Pierre Barouh, a French writer-composer-singer, was born Élie Pierre Barouh on February 19, 1934, in Paris. He is best known for his work on Claude Lelouch's film A Man and a Woman as an actor and the lyricist/singer for Francis Lai's music score.
Barouh was raised in Levallois-Perret with his brother and sister, the children of Turkish-Jewish stallholders who sold fabrics. During World War II, their parents hid them from the Nazis, with Pierre and his sister living in Montournais and his brother in la Limouzinière.
After the war, Barouh became a sports journalist for Paris-Presse-Intransigeant and played for the national volleyball B team in the 1950s. He spent time in Portugal, where he discovered Brazilian music, and visited Brazil in 1959.
Barouh returned to Paris and became acquainted with the principal Brazilian writers and composers of bossa nova. With his first earnings, he purchased a mill, la Morvient, where he established a recording studio and welcomed other artists.
In 1965, he created his own label, Saravah, which aimed to mix musicians and styles, and multiply musical encounters. He worked with a variety of artists, including Pierre Akendengué, Areski Belkacem, Brigitte Fontaine, Nana Vasconcelos, and Elis Regina.
As an actor, Barouh appeared in films such as D'ou viens-tu Johnny? and Une fille et des fusils. He also wrote and performed his own music, including the successful songs "La Plage", "Tes dix-huit ans", and "Monsieur de Furstenberg".
Barouh participated in the success of the film A Man and a Woman in 1966, which won the Palme d'Or at the Festival de Cannes. He married the actress Anouk Aimée the same year, but they divorced three years later.
Pierre Barouh died on December 28, 2016, at the age of 82, from an infarction at the Hôpital Cochin in Paris. He was buried at Montmartre Cemetery a week later.
