After joining forces and winning Eurovision France, c’est vous qui décidez 2022, Alvan & Ahez are now set to sing the first Eurovision song completely in the Breton language since 1996. They’ll bring “Fulenn” to the Eurovision 2022 grand final for France – already pre-qualified as a member of the big five.

Scroll down to read the lyrics of “Fulenn”

France in Eurovision 2022: Alvan & Ahez – “Fulenn”

Alexis Morvan-Rosius, aka Alvan, is a singer and instrumentalist from Rennes who has been active since 2016. Meanwhile, Ahez are a kan ha diskan vocal trio hailing from Carhaix, which consists of friends Marine Lavigne, Sterenn Diridollou and Sterenn Le Guillou. The three met in a Diwan high school, Breton-teaching institutions, taking their band name Ahez from a regional mythological figure.

This mutual collaboration between the two is extremely recent: the four musicians met in a bar in Rennes literally last summer.

“I met Marine one evening at L’Artiste Assoiffé and she told me about her musical project in Breton. This idea had been floating around in my head for a long time. I even had an ongoing production in my computer,” comments Alvan. “My manager had seen an advertisement for the national selection and told us about it. We thought ‘why not?’, but we didn’t think we’d be selected at all.”

What do the “Fulenn” lyrics mean?

“We do not claim to embody traditional Breton music. For me, tradition is the opposite of purism. It is more the transmission of knowledge, a past that must be anchored in the present. Otherwise, tradition ends up in the museum and dies,” Marine Lavigne from Ahez states. The ensemble quickly gained praise for combining Celtic music with a modern EDM thumping beat.

“Fulenn” is completely sung in Breton, the only Celtic language in mainland Europe, most closely related to those found in the British Isles. The song title translates to “Sparkle” but can also mean “pretty girl”.

The song tells the tale of a woman, untethered and free, who goes dancing under the moonlight in the forest, uncaring of what anyone would think, doing what she wants. It’s a testament of independence: “A feminine shadow twirls in the light of a torch. She dances with the devil, so what?”

“Fulenn” lyrics – Alvan & Ahez (France Eurovision 2022)

Music and lyrics by: Marine Lavigne, Alvan Morvan Rosius

Original Breton text

Tan de’i !

E teñvalijenn ar c’hoadeier e tiwan an noz
Ar stered a deu war-wel en hiboud direpoz
Ur skeud benel a droidell ouzh skleurenn ur flamboz

Oc’h ober fae deus ar fall loened e tañsan
Me bak an tan en o lagad leun a droukc’hoant
Ha da dreiñ ‘n’añ en ur c’han da gan’ a-unvan
Dañsal a ra gant an diaoul ha para ?
Dañsal a ran gant an diaoul ha para ?

Entan ha taras, entan jabadao ha taras
Trid’ a ra ar c’hoad ouzh stok’ ar fulenn a-bilpaz
He hud dudius a bign betek penn ar qwez bras

Oc’h ober fae deus ar fall loened e tañsan
Me bak an tan en o lagad leun a droukc’hoant
Ha da dreiñ ‘n’añ en ur c’han da gan’ a-unvan

Dispont ‘kreiz an digoadell e tans ar fulenn
Trein ha distreiñ en-dro de’i eneoù dichedenn (bis)

Lalalalalalaleno lalelalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalo

Dañsal a ran gant an diaoul ha para ?
Ga’ ‘n diaoul e tañsan
Dañsal a ra gant an diaoul ha para ?

Lalalalalalaleno lalelalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalo

Dispont ‘kreiz an digoadenn e tañs ar fulenn

 

English translation

Let’s go

The night sprouts in the obscurity of the woods
The stars appear in the restless rustling
A feminine shadow twirls in the light of a torch

I dance, ignoring the wild animals
I steal the fire from their lustful eyes
And turn it into a song to be sung in unison
She dances with the devil, so what?
I dance with the devil, so what?

Burning and mud, burning, feast and mud
The forest vibrates at the touch of the dancing flame
Her enchanting magic ascends the great trees

I dance, ignoring the wild animals
I steal the fire from their lustful eyes
And turn it into a song to be sung in unison

Fearless in the middle of the clearing dances the spark
Raging souls spinning and spinning around her
Raging souls spinning and spinning around her

Lalalalalalaleno lalelalalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalalo

I dance with the devil, so what?
With the devil I dance
She dances with the devil, so what?

