(musical theme) - (female narrator): Belgian singer/pianist Frederic Lamory is preparing for a return to the stage after many long months of lockdowns.

- (dubbed): Music has been my companion all my life.

- And in Verneuil-sur-Avre in Normandy, organist Jean d'Albi takes care of an important piece of history.

- (dubbed): When you want to achieve something, even if things are hard, you have to overcome them.

- The careers of these two kind-hearted men wouldn't be the same without the steadfast support of their amazing wives.

Blind or partially-sighted, the musicians featured in this series are living out their musical dreams.

Their stories are examples of hard work, dedication and passion that let us all share in the wonder of truly... seeing music.

Verneuil-sur-Avre is a small town in Normandy, France with only 10,000 inhabitants, but it has a rich history that goes back almost a millennium.

The village is surrounded by fields and made up of charming old-fashioned houses, at the center of which is a 56-meter-tall tower which can be seen from miles away in all directions.

This is the famous bell towe of the Church of the Madeleine, a historic monument which was built all the way back in the 12th century.

(organ playing) At the keyboard of an instrument which is more than 250 years old, we find a blind musician, Jean D'Albi.

His wife Anne-Marie sits by his side, as is her longstanding habit.

- Let's say that that I'm an organist and singer.

I am the owner of the organ at Verneuil-sur-Avre, a town with a very beautiful architectural heritage, and so this organ dates back to 1753.

(♪♪♪) Seeing as these organs are classified as historical artefacts, generally, it is best that only professionals handle these organs so that, you know, not just anyone touches them, makes alterations to them, et cetera.

(♪♪♪) In fact, to be the owner of this instrument means to be its protector.

I think that you have to be passionate about it.

For when you are passionate about a given instrument, you of course want for the instrument to function as well as possible.

- Jean is devoted to taking great care of the instrument he's charged with maintaining.

- I'm just checking if there is anything in the steeple.

- Since he knows the organ like the back of his hand, he can draw a rich variety of tones from it.

- I get it started.

So here, I'm beginning to do some registrations, which I often refer to as colors or sonic colors.

I always pull my registrations, which are on the side of the instrument.

So here I've pulled all the knobs which control the registration.

And so, we have some beautiful sounds like this, for example.

But yeah, I always pull the registrations.

(♪♪♪) But there are 48 registrations, so there you go.

In fact, the organist, his job is really to sort of mix up these different sonic colors.

I once wanted to become the conductor of an orchestra.

I directed my first symphony orchestra at the age of 23.

I conducted for about five or six years, until about 1969.

But after that it was very difficult for me to carve out a niche as a conductor, especially as a blind conductor.

Sighted conductors have it tough enough, so you can imagine it's all the more difficult for a blind conductor.

I identify myself as simply someone who loves music and tries all the time to overcome his disability, I always find the way to make it, even when it seems hard.

(♪♪♪) - On the other side of the border, in Belgium, we find ourselves in the small Flemish town of Rhode-Saint-Genese, located less than 20 km from the Belgian capital.

We're here to meet Frederic Lamory and his longtime companion, his partner Veronique.

- (dubbed): Alright, I'm going to make us a little bit of coffee so we can start the day off right My name is Frederic Lamory.

I'm 50 years old.

I've been blind since birth.

I'm a pianist, a composer and a singer.

It's going to be really nice tonight at the Mad Hatter.

I already gave you the setlist, no?

- (dubbed): Yes, yes.

- That song, we're doing that one.

(♪♪♪) (not dubbed): ♪♪ Tous les ans depuis mon enfance ♪ ♪ J'ai découvert les coins de France ♪ (dubbed):My musical style, in French we call it "musique de variétés", or popular songs, folk songs.

I've always really liked this kind of music.

(not dubbed): ♪ Et je rentrais le coeur comblé ♪ ♪ Bien détendu ♪ (dubbed):What's more, I was very influenced by the music of the 1980's, the hits of the 1980's, and I think that's reflected very clearly in how I compose my songs, in my personal style.

(not dubbed): ♪ Et je rentrais le coeur comblé ♪ ♪ Bien détendu, bien reposé ♪ ♪ Mais je ressentais quelquefois ♪ (dubbed): These are the themes which I like to explore in my songs.

Love.

Friendship.

The passage of time.

Because there is nothing we can do about it.

It is what it is.

But I really like to explore those themes in my songs and, as often as I can, to do so in an optimistic sort of way.

- Frederic and Veronique leave their home to go for a walk.

Tonight, for the first time in nearly two years, the singer is going to perform in public.

His first concert since the beginning of the pandemic will take place at a restaurant in "the crown of Brussels" called The Mad Hatter's.

Frederic likes being able to relax and clear his head in nature before he puts on a show.

So he is taking a little walk with Veronique in the woods surrounding the Lac des Sept-Fontaines, a spot which they are both particularly fond of.

- I don't know, I guess I'd say that this place really inspires me.

