French singer hopes to perform again in Kurdistan

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – French singer and hurdy-gurdy player Éléonore Fourniau, who is not ethnically Kurdish but sings in Kurdish, for the first time visited the Kurdistan Region last week.

She performed at The Garden Restaurant in Erbil on Nov. 24 and, two days later, at the third Jazz in Erbil event that the French Institute in Erbil and the Goethe-Institut in Erbil organized. Famous Kurdish singer Delil Delinar joined her at both events.

Speaking to Kurdistan 24 on Saturday, Éléonore said she hopes to come back to Kurdistan in the future and perform again.

As the COVID-19 forced countries worldwide into lockdown last year, she joined an online livestream during the Kurdish New Year celebrations on Mar. 21 and sang to lift the spirits of Kurds stuck at home.

Read More: Kurdish artists livestream music to lift spirits amid coronavirus curfews

During her latest performances in Erbil, Éléonore sang in multiple Kurdish dialects, including Kurmanci (spoken by Kurds in all parts of Kurdistan), Zazaki (a dialect in northern Kurdistan), and Sorani (the official dialect in the Kurdistan Region).

"The French people and the Kurdish people are very close, and the French love the Kurdish people," she said, noting that Kurds are often in the French media and a part of social and political life in France.

"My aunt had done research about Kurdish people, so I knew about the Kurdish people," Éléonore explained, adding she learned more in Istanbul, Turkey, where many Kurds live.

She started signing in other languages with Turkish. "When I came to Turkey, I first wanted to learn the saz (a Middle Eastern string instrument) and Anatolian music in general."

The French artist then familiarized herself with Kurdish music, made Kurdish friends, and became acquainted with Kurdish artists.

"I wanted to learn the Kurdish language and music, and I started to practice Kurdish music," Éléonore said. In 2013, she formed a band called Esman and released their first song in 2014, called "Lê lê Rihê."

The recent concerts in Erbil were her first time in the Kurdistan Region.

It was "an amazing feeling to go to a country where around me everybody speaks Kurdish, where the Kurdish language is official," she said.

"I felt that people were really touched by my music, especially when I started to sing in Sorani," Éléonore added, noting that many Kurds were surprised at her singing since she is French. "They actually don't believe that I am French."

"They are impressed and touched that I am a foreigner and that I am interested in their culture and music," she said. "I think they liked my performance."

Éléonore said she enjoyed her stay in Erbil but explained she would also like to visit other parts of the Kurdistan Region next time. She also revealed she is preparing her first album in Kurdish, "with songs from all parts of Kurdistan."