BY DEREK SVENNUNGSEN

Even the most casual of glances at a local calendar will confirm that the frequency with which Sun Valley is visited by world-renowned artists is way out of proportion with our population. Lucky us!

In this vein, one of the very greatest and most accomplished musicians that Sun Valley will have ever seen is singing her way to The Argyros on Sunday, March 8.

Madeleine Peyroux, a multi-faceted singer and songwriter who has been creating magical music since 1996, will be making her first visit to our mountain town. Tickets have long been spoken for. Here’s hoping that if you are a fan of distinctive singers and gorgeous voices, tasteful jazz and gypsy music, the American songbook and thoughtful originals, you have already claimed your spot in the audience and are ready for a transcendent evening.

As a long-time fan (I bought my first CD of hers in 2005 – Careless Love), I can tell you that all nine of her albums are packed with timeless songs – covers, originals, standards, Chansons… she does it all.

In preparation for her visit to Ketchum, I was able to pose some (admittedly fawning) questions to Madeleine Peyroux. Here are some highlights:

Question: Ketchum/Sun Valley is one of the smallest stops on your current tour. Aside from there being less oxygen in the air at our altitude, is there anything that feels different about playing in isolated towns like ours, versus the larger cities that make up the bulk of your tour stops?

Peyroux: I prefer it. I believe we are all walking around with lizard brains in medieval societies dwarfed by godlike technology. It’s just too much. I need to be in spaces which are built for humans. Not cars, airplanes, factories, mass industries or massive data centers. So, in other words, the honor is all mine, and I am deeply grateful to be invited to Sun Valley!

Question: You’re a musical artist who has embraced many styles and genres over the course of your career. Google’s byline is “American Jazz Singer-Songwriter.” With that in mind, what do you call yourself?

Peyroux: I’m just a singer. I come from the American musical lineage. I’m influenced by blues, jazz, folk, pop, gospel. Some would say Americana. Our music has a very rich and incredibly influential lineage. Music that traverses the world. Until we reckon with the truth of American identity, we can’t really understand naming music genres. So, call me a singer-songwriter, I guess.

Question: Since you started your recording career in 1996, you have moved from being largely an interpreter of songs to writing more of your own, as on 2024’s Let’s Walk. What has that process been like, and do you now think of yourself as a songwriter?

Peyroux: I don’t want to think of myself at all, if I can help it. I just want to be part of something truthful. I use whatever skills I have to get there. The songs I’ve written are attempts at touching on issues I can’t find in the canons of other songwriters - not exactly, not yet.

Question: Your voice is so distinct and multi-faceted. When did you become aware that your voice was a uniquely powerful instrument? Was there a moment when you, or someone else, was like, “Whoa, Madeleine, you can really sing!”

Peyroux: Actually, it is rare that people were taken with my voice. It was I who wanted to sing from a young age. I think my desire to be heard came from feeling muted by my world. And the act of singing is nourishing, really. So, it’s a revelation to learn that a singer can both express themselves and regenerate themselves at the same time. And I’m incredibly lucky to have been given the opportunity to pursue that. So not everyone might want to be a singer, but I believe everyone should sing.

Question: If there’s a heaven for artists, and you have to demonstrate your worthiness of getting in, what are you bringing to the gate? Put another way, what is the one song or album that you think is the definitive example of Madeleine Peyroux’s musical contribution to the world?

Peyroux: This is the toughest question I think I’ve ever been asked. Haha! Touché! Well, I suppose it’s going to be the soothing songs. The ones that a listener chose to cozy up and heal with. The ones that they felt they needed at that time and that helped them get through. They are not always the same song. (Interviewer’s note--find “I’m Alright” online for just one example.)

Question: You have one night to share the stage with any performer from any era and genre. Who is up on the stage with you? (And why her/him?)

Peyroux: I’m unable to feel deserving of this imaginary heaven. But I guess I’d want to be with Louis Armstrong. I’d want to get a sense of his focus. Where he keeps his winks and gaze and sighs and pauses, and why he laughs, and to cry with him if he seems to be crying.