It helps me get in a good frame of mind so that, when I get back home, I feel like composing.

(both sighing) Ah, this is nice.

This is really nice.

You know, even when I was very young, just three years old, I loved listening to music at home.

Songs of variety, popular songs which played on the radio.

And my parents recognized very quickly my passion for music.

In elementary school, at a school for the blind, they encouraged me to take piano lessons.

First, of course, to take music theory courses in braille.

And then piano lessons.

So, that's how it all got started.

Let's go!

OK, let's continue our walk.

(chatting in French) No matter what challenges he faces, be they personal or professional, Jean D'Albi knows he can count on the unwavering support of Anne-Marie, who has devoted hersel full-time for the last 50 years to helping her husband's career.

She gave up her job as a dental technician to accompany Jean on his travels, a professional sacrifice which she has never regretted for a moment.

Had she not accompanied him, they would have had to hire someone else to do it... so she decided that it was just as well that she take on this role, and it worked out since the couple gets along wonderfully.

- (not dubbed): Oui.

- (Jean): The theme is our 50 years of marriage with Anne-Marie At first it will be a sweet theme, a seductive melody, let's say.

After, as we go along, there will be maybe the birth of our children.

We will only talk about good things!

We both have a real love of life.

I think that we always will because, you know, we've been happy together for 50 years.

We always say it feels like only yesterday, but no, it wasn't.

And, listen, we've made it last this long.

So I think we'll make it to the end together.

- Over a coffee at home, the couple reminisces about their modest beginnings.

- (not dubbed): Un petit café?

- Hum, hum.

(dubbed): Even on tour.

You're responsible for all the equipment and for getting us to the concert location... and yet you still somehow always find time to cook?

- (dubbed): Yes, because he would always ask me, so what are we eating?

- We often didn't have time.

You're on the road, and you've got a little time to eat in the afternoon or sometimes even in the evening, who knows when.

- But of course, it was always important that he knew we'd eat something.

We started from the same place as anyone else, and we didn't have a lot of money.

And in the afternoon, we'd leave with the, what do you call it, the speaker?

- It was a little bit like the circus: "Tonight, you're going to hear, etc."

So, right, I would be the announcer for the shows.

- So after that, people would come to see us.

We don't really like massive halls or large churches.

We prefer small churches or small halls where you have the chance to actually meet folks.

- By virtue of their healthy relationship, Jean and his partner have learned to cope with the highs and lows of an artist's life.

- "But you're together 24/7, well, yeah, oh," some people would say, "Me, I could never do that," but I can do it just fine.

- Here is one picture with a small child, in fact it's our oldest daughter.

- The blindness thing didn't bother me.

I mean, to the extent that it does bother me, not too much.

I just had to live with it.

You know, there's no point in crying over one's lot in life, saying to myself "I'm blind, oh, it's so hard for me."

It's hard for just about everybody when you have goals in life, so things that are hard, you have to overcome them.

I lost my sight progressively because I had glaucoma.

It was during the war, and they didn't really have a cure for it then.

Medicine wasn't all that advanced back then.

I had no choice but to check in to an establishment that specialized in taking care of blind people at the age of seven, and it was there that I discovered music.

(♪♪♪) (birds chirping) (bells ringing) We hear the bells every morning, at a quarter past eight, at nine, at noon.

It's so pleasant to hear the church bells.

It's a nice touchstone.

I've lived here for a long time.

Some 40 years, I would say.

Before that, I lived with my parents.

We'll go see my mom afterwards, drop in to see my mom.

We'll say hello.

My mom is a big fan, incidentally.

Whenever I post something on Facebook, she is always the second person to like my post.

The first like always comes from my partner, Veronique.

But then it's mom.

(not dubbed): Ah, maman!

- (dubbed): Hello!

Hi!

- (dubbed): How's it going?

It's going alright.

Give me a kiss.

It's all set for tonight.

- Of course.

Yes, I love it.

- We're going to the concert.

The car is already loaded up with all the equipment.

It was when I was a teenager that I said to myself, "It'd be pretty cool if I could focus on just making music."

Singing, hosting parties, hosting celebrations.

But my parents always really insisted that I finish up my studies before I devote myself exclusively to making music.

So I did two years of higher education studying languages.

I studied English, Italian, translation... and it was only after all that that I finally was able to devote myself exclusively to music.

Just like every musician, because of COVID we had to stop.

There weren't any public shows.

In order to nevertheless stay in touch with our fans, we organized here in my living room, six Saturdays in a row, we organized these little concerts on Facebook, and for that, it was my partner Veronique who took care of all that.

I have the pleasure of performing a song for you from my last album.

It's entitled Boulevard de France, and I'll perform my song "Virtual friends."

(♪♪♪) (not dubbed): ♪♪ J'étais tout seul dans ma cuisine ♪ ♪ Je me préparais des tagliatelles ♪ ♪ J'avais assez de margarine ♪ ♪ Mais plus le moindre grain de sel ♪ (dubbed): These were concerts on Facebook.

