Alum Gives Soaring Performance at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris

Alum Gives Soaring Performance at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris Vocalist and pianist Luan Pommier stunned thousands with her rendition of the Paralympic anthem during the games' opening ceremony.

By

Bryan Parys

September 10, 2024

The opening ceremony of the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, France

Image by Gail Leenstra, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

This year marked the first time since the Paralympics began in 1960 that the opening ceremony was held outside a stadium, allowing the festivities to expand to ever more dramatic heights. Some of those highest highs were the notes sung by pianist and vocalist Luan Pommier BM '24, who performed her arrangement of the Paralympic anthem for a crowd of nearly 65,000 gathered on the Place de la Concorde in Paris.

Pommier, who recently completed her degree majoring in contemporary writing and production, played and sang from a grand piano while the Paralympic flag was raised. The song, Hymne de l'Avenir ( Anthem of the Future), written by Thierry Darnis, is wordless, but this didn't stop Pommier from delivering the melody in an emotive vocal style that effortlessly climbed her soprano range.

Watch Luan Pommiers performance of the Paralympic anthem beginning at 17:54 in this video from the opening ceremony:

Its certainly not the first time her voice has commanded the attention of audiences worldwide. She received the Golden Buzzer for her initial performance on season 16 of La France a un incroyable talent ( France's Got Incredible Talent ). While at Berklee, she was featured in a number of high-profile concerts, including tributes to Alicia Keys and Tony Bennett, as well as the Nina Simone portion of the Ledisi tribute performance during the 2024 Commencement Concert.

Originally from Guadeloupe in the French Caribbean, Pommier was born with a visual impairment. Her prodigious talent for music developed early, as she was teaching herself piano by age three. At 14, she began performing with the Global Rainbow Foundation, a charitable trust in Mauritius that focuses on educating, empowering, and advocating for those with disabilities. A multi-instrumentalist with perfect pitch, Pommier is building a diverse career that includes releasing original music and continuing to play at major festivals and events around the world.

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