The song by Finnish villager Mortimer Keefe was put into a clip with the participation of residents and shopkeepers. A pure moment of happiness and sharing.
“Villecomtal, a music village that makes songs” : such was the title of our article devoted to this small bastide of some 400 souls, 10% of whom are amateur or professional musicians. It was just 3 years ago.
Since then, the Covid and its periods of confinement have undermined this musical dynamic, in particular these jams organized every Wednesday evening. But since life has returned to almost normal, the musical DNA of Villecomtal has also returned, stronger, more solid. And during the year 2022, the village proved it, by the return of the weekly oxen, but also by a Sunday concert every 15 days at the Fabrique du Rougier, the restaurant-tea room and reading room of the village. But more was needed for Milja Kaunisto, alias Mortimer Keefe, the Finnish musician and author who has lived in the village for more than a dozen years with her husband Petteri and her two daughters. It was necessary to “mark the occasion” in the villecomtalaise way. By a song.
When merchants dance the disco
Best-selling writer in her country, Milja takes up her pen and her piano to write and compose in English “Congratulations”, “a post-Covid anthem that says ‘bravo, you’re alive, and that’s all that matters. And now, we have our arms, we have the brain, we have the life, what do we do?“, she comments.
The track will be recorded with local musicians, Milja/Mortimer on vocals and keyboard, Petteri on bass, Hervé from Budapest on guitar, Ruthénois Irwin from Budapest and the KKC Orchestra on synth solo, plus the percussionist and drummer Julien Tekeyan, who plays with Féfé, Ibrahim Maalouf and Christophe Maé, among others.
After the sound, the images: Milja will invite the inhabitants of Villecomtal to shoot in the clip, directed by Jonathan Bayol, a village photographer and videographer who works for Fiasco Production and the Club de Rodez. In March and April 2022, the first images are shot at the village merchants. And here is the hairdresser, the butcher, the innkeepers, the restaurateurs, the baker, the stonemason or even the pharmacist (what a swing) who start disco dancing in front of the camera!
In June, we find all these beautiful people in the “main street” of Villecomtal for the filming of the general plans around an improvised picnic, with other Villecomtalais and friends. We rehearse a good-natured choreography, relaxed “Thriller” style, and banco, all the images are in the box. “What was great was that everyone played the game, remembers Milja. Everyone came with pies, flowers, bottles of champ’… All this happiness that we see in the clip, it’s true. But how beautiful it is!”
Posted on Youtube on December 28, between the two New Year’s Eve parties, this post-Covid hymn of excellent quality is also intended as “a New Year’s wish” which advocates “life, sharing and exchange”. “Congratulations”, Villecomtal!
We wish to say thanks to the writer of this short article for this awesome content
