Aimé Duval

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Aimé Duval (1918–1984)

Aimé Duval SJ (born June 30, 1918 in Le Val-d'Ajol , Arrondissement Épinal , Département Vosges , Lorraine region , France , † April 30, 1984 in Metz ) was the author of numerous religious chansons . Aimé ("beloved") is not an order , but a nickname that has become a stage name .

Life

In 1918 he was born as Lucien Duval in Le Val-d'Ajol (Vosges); He was baptized in Plombières . After a few years of elementary school, from 1930 at the age of 12 he attended a Jesuit-led college in Brussels , at that time already with the desire to become a priest . During this time he wrote his first chanson. In 1936 he joined the Jesuits and studied Catholic theology . On 24 July 1944 he received in Enghien (Belgium) , the ordination . At first he worked as a French teacher in Reims , until he was allowed to devote himself entirely to music.

A few years after his ordination, Duval began to write chansons and initially perform them in pubs and cafes. He was soon invited to give concerts. His tours took him all over Europe: he gave 3000 concerts in 45 countries. His concert in (West) Berlin had 30,000 visitors; the then Federal Chancellor Konrad Adenauer gave him a guitar as a thank you for the joy he brought young people. In 1965, Père Duval was the first priest to sing “behind the iron curtain”: he gave a free concert in Warsaw . He also performed in America.

In 1956 his first record was released. By 1961 he had already sold more than a million records. He published a total of 14 records.

The stress of touring and composing led him to an alcoholic disease that quickly escalated. In February 1969 he attempted suicide, and after he was rescued, he went to Versailles for alcohol withdrawal. He fought to have addiction recognized as a disease. In the same year he suffered a relapse. He now regularly attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings . In order to help fellow sufferers, he dictated a relentless report on his addiction on a long drive, which he published as a book shortly before his death: L'enfant qui jouait avec la lune . The book, which became a bestseller, only gives his first name, Lucien, as the author; The self-description serves as the subtitle: “Chanteur, Jésuite, Alcoolique”.

Duval died on April 30, 1984 after a concert in Metz and was buried in Nancy .

Musical work

He performed his chansons himself and accompanied them with his guitar (therefore called "God's guitarist" in France). Georges Brassens held him in high regard. Père Duval was one of the pioneers of the New Spiritual Song . The Catholic theologian Karl Rahner praised Aimé Duval's poems and compositions as “a song that rises anew from the heart”.

Selected chanson titles

  • The Lord knocks on the door
  • On the way
  • One day the Lord will come back
  • I go often and with pleasure
  • O Lord you my friend
  • Rue des Longues-Haies
  • The night
  • Why are you coming so late
  • What about my dreams

Some chansons were released posthumously on CD; In 2005 a CD was released on which Jean-Claude Gianadda sings his songs.

Book publications

  • Chansons. 13 songs in French and German. Afterword by Karl Rahner . Otto Müller Verlag, Salzburg 1959. (with notes)
  • Anton Hüren (Ed.): Nine new songs, French and German. Otto Müller Verlag, Salzburg 1963. (with notes)
  • Lucien: L'enfant qui jouait avec la lune. Chanteur, Jésuite, Alcoolique. Editions Salvator, Mulhouse 1983, ISBN 2-7067-0089-0 .
    • German under the title: Why was the night so long. How I got off the alcohol. 6th edition. Herder, Freiburg 1990, ISBN 3-451-20213-1 .

literature

  • Bernd Marz: Aimé Duval. In: Ders .: Border Crossers of Faith. Conversations and portraits. Echter, Würzburg 1995, ISBN 3-429-01673-8 , pp. 185-205.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Le Père Aimé Duval - Chronology. In: pierre.aime.duval.free.fr. October 24, 2005, accessed July 23, 2016 (French).
  2. ↑ Bernd Marz: Border Crosser of Faith . Echter, Würzburg 1995, p. 189.
  3. ↑ Le Père Aimé Duval, jésuite. Jésuites Europe Occidentale Francophone, October 1, 2011, accessed on July 15, 2018 (French).
  4. ↑ Karl Rahner: A little song. In: Orientation , vol. 23 (1959), pp. 93-94; Reprinted as an afterword to Aimé Duval SJ: Chansons. Otto Müller Verlag, Salzburg 1959, pp. 45–46.
personal data
SURNAME Duval, Aimé
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Duval, Père; Duval, Lucien
BRIEF DESCRIPTION French author of religious chansons, chansonnier
DATE OF BIRTH June 30, 1918
PLACE OF BIRTH Le Val-d'Ajol , France
DATE OF DEATH April 30, 1984
Place of death Metz