Lalalalalalaleno lalelalalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalalo
Lalalalalalaleno lalelalalo

Fearless in the middle of the clearing dances the spark

 

Are you feeling the mystical energy of the “Fulenn” lyrics? Do you think Alvan & Ahez could bring France a victory at Eurovision 2022? Let us know in the comments down below!

41 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Joe Bloggs
Joe Bloggs
2 years ago

Brittany is known for those lawless French fisherman. I read that they don’t like the name Great Britain as that makes them little Britain. If true that’s funny I guess.

There is a light guiding my way
There is a light guiding my way
2 years ago

Also “noz”, “skeud” and “unvan”! A common Indo-European root shines through!

There is a light guiding my way
There is a light guiding my way
2 years ago

I somehow knew the word “fulenn” was related to fire in some way.

Asmilde
2 years ago

He found Måns Zelmerlöw

Vivian
Vivian
2 years ago

This has a lot of potential and it’s a really cool song… but the live performances thus far have been very lackluster

Eurovision fan
Eurovision fan
2 years ago
Reply to  Vivian

Not really “very luckluster”. The national final performance was very good.

Lambert
Lambert
2 years ago

Have watched their clip again after not looking at it for a few weeks. Did not help. Still see old school Eurovision fire, heavy breathing and amateur level local theatre.

Nils
Nils
2 years ago
Reply to  Lambert

Thank you! Exactly my thoughts! This feels more like Eurovision 2004 than ‘Tii’ from the very same year did. And honestly, this would have crashed out in 2004 and so it should have in 2022, if it wasn’t for the big 5 rule.

I loved ‘Tii’, ‘Voda’ and ‘Shum’, so I should at least like this as well. Yet, I can’t. ‘Fulenn’ doesn’t even get close to those three. It feels absolutely amateurish, unfinished and at the same time very pretentious. It’s incomprehensible how this could become the direct successor to ‘Voilà’.

Helene
Helene
2 years ago
Reply to  Nils

Word

Mqe
Mqe
2 years ago

Potentially top 3 with the televote. I think France will do well this year (and I love it!)

Purple Mask
Purple Mask
2 years ago

This song… is not to my taste. Best of luck to the group anyhow.
(I shall probably just repeat this comment for the Wiwi jury, it saves time.)

esc_fl
esc_fl
2 years ago

There are no “Amen” songs to counter the devil-worshipping this year XD

Jokes aside this shows a bunch of promise especially in the studio version, still waiting for all the elements to integrate well in the stage; the pre-party performances have been letdowns so far. But France did stellar with Barbara last year, so who knows? Bonne chance/Chañs vat in Turin!

Bella
Bella
2 years ago

She dances with the devil, so what?”… Kind of an allegory of France and its elections outcome, unfortunately.

Purple Mask
Purple Mask
2 years ago
Reply to  Bella

Gosh, now that you mention it, this whole song could be about Marine and the RN. (Fortunately it isn’t, but, ouf, interpretations.)

Yannis
Yannis
2 years ago

DAMN he is HOT! I don’t even care about the song…
I don’t know who is hotter, him or Tom Leeb..

David
David
2 years ago

My current #1 just now. Brilliant concept. I hope the keep the staging and camera similar to NF

I’d love the UK to send a song in Gaelic like this!

Also – the last singers to sing in Breton with Dan ar Braz were actually Scottish and Welsh ! Elaine Morgan and Karen Matheson of Capercaillie.

Jonas
Jonas
2 years ago
Reply to  David

I love “Greenwaves”, a song Karen Matheson did with Secret Garden.

Michèle
Michèle
2 years ago

Love the song – great mix of traditional and modern and my favourite this year. Go n-éirí libh in Turin! Just wish we in Ireland could bring something of a similar nature to Eurovision. Referring to Jonas’s point below: the term ‘British Isles’ refers to the geographic Islands and is not meant as a political term. However it is rarely used in Ireland, particularly in the Republic of Ireland and certainly not by our politicians. I would never use the term and find it quite offensive – however, I’m sure our Breton cousins certainly do not mean it to be… Read more »

Jonas
Jonas
2 years ago
Reply to  Michèle

Thank you for answering my question. It just seems so outdated to me, especially considering that people in the republic are celebrating a hundred years of independence this year. Maybe it’s too small a thing for me to have even mentioned, but seeing as this article is about Celtic pride…

Michèle
Michèle
2 years ago
Reply to  Jonas

Thank you for mentioning it and indeed for noticing it in the first place. It is indeed very outdated!

Jonas
Jonas
2 years ago

Any Irish people reading this, is Ireland part of the British Isles?

I do not think so.

