Cora Vaucaire

Born in Marseille on July 22, 1918, Geneviève Collin is better known as Cora Vaucaire. She made her stage debut interpreting the poets Jacques Prévert and Louis Aragon. Considered the creator of the classic "Les Feuilles mortes ", which she claims to have performed in 1949 before Yves Montand, she championed the repertoire of a young, unknown artist named Barbara, whose "Dis quand reviendras-tu" and "Attendez que ma joie revienne" she sang, and encouraged her to perform herself. Associated with the spirit of "rive gauche" song, Cora Vaucaire also interpreted Léo Ferré's "Le Pont Mirabeau", based on Guillaume Apollinaire's poem, and "Les Forains". The repertoire of the singer married to lyricist Michel Vaucaire extends beyond her contemporaries. Known as "la Dame Blanche de Saint-Germain des Prés", she sang medieval arias as well as vaudeville tunes by Fragson ("Je ne peux pas") and Yvette Guilbert ("Quand on vous aime comme ça"). In 1955, she sang "La Complainte de la butte " in Jean Renoir's film French Cancan, and in 1961 scored her biggest hit with "Trois petites notes de musique", from Henri Colpi's film Une aussi longue absence. Cora Vaucaire is also known for her commitment to song, performing the anthems "Le Temps des cerises " and "L'Internationale " in front of striking factories during the May 1968 demonstrations. Cora Vaucaire continued to perform on stage well into her old age, as witnessed by her appearances at the Théâtre Dejazet in 1992, the Comédie des Champs-Élysées in 1997 and the Bouffes du Nord in 1999. Having suffered from osteoporosis for several years, Cora Vaucaire died in Paris on September 17, 2011, at the age of 93.

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