From Tuesday to Friday, from 6:45 PM to 7 PM, on France Bleu Azur, the show “Azur en scène” orchestrated by Adrien Mangano gives a voice to singers, authors, composers. Since September 2011, Adrien has been introducing you to the local scene, and today, Nice Premium takes you behind the scenes of “Azur en scène”.
Nice-Premium: What is the concept of this show?
Adrien Mangano: Finally giving a voice to local singer-songwriters, welcoming not only local artists with extensive stage experience but also musicians performing on street corners, or simply at home, people who need to express themselves beyond their four walls.
Nice-Premium: What is its origin?
Adrien Mangano: After three delightful years of morning shows on France Bleu Azur with the experts and the chef Christian Plumail, the management decided to entrust me with the 4 PM/7 PM slot, giving me (and I thank them) some freedom concerning the show’s content. The first desire was to open the airwaves to the musical artists of our region to help them gain recognition. It was an innovative project since we had previously occasionally hosted musicians, but having them perform every evening, especially live, was a challenge! I want to commend the technical team, who manage daily, within a limited time, to achieve feats to obtain quality sound to satisfy our guests and their audience.
Nice-Premium: Can all music styles take the stage on this radio program?
Adrien Mangano: We need to stick to the color of France Bleu Azur, except for “Metal,” which I personally enjoy, but it doesn’t align with our station’s style. We gladly welcome musicians and performers from the Jazz, Blues, Rock, Pop, Reggae, and variety scenes every day.
Nice-Premium: Even lyrical art has flirted with your airwaves!
Adrien Mangano: Yes, and it was a first because we had never received a lyrical singer on “Azur en scène.” I remember it as a great emotional moment when Gilles San Juan launched into the interpretation of “Speak Softly, Love,” the main theme of The Godfather film; we were all moved. I hope there will be more such powerful moments.
Nice-Premium: Do you encounter any programming difficulties?
Adrien Mangano: That’s the first question the heads of France Bleu asked me before launching the show. I’ve been frequenting the music scene for years, and I assure you that the Côte d’Azur is a real breeding ground, with musicians from all backgrounds and ages enriching our local stages and often pursuing national careers. Since the beginning of Azur en scène, we have had different artists every night.
Nice-Premium: Has this brought a different audience to France Bleu?
Adrien Mangano: It’s hard to really know, the future, and the surveys will tell us, but I am convinced that we must be in tune with our region and our times. You just have to look around us, go out to realize that big shows are no longer the sole attractions, but increasingly (perhaps for reasons of conviviality or economy), people of all generations are more drawn to café-theaters, charmed by intimate concert halls and discovery. Since the beginning of the “Azur en scène” show, we have regularly received visits from musicians who leave us their CDs and biographies, a buzz has been created around the show online and on various social networks by people who discovered France Bleu Azur programs on this occasion. It is a satisfaction to enter the everyday lives of new listeners and meet the needs of our department.
Nice-Premium: In five months, have you had any favorites?
Adrien Mangano: Yes, with artists I already knew by reputation and others I discovered, great professionals on stage, endearing in the way they share their music like Deborah De Blasi and her Gypsy Jazz, Marjorie Martinez, brilliant, Janysett MC Pherson, excellent, our Nice rocker Pascal Mono, Jessica Grosman with her magnificent voice, Nadiamori, Puss, and then surprising groups like Pete and Folks, Yuna Project; we also had Sylvain Luc, André Ceccarelli, even actor Tcheky Karyo surprised us by participating in this rendezvous to introduce us to his music. The list is so long… I can’t name them all! In the end, it’s always about those favorites!!!
Nice-Premium: Will listeners one day be able to become spectators of Azur en scène?
Adrien Mangano: We have already started doing it with the young Loïs from Le Cannet (finalist of the show “France has Incredible Talent” on M6), on the first floor of the radio, which we had set up for the occasion to welcome an audience not only from the Côte d’Azur but also from neighboring departments like Var and Bouches-du-Rhône. Everything will depend on the importance taken by the show and the technical resources we have available, but indeed, it is a wish…
Available to listen at https://sites.radiofrance.fr/chaines/france-bleu/?tag=azur
France Bleu Azur on 103.8 in Nice, 100.7 in Cannes Antibes Mandelieu, and 94.8 in Monaco Menton.
Programming for this week:
– Tuesday, January 17: Group Jeanyve.
– Wednesday, January 18: Michael Meyer, Nice artist.
– Thursday, January 19: Sandrine Destefanis.
– Friday, January 20: Cyril Auklair.
