French Singer Charles Aznavour Dies at 94 | Playbill

Obituaries French Singer Charles Aznavour Dies at 94 The world-renowned singer was seen on Broadway in concert a number of times throughout his long career.
Charles Aznavour Fabio Diena / Shutterstock

French singer-songwriter and performer Charles Aznavour has died at age 94, marking the end of a successful, decades-long career on the stage and screen.

His death was confirmed by the singer’s producer, Gerard Drouout Productions, and the French Culture Ministry, according to the Associated Press.

A prolific songwriter with over 1,000 songs to his name, Mr. Aznavour's well-known hits included "She," "Hier Encore," "Emmenez-moi," "For me, Formidable," and "La Bohème." His music has been performed by Edith Piaf, Maurice Chevalier, Bing Cosby, Ray Charles, Shirley Bassey, Fred Astaire, and Liza Minnelli, with whom he performed on a number of occasions.

Mr. Aznavour performed his own music frequently. Having just returned from a tour of Japan, he was set to kick off a new tour in November, starting in Paris.

He was seen on Broadway in concert five times in The World of Charles Aznavour (1965); Charles Aznavour (1970); Charles Aznavour on Broadway (1974); Aznavour (1983); and Aznavour (1998).

Also an actor, his first screen role, in La Tete Contre Les Murs, won him the Crystal Star Award. He went on to have over 60 roles in films like Shoot the Piano Player, Tomorrow Is My Turn, Taxi of Tobrouk, The Devil and the Ten Commandments, and The Tin Drum.

Born in Paris to Armenian parents in 1924, he long-remained loyal to his roots. In 1975 he penned the song "They Fell" in honor of the Armenian victims of the genocide during World War I, and in 1988, he founded with Lévon Sayan the movement Aznavour for Armenia, and was joined by nearly a hundred artists in recording the chart-topping "For You Armenia" to raise relief funds following an earthquake. He was named Ambassador-at-Large and Ambassador at the Unesco for the newly created Republic of Armenia in 1993.

Mr. Aznavour was distinguished with the Officier de la Legion d'Honneur, the highest distinction of France, in 1997 by French President Jacques Chirac.

 
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