Steve Barakatt

Steve Barakatt (born May 17, 1973 in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada from a family of Lebanese origins) is a Canadian composer, music producer, pianist, and singer. When he was only four, he fell under the spell of music and began piano lessons. Over the next 10 years he studied classical music, and then switched to jazz.

Steve enjoyed many challenging musical experiences from an early age, including that of guest soloist with l'Orchestre symphonique de Québec when he was only 13. When he was 16, Steve became fascinated by composition, arranging and production. He studied the new technology available and soon mastered all the intricacies of music programming. So much so that the prestigious Japanese firm Roland invited him to present their new products at the 1992 NAMM Show in Anaheim, California.

A versatile and imaginative musician, Steve has been invited to appear on various recordings and live performances with many artists and ensembles from the Alexandrov Red Army Choir to the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. A true passionate artist, Steve enjoys meeting musicians and exploring all styles of music.

Recording Artist

Steve Barakatt recorded his first solo album, Double Joie, when he was only 14. It was released in Canada on November 11, 1987 and less than a week later the album was in the top 20 best-selling albums.

Steve has composed and produced numerous instrumental albums: Audacity, Escape, Steve Barakatt LIVE, Quebec, Eternity, A Love Affair, All About Us & Someday, Somewhere. These recordings reached the charts in many countries around the world and his music is broadcast on various radio stations. A number of his compositions are also used as themes for popular TV shows.

Composer/Producer

As composer/producer, Steve Barakatt has collaborated with many artists from all over the world.^[1] In 1997 Steve produced the young Canadian singer, Natasha St-Pier’s album. His composition Sans le Savoir instantly hit the top 5 on the radio charts, and the video of the song became number one on Musique Plus, Quebec’s MTV.

In 1997 he wrote many other songs including C’est une Promesse for Canadian singer Johanne Blouin and En la arena for Argentina’s male singer Guillermo Saldana.

In Hong Kong, Steve has been asked to compose for a number of great artists. In 1995, he composed Mou Tian which was performed by the Asian stars Kelly Chen, Joyce Yau, Daniel Chan and Ray Chan. In 1996 he composed a duet for superstars Leon Lai and Alan Tam, Song of Stars, which featured them singing together for the first time on record. Steve also wrote Ni Shi Shui for Leon Lai’s solo album Feel Leon released the same year.

In Japan, Steve’s song Kaze To Kino Uta-Quebec 1608 was performed by the Japanese singer Sincere. The popular singer Yoko Oginome recorded Steve’s composition We’ll Be Together and the song became the main theme for the highly popular TV show Shitteru Tsumori on the NTV network. Steve composed Watashi Dake De Ite for superstar Noriko Sakai. His instrumental selection Nuit d’Amour à Paris was the theme for the TV drama Kiss Again on the NHK network. Steve’s compositions have been used in major TV sports programs including the FIFA World Cup 2002 in Japan (NHK) as well as for the F1 Grand Prix of Monaco (Fuji TV).

Steve also composed the score for the TV series Urban Myth Chillers starring Omar Sharif. In 2006, Steve composed and produced the song Here We Are, in which he duets with Canadian singer, Audrey de Montigny. The song is featured on Steve’s first vocal album "Here I Am" and simultaneously on Audrey’s album Take Me As I Am. In 2007, Steve collaborates again with Audrey when he produced John Lennon’s song “Love” for the Amnesty International project “Make Some Noise” in collaboration with Yoko Ono.

In 2010, Steve was invited to perform the song "You Are Not Alone" in duet with Korean R&B singer Wheesung on Michael Jackson's compilation album "Winter Night". ^[2]

Ad Vitam Aeternam

In 2003, Barakatt was inspired to create a music work of a major scale, by composing and conceiving a symphonic work based on the sixteen stages of human experience. After more than 30 months creating this work, on September 30, 2005, the world premiere of "Ad Vitam Aeternam" was presented at the Grand Théâtre de Québec accompanied by Orchestre Symphonique de Québec.

On June 16, 2006 the European premiere was presented at Yaroslavl, Russia with the "Yaroslav Symphony Orchestra" under the baton of renowned conductor Murad Annamamedov.

On September 7, 2007, Ad Vitam Aeternam was performed by Steve Barakatt for the first time in Asia with the Ditto Chamber Orchestra under the baton of Canadian conductor Gilles Ouellet.

This production was an official event for the 400th anniversary of Quebec City, Canada. Several concerts were presented on June 17–18-19, 2008, at the Grand Theatre of Quebec. In 2010, "Ad Vitam Aeternam" will be performed during the festivities celebrating the 1,000th anniversary of the city of Yaroslavl, Russia a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

On November 19th, 2014, Ad Vitam Aeternam was performed by Steve Barakatt at the prestigious Great Hall of the Tchaikovsky Moscow Conservatory with the Yaroslavl Academic Symphony Orchestra under the baton of renowned conductor Murad Annamamedov. Ad Vitam Aeternam commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Ambassadors & Officials representing more than 30 countries attended the historic event in Moscow. ^[3]

Barakatt dreams of combining this symphonic work with scenic and artistic elements which include dance, projections, acrobats and visual effects. It would allow the completion of the creation of the artistic, physical and philosophical universe of Ad Vitam Aeternam to one day become a permanent show.

