in 2000 and was replaced by JD Samson for the rest ...
and Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo (YLT; Spanish for "I have her") is an American indie rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan (guitars, piano, vocals), Georgia Hubley (drums, piano, vocals), and James M ...
, she dropped out of the program and returned to the United States, settling in Baltimore.
Career
In 2004, Legrand met Baltimore native Alex Scally, and they quickly formed a two-piece band. Legrand often mentions how organically they work together, and how, in Scally, she found her "musical soulmate." The two have recorded eight studio albums as Beach House: ''Beach House
Beach House is an American musical duo formed in Baltimore, Maryland in 2004. The band consists of Victoria Legrand (vocals, keyboards) and Alex Scally (guitar, keyboard, backing vocals).
Their self-titled debut album was released in 2006 t ...
'' (2006), ''Devotion
Devotion or Devotions may refer to:
Religion
* Faith, confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept
* Anglican devotions, private prayers and practices used by Anglican Christians
* Buddhist devotion, commitment to religious observance
* Cat ...
'' (2008), ''Teen Dream
Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the te ...
'' (2010), '' Bloom'' (2012), ''Depression Cherry
''Depression Cherry'' is the fifth studio album by the American dream pop duo Beach House. It was co-produced by the group and Chris Coady, and was released on August 28, 2015, by Sub Pop in the US, Bella Union in Europe, Mistletone Records in Au ...
'' (2015), '' Thank Your Lucky Stars'' (2015), '' 7'' (2018), and ''Once Twice Melody
''Once Twice Melody'' is the eighth studio album by the American dream pop duo Beach House, released on February 18, 2022. It is a double album of 18 songs, presented in four chapters.
Release
The first chapter was released on November 10, 2021 ...
'' (2022).
Musicianship
Vocal style
Legrand possesses a contralto
A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type.
The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typically b ...
vocal range. Some music outlets have compared her vocals to those of Nico
Naftiran Intertrade Company Société à responsabilité limitée#In Switzerland, limited (NICO) is a Switzerland, Swiss-based subsidiary of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC). NICO is a general contractor for the oil and gas industry. NIOC bu ...
and Mazzy Star
Mazzy Star is an American alternative rock band formed in 1988 in Santa Monica, California, from remnants of the group Opal. Founding member David Roback's friend Hope Sandoval became the group's vocalist when Kendra Smith left Opal.
Mazzy St ...
's Hope Sandoval
Hope Sandoval (born June 24, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter who is the lead singer of Mazzy Star and Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions. Sandoval has toured and collaborated with other artists, including Massive Attack, for whom she san ...
.
Songwriting and influences
Legrand and Scally write music anywhere between eight and 16 hours a day, and strive to create thoughtful music they feel strongly about. Legrand often emphasizes the honesty, thoughtfulness, and authenticity Beach House tries to get across in their music. Legrand laments the references to Beach House as being "wafty, wavy, floaty, dreamy," and insists on the band's loudness and all-encompassing soundscapes they create: "We ''are'' a loud band. OK, so it's not abrasive, but it's not soft."[
Legrand has said in interviews that she wishes audiences would focus on the craft of their songwriting; She commented, "what you're feeling is the craft, that everything is there with intention," as opposed to the individual sounds that surround "the real meat of it all....There's a lot of great sounds in music, but it's not gonna necessarily make you feel something."][ She is protective of the identity of the band and cautiously chooses how they expose themselves to their audience.
She has remarked on her love of ]The Cure
The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith has re ...
, the Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins was a Scottish rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth by Robin Guthrie (guitars, drum machine) and Will Heggie (bass), adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981 and replacing Heggie with multi-instrum ...
, Gene Clark, and cited Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, her career has spanned four decades. She rose to prominence as ...
as an influence.
Discography
Guest appearances
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Legrand, Victoria
Living people
1981 births
American contraltos
Musicians from Baltimore
Musicians from Philadelphia
Vassar College alumni
Writers from Baltimore
American women in electronic music
French emigrants to the United States
Singers from Maryland
21st-century American women singers
21st-century American singers
Shipley School alumni