“If the sky should fall into the sea, and the stars fade all around me …” so begins France’s most famous song about love: “L’hymne à l’amour.”
On the night of the Opening Ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the sky was stormy with rain clouds, the River Seine replaced the sea and any possible stars were overshadowed by the glittering Eiffel Tower, yet Edith Piaf’s timeless tribute to a lost love sounded just as poignant as the first time it was heard more than half a century ago.
Standing on the balcony of the Eiffel Tower, the Olympic rings affixed to its iron sides, world-renowned singer Celine Dion serenaded more than 300,000 spectators, including an estimated 6,800 athletes, in an emotional comeback from illness.
Her powerful performance marked the first time that Dion has sung live since she was diagnosed with stiff-person syndrome in 2022. The rare neurological disease causes muscle spams and rigidity in the torso and limbs. Most devastating for Dion, the disease has also made it hard for the Canadian singer to control her vocal cords.
Seventy-five years before Dion’s appearance at Paris 2024, another legendary singer, Piaf, performed the cult song for the first time, the same raw emotion in her voice.
The French icon composed the lyrics to “L’hymne à l’amour” in a house she shared with French-Algerian professional boxer and world middleweight champion Marcel Cerdan as a tribute to their love.