Adèle Isaac (8 January 1854 – 22 October 1915) was a French operatic
soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...
, active in Paris in the late 19th century.
Isaac was born in
Calais
Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...
. After studying with
Gilbert Duprez
Gilbert-Louis Duprez (6 December 180623 September 1896) was a French tenor, singing teacher and minor composer who famously pioneered the delivery of the operatic high C from the chest (''Ut de poitrine'', as Paris audiences called it). He also c ...
, her professional debut was in 1870 in
Victor Massé
Victor Massé (; born Félix Marie Massé; 7 March 1822 – 5 July 1884) was a French composer.
Biography
Massé was born in Lorient (Morbihan) and studied at the Paris Conservatoire, winning the Prix de Rome in 1844 for his cantata ''Le Rénég ...
's ''
Les noces de Jeannette'' at the Théatre Montmartre. In February 1873 she attracted attention singing the young shepherd in ''Tannhäuser'' at La Monnaie (Bruxelles). Her first performance at the
Opéra-Comique
The Opéra-Comique () is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular Théâtre de la foire, theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief riva ...
was in 1873 as Marie in ''
La fille du régiment
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second most populous city in the United States of America.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
*"L.A.", a song by Elliott Smi ...
'', going on to sing Mozart and Gounod. On 3 April 1882 she sang Angèle in the 1,000th performance of ''Le Domino Noir'' at the Opéra-Comique.
From 1883 to 1885 she appeared at the
Opéra as Ophélia, Marguerite, Adele, Zerlina and Marguerite de Valois.
She sang in the first Paris revival of ''
Carmen
''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...
'' in April 1883, and was chosen for the more restrained, even bland interpretation of the title role she offered.
She created the roles of Olympia and Antonia in ''
Les contes d'Hoffmann
''The Tales of Hoffmann'' (French: ) is an by Jacques Offenbach. The French libretto was written by Jules Barbier, based on three short stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann, who is the protagonist of the story. It was Offenbach's final work; he died in ...
'' in 1881, Claire in ''Egmont'' by Salvayre in 1886, and Minka in ''
Le roi malgré lui'' in 1887. Isaac was a great favourite at the Opéra-Comique: she sang Susanna in the 1882, 1886 and 1892 revivals of ''
Le Nozze di Figaro
''The Marriage of Figaro'' (, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premiered at the Burgtheater in Vienna ...
''. Her absence for a concert tour in Rome and Monte Carlo in early 1888 delayed repeat performances of ''Le roi malgré lui'', and may have contributed to the end of its first run.
In 1884 Adèle Isaac sang in the annual performances of
Beethoven's 9th Symphony given at the
Société des Concerts du Conservatoire; the following year she sang music from ''
Egmont'' and ''
The Magic Flute
''The Magic Flute'' (, ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. It is a ''Singspiel'', a popular form that included both singing and spoken dialogue. The work premiered on ...
'' with the same orchestra.
[Kern Holoman D. ''The Société des Concerts du Conservatoire 1828-1967''. University of California Press, 2004.]
In 1887 she married businessman Charles Lelong; she retired in 1894. She died in Paris.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isaac, Adele
1854 births
1915 deaths
French operatic sopranos
People from Calais
19th-century French women opera singers