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Jonas

Wikipedia says yes. ”British Isles” are consisting of Great Britain, Ireland, The Isle of Man, Inner and Outer Herbides, The Northern Isles, and around 6000 smaller islands. ”The Great Britain” is the largest of them, and is home to England, Scotland, and Wales. The second biggest island is Ireland, and its people are called Irish (both residents of The Republic of Ireland, and the residents of The United Kingdom / Northern Ireland).

Jonas
Jonas
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

Yeah, I saw what Wikipedia said, I’d just like to know how many Irish people agree with that. I imagine not many.

WillChangeThisLater
WillChangeThisLater
2 years ago
Reply to  Jonas

The term is typically avoided in Ireland, and it is a sensitive subject as Irish people do not like being confused or conflated with ‘British’ anything, although will begrudgingly concede that is the traditional name for the collective islands. Still, it is best avoided out of respect. I think in the context of the article though it was a way of including the Celtic languages in Britain (Welsh and Cornish) which I believe are closer to the Breton language than the Gaelic languages. In fact, as a native Irish speaker I’m surprised how little crossover there is between the languages,… Read more »

Joe Bloggs
Joe Bloggs
2 years ago

Some Irish bigots may have a problem, just like they have with the British flag. I doubt most do though considering your overall cultural connection to Britain. Jonas is showing ignorance and based on elsewhere here he seems anti-english.

Eurovision fan
Eurovision fan
2 years ago

Probably televoting winner like Norway 2019

Colin
Colin
2 years ago

I have three uptempo songs among my top favorites – Estonia, Norway, and France. I agree about how cool, unique, and hypnotic France is this year!

Colin
Colin
2 years ago
Reply to  Colin

Yeah, sometimes it’s hard to decide. I’d say that the verses are more mid-tempo, and the chorus is more uptempo. But then again, I really might be off as there were cases of songs whose tempo would sound faster or slower to me due to instrumentation.

Mary M.
Mary M.
2 years ago

I live in the North of Spain and… due to our culture, this music speaks to me, a lot. I find it to be one of the most interesting songs this year, and although some people find it difficult to connect with, it would break my heart if it ended in a low position due to the live performance. I hope they can work on that to deliver something amazing on the final!

Helene
Helene
2 years ago

“Exotic” well I don’t agree on that, and it is not enough to use a rare language. The performance must still be good. This is a mess.

Anne
Anne
2 years ago
Reply to  Helene

the melody, their voices, the lyrics

Anne
Anne
2 years ago
Reply to  Helene

the lyrics are really nice, set the scene well and are full of a lot of alliterations

Helene
Helene
2 years ago

This entry is one that I really don’t understand, it is like a school concert going bad. I am sorry for my second home country. I loved last year, but this is simply bad. I really don’t t understand what people like in it.

Jack
2 years ago

This entry is probably the best France have sent in YEARS. I love it

Sir Stevia
Sir Stevia
2 years ago

Cyprus: I excel at Devil Worshiping
France: Hold my Baguette.

In all serious I am very glad France is sending this and I do think there is a chance they’ll come top 5 again : )

Franzparis
Franzparis
2 years ago

Good idea, terrible execution on stage. In Amsterdam each singer was trying to outcry the others. In NF finals they won only because the good work of cameramen.

Ivar
Ivar
2 years ago
Reply to  Franzparis

I agree that the Amsterdam performance was bad, but I would not put too much into these pre-contest rehearsal shows. It is what will happen in Turin that counts. And I trust the camera people and technicians at Eurovision to be professional.

Grft
Grft
2 years ago
Reply to  Franzparis

In the preparties the sound crew has no time to prepare the sound mixing, so it’s normal that the voices levels are meh for this type of songs with 4 singers. There was no problem at their NF and there won’t be in Turin 🙂

Stephanie
2 years ago
Reply to  Grft

This is why they have the stand-ins when the stage assembly is complete, they can see what needs to be changed/improved before going to Turin so when they get there, everything will be set to go for their rehearsals

James
James
2 years ago
Reply to  Franzparis

Why would anyone use an act’s performance at a preparty as basis to think that the actual performance would be anything like it in Turin? A lot of the performers’ attention would be on the main ESC stage so they don’t necessarily have to go a hundred percent with pre-contest fan-run events that are meant to be just fun get-togethers with the fandom.

Ivar
Ivar
2 years ago

Traditional legend meets electronica in the Breton language – my absolute favourite this year! A couple of their live performances have been shaky, but I hope Alvan and Ahez will get everything sorted before the big night in Turin.