I got an even larger number of Facebook friends.

And so now, ta-daa, we're starting to have shows again and I'm noticing that new bookers, people who've only ever heard me through these little Facebook concerts, these new bookers are contacting me and we've already booked shows through 2022.

(not dubbed): ♪ J'ai laissé un mot sur mon mur ♪ ♪ À mes amis, je lance un appel ♪ ♪ Qui peut venir à toute allure ♪ ♪ M'apporter une pincée de sel ♪♪ - Having produced four albums and numerous singles, Frederic Lamory practices his craft with heart, passion and talent, but he's not intent on revolutionizing the musical world.

He wants nothing more than t stir the hearts of his audience.

They're waiting for him tonight.

- It's nice when the sun filters through the trees.

- Ah, a clearing!

It must be very beautiful.

I can imagine.

I travel with Veronique.

For her, I sing, "Traveling With You," I say, "Travelling with you, it's something else.

I discover perfumes, other flavors.

Travelling alone...

I've had my fill.

But with you, I discover all the colors of the world."

I don't see, but I'm so curious about all sorts of things.

I want to observe all sorts of things, so I get somebody to describe them to me.

It makes me feel like I've regained some of my sight.

I mean it.

With his fingertips, Jean analyzes some braille scores.

It's no easy task for him to conduct an ensemble.

- (dubbed): So this, this is Beethoven's seventh symphony, and it was my brother-in-law who, as a gift, carved the cover out of wood.

Yes, it's all in Braille.

So, when I approach a score, well of course I've already listened to it many times in order to have a fresh memory of it, musically speaking.

And so now, I'm going through the details of Beethoven's Seventh.

I can see right at the beginning of the score it's marked, "lots of sostenuto," I see what key it is to be played in, a four-beat measure.

And there, I see how the instruments are to be arranged.

♪ Mi, fa, mi, mi, fa, mi, la ♪ So, since I know the score, I will sing the second measure.

♪ La, mi, do, fa ♪ Et cetera.

I work out my gestures by imagining that the orchestra is in front of me.

I imagine how the symphony orchestra is arranged before me.

It was difficult, it's true.

What I mean is, for example, once I have learned a piece, I've got to memorize it.

Now when somebody can see, they look at the score.

If they look at the score, they can play it right away.

But I've got to start by memorizing and only then, only then can I actually work on it.

- At the St-Nicholas Abbey, another of the region's historic buildings, Jean and Anne-Marie meet the curator Eric Linnartz.

As surprising as it may sound, Jean is a true lover of the visual arts.

- Thank you so much for showing me your exhibition.

You know how much I usually appreciate your exhibitions and now, you've done another.

(speaking French indistinctly) This might be weird for my non-seeing compatriots to hear, but I am really interested in paintings.

How can I be interested in painting?

Simply put, I have someone clearly explain what is painted on the canvas to me.

"So here, there's a ray of a light that comes from this spot.

It reflects in the water," etc.

And afterwards, your imagination does the work and you create your own mental canvas.

Is that the same as for someone who sees?

I've no idea.

In any case, it's all happening in my imagination.

After all even when you see a painting, you're also using your imagination to make sense of it.

(♪♪♪) - (not dubbed): Nous sommes arrivés.

- We're here.

Ah, we're at the Mad Hatters!

- His much anticipated retur to the stage is almost at hand.

- Ah, ils sont là!

- Ah, Philippe!

It's such a pleasure to see you.

Francesco!

Je suis content de revenir chanter au Chapelier fou.

(speaking indistinctly) - Tireless Veronique is handling the transportation and set-up of all the equipment for the concert.

It's a familiar routine for her since she's done it so many times before.

It's a small room, but they're taking pains to guarantee that the audience can enjoy a world class performance.

- We're going to do a quick soundcheck before the concert.

That way, we'll be sure that everything is in order, basic stuff like that.

The resonance of the room.

You know.

- We're almost ready to go.

(♪♪♪) Playing the notes of the piano, first.

OK?

(crowd applausing) Ladies and gentlemen, during the first lockdown, Veronique and I would organize these little concerts on Facebook during Saturday afternoons, because we told ourselves, "Look, we're going to come out of this pandemic, that we'd... in any case, that music was going to save us from it."

There you have it, that's the name of this song.

We will be saved by music.

(♪♪♪) Music has been my companion all my life.

I used to play the piano when I was feeling melancholic, when there were periods that were a little... a little hard when I was a kid.

The piano helped me to forget about this pain that I would sometimes have in my eyes.

When I became an adult, the piano helped me overcome a broken heart!

To move on, to get over all that stuff, I threw myself into the piano and said, "Now, you're going to pour your heart out, blow off steam on this piano."

It was sort of a way to recover, to find that optimism which I've always, I've always had.

The piano has helped me with all sorts of things, singing too.

(crowd cheering) - (crowd): Frederic!

Frederic!

Frederic!