Par
Vincent Guerrier
Published on August 24, 2024 at 6:56 a.m. See my news Follow Le Perche
A small bench turned green by the seasons, a lively stream, trees that hide views… New Year’s Eve (Orne), near the place called Le-Moulin-de-Réveillon, she found her refuge. She is Sarah Gellini, his stage name.
“When I work on my voice, I come here to avoid bothering the neighbors too much,” she smiles. For two years, this 38-year-old woman has made Réveillon her pied-à-terre, her springboard for a new life.
Contralto, a rare voice
An amateur singer since she was a child, Sarah took part in an audition in 2023 to join the Dalida Institute, a school that trains future singing professionals in Aix-en-Provence. Originally, it included Bruno Berberes, who is none other than the casting director of the show The Voice.
“I presented myself in front of the jury singing My Shelterby Richard Cocciante. Bruno Berberes told me that it was a real challenge to sing this song. But I did pretty well because I passed the audition, I was able to do an internship and I will join the professional course next year,” says the young singer, who indicates that around a hundred talents are selected from more than 50,000 applications.
During her internship at the Dalida Institute. ©DR
She quits her job
“I didn’t expect it at all. There were big names on the jury like Damien Silvert, Mika’s vocal coach, Véronique Sanson, Clara Luciani, Matt Pokora. I was even told that I had ‘an exceptional voice’.”
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Her voice is indeed what makes Sarah Gellini special. She is capable of going deep into the bass.
A sound engineer analyzed my tones. He told me that he had never seen a female voice go so low. So I am, in a “scientific” way, if you will, a contralto. That is to say, the rarest female voice in the world. Deeper than Maurane or Clara Luciani. In truth, I could almost imitate Garou.
Sarah Gellini
After listening to the professionals at the Dalida Institute during her first internship, the Franco-Italian singer released a single and decided to quit her job as a nursing assistant, which she worked in the Paris region. “I tell myself that I have this opportunity to seize, so I want to put all the chances on my side.”
Voice exercises, physical preparation, filming clips and composing songs now punctuate her daily life. When it is not a question of feeding her social networks, to try to make a name for herself. “Today I have exceeded 400,000 listens on Spotify, and I am listened to in more than 40 countries. Thanks to an application for artists, I know that it is in Finland that I am listened to the most,” she jokes while looking at her phone.
At the end of 2023, Sarah Gellini released a CD with two tracks: Il mio Refugio, and Marguerite, two covers of Richard Cocciante. ©DR
Don’t rush
An album and concerts are already in preparation, but the young singer does not want to rush, she who is only throwing herself into the deep end, with a certain apprehension.
“I have a lot of proposals for concerts, from composers who write to me, but first I want to finish the videos of my songs, and do things professionally. It’s better to do less but do it well. I have to get used to this new rhythm,” she analyzes.
She also wants to work on her contralto voice to make it a strength, and to be able to surprise the audience. “Most contraltos go towards classical. For now, I want to do covers (covers, editor’s note) to make myself known, and why not compositions later.”
A clip filmed on New Year’s Eve
After the release of her single Il Mio Refugio, an original song by Richard Cocciante, Sarah Gellini wanted to shoot a video clip to broadcast it on the internet. A video clip that has just been edited. We can see Réveillon and l’Huisne, where the singer had moved her piano and her dogs. “The song is about shelters. For me, it’s nature, music and my dogs. So we gathered everything together and we shot at night, with the agreement of the town hall. The filming lasted more than five hours, in the middle of April, in the cold and rain. I will keep memories of this filming for a long time.”
A job that she will be able to do more in 2025, with her professional training highly prized by the music industry. “Many producers know the Dalida Institute. It will be an opportunity to network, to get noticed in the hope of signing with a label and being able to live off my passion.”
For example, will we see Sarah Gellini on the show? The Voice ? To be continued.
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