Here I Am (vocal project)

In 2007, Steve Barakatt released his first vocal album “Here I Am”. Several songs have been recorded at Sir George Martin’s Air Studios in London featuring the Foundation Philharmonic Orchestra and several renowned musicians.

Lullaby, The UNICEF Anthem

In 2009, Steve Barakatt composed the UNICEF International Anthem, Lullaby, a choral symphony which has been premiered by symphony orchestras on five continents and in space on the international space station on November 20th, 2009. Several musicians and ensembles have performed in the original recording including conductor Myung-whun Chung, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Nana Mouskouri, Angélique Kidjo, Helmut Lotti, Leon Lai, Agnes Chan, Maxim Vengerov, Richard O'Neill, Miri Ben-Ari, la Maitrise de Radio France and The choir of the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. To mark this historical moment, symphony orchestras in 15 countries have performed the anthem. A music video have been produced and released in order to raise awareness among the world population on the importance of the convention on the rights of the child. "Lullaby, The UNICEF Anthem" has been watched in space by the Belgian astronaut Frank De Winne during a mission on the International Space Station. On March 16th, 2010, Steve Barakatt performed "Lullaby, The UNICEF Anthem" at Tokyo's Nippon Budokan. On February 22nd, 2012, Steve Barakatt performed the anthem during an event organized by "Monaco Disease Power" under the presidency and in the presence of Prince Albert II of Monaco. On November 19th, 2014, "Lullaby, The UNICEF Anthem" was performed by Steve Barakatt at the prestigious Great Hall of the Tchaikovsky Moscow Conservatory with the Yaroslavl Academic Symphony Orchestra under the baton of renowned conductor Murad Annamamedov and the Children's Theatre DOMISOLKA. The performance commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the fifth anniverssary of "Lullaby, The UNICEF Anthem". Ambassadors & Official representing more than 35 countries attended the historic event in Moscow. On December 7th, 2015, Steve Barakatt performed "Lullaby, The UNICEF Anthem" at the Moscow Kremlin during the concert event to mark the 25th anniversary of the foundation of DOMISOLKA who performed the Anthem with Steve Barakatt on stage.

Live Performances (by city)

Awards and honours

• Winner of the Sillery music festival (1984 and 1986)
• 3 Nominations by the ADISQ (Between 1987 and 2005)
• Youngest recipient of the Order of Merit of the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society (1988)
• Nominated for the "Prix Rayonnement hors Québec" - Grands Québécois (1996)
• Certificate of acknowledgement from the United Nations (2004)
• Recipient of the ARISTA Bank of Montreal Prize "Young International Business Leader in Quebec" (2005)
• Young Personality of the Year (National and International) Youth Chamber of Commerce of Quebec (2005)
• Recipient of the Pierre-Garon prize (Artist of the year, Quebec City) (2006)
• Honorary Governor of The Duke of Edinburgh's Award in recognition of his contribution for the program in Quebec (2006)
• SOCAN's Hagood Hardy Award-Composer of the Year-Instrumental (2010)

Discography

Work as recording artist

• Double-Joie (1987)
• Audace/Audacity (1994)
• Escape (1996)
• Steve Barakatt Live (1997)
• Quebec (1998)
• Eternity (1999)
• A Love Affair (2000)
• Rainbow Bridge - The Collection (2000)
• All About Us (2001)
• The Best of Steve Barakatt(2004)
• The Best Inspirations (2005)
• Here I Am (2007)
• Someday, Somewhere (2011)
• Dear Charlotte - Single (2015)
• Dear Charlotte (Piano Solo) - Single (2015)
• Moonlight Dream - Single (2015)
• Symphony of Greatest Hits - Single (2015)

Work as a composer/producer/pianist

• Emergence for Natasha St-Pier (1995)
• Mou Tian for Kelly Chen, Daniel Chan, Joyce Yau, Ray Chan (1995)
• En La Aerena for Guillermo Saldana (1995)
• The Song of Stars for Leon Lai & Alan Tam (1996)
• Ni Shi Shui for Leon Lai(1996)
• C'est un promesse for Johanne Blouin (1997)
• Kaze To Kino Uta for Sincere (1998)
• Shitteru Tsumori for Yoko Oginome (1999)
• Watashi Dake Ite for Noriko Sakai (2000)
• Here We Are for Audrey De Montigny (2006)
• Love performed by Audrey de Montigny for Amnesty International's Make Some Noise (2007)
• Rainbow Bridge performed by SunMin (2010)
• You Are Not Alone performed in duet with Wheesung (2010)
• I'm Sorry + My Funny Valentine performed with John Park (2011)

UNICEF Ambassador

On March 9, 2007, Barakatt and his wife, Russian-born Olympic gymnast Elena Grosheva, were both appointed UNICEF Canada Ambassadors. They were the first couple to be given that honor.^[4]

IMAGINE for UNICEF

Steve Barakatt is among the international artists who participated in the IMAGINE for UNICEF project in recording a new version of John Lennon's "Imagine". The music video has been filmed in Tashkent, Uzbekistan in November 2015. ^[5]

Ensembles and artists who performed Steve Barakatt's compositions

References

External links

• Official Web Site
• Ad Vitam Aeternam
• Quebec 400