Margot Sergent Performs Jazzy Edith Piaf Show at Birdland Theater Next Month

During the first years of her professional career, Margot Sergent performed worldwide throughout her native France as a classically-trained harp player in national orchestras and chamber groups in prestigious venues such as Olympia, Carnegie Hall, and Wienermusikverein. By the time she moved from Paris to New York City in 2015, Sergent had also become a jazz vocalist and the leader of her own group called So French Cabaret, ultimately performing residencies in prominent jazz clubs such as Club Bonafide and Jules Bistro, as well as the Albertine Library at the French Embassy and the Air France-sponsored Central Park Marathon.

In November 2019, Sergent made her debut with So French Cabaret at the prestigious Birdland Theater-and it was a bold and stunning one, as she offered a French neo-trad jazz fusion of the songbook of the iconic French singer Edith Piaf. Sergent performed The Edith Piaf Experience at Birdland Theater again in 2022, and now she returns to the venue (at 315 West 44th St., New York 10036) with a one-night only show on February 16 at 8:30 PM. [For tickets, go to: www.eventbrite.com/e/margot-sergent-in-the-theater-tickets-494106765637]

Featuring Pat Brennan on guitar, Alec Safy on bass, Linus Wyrsch on clarinet, and Sergent on harp, this Parisian-born chanteuse will offer renditions of Piaf classics such as "Hymne a L'Amour," "Padam, Padam," "Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien," and, of course, "La Vie En Rose," with the unique jazz harp language she developed during her international musical journey.

"Edith Piaf was jazz," observes Sergent. "She lived her life as an improvisation. She thought out the bumps of her life through blue notes. It would be easy to have a vision of Piaf as a dramatic and difficult diva, due to a shortcut between the dramatic narrative of her most known songs and the singer, but when I immersed myself into her and her music, I discovered a witty storyteller and an 'activist' before the word existed. Piaf was a resilient free spirit and a wise soul. My heart directed me to her and she has changed my musical vision and goals so I love bringing her immense source of inspiration through this show, and invite the audience to discover more about her soulful legacy."

"Margot's live performances convey a physical delight in playing music as well as an artist's sensitivity to the complicated harmonies and rhythms of jazz," says legendary jazz saxophonist Archie Shepp, who collaborated with Sergent while they toured with Brazilian jazz band leader Monica Passos. "She is a musician of superb instincts, capable of expressing profound human experiences with a wholly original voice."

A multi award-winning classical musician, Margot Sergent started her music education at 4 years old. At 8, she appeared in one of France's most popular national TV shows. She received a "Performance Award "at the exclusive Ecole Normale/Alfred Cortot University, where world famous composer Michel Damase was among the jury members . . . She has participated in tours with Archie Shepp's protegee, Monica Passos, and number-one pop selling artist in France Nolwenn Leroy . . . Noticed by famed jazz pianist Kirk Lightsey and Pierre Boussaguet (bass player for Michel Legrand) during a jam performance at the Jazz Gallery of Berlinval, Margot was encouraged by her mentors to get a more complete jazz education . . . Before moving from Paris to New York City in 2015, Margot attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, studying songwriting and jazz improvisation, and vocal performance with Maggie Scott, former vocal teacher to Diana Krall and Esperanza Spalding . . . In December 2022, Margot performed the show From Paris With Love at The Cutting Room, and The Margot Sergent Trio: A Parisian Cabaret Revival at City Vineyard . . . Margot plans to release an album of her original neo-jazz cabaret songs in mid-June 2023.