André Amellér (2 January 1912 – 14 May 1990) was a French

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and conductor. He is considered part of the French school of 20th-century classical music. Amellér played

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

for the

Opéra national de Paris The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be k ...

from 1937 to 1953, except for a brief period spent as a prisoner of war in Germany. He was the director of the conservatoire national in

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlies ...

from 1953 to 1981.

Education

Amellér was born in

Arnaville Arnaville () is a commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department in northeastern France. Geography The village lies on the left bank of the Rupt de Mad, which flows southeast through the middle of the commune, then flows into the Moselle, which for ...

, Meurthe et Moselle to a family of amateur musicians. He began studying

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

at a young age in the family's home in Chelles. He later began playing double bass. In January 1930, he joined the 24th Infantry Regiment of the French Army, playing in the regiment band. While still a soldier, Amellér began his studies at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris in 1931 under Édouard Nanny. He played for Concerts Poulet in 1932, then joined the Pasdeloup orchestra. He appeared as a soldier in the film ''

Wooden Crosses ''Wooden Crosses'' (french: Les Croix de Bois) is a 1932 Cinema of France, French war film by Raymond Bernard, based upon a novel by Roland Dorgelès. Plot Patriotic student Demachy enlists in the French army in 1914 at the start of World War I ...

'', and used the money from that role to buy his first double bass. In 1934, he graduated with honours from the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

with a degree in double bass. Between 1934 and 1947, he also received degrees in

conducting Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance, such as an orchestral or choral concert. It has been defined as "the art of directing the simultaneous performance of several players or singers by the use of gesture." The primary duti ...

harmony In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. However ...

fugue In music, a fugue () is a contrapuntal compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject (a musical theme) that is introduced at the beginning in imitation (repetition at different pitches) and which recurs frequently in the c ...

counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tradi ...

composition Composition or Compositions may refer to: Arts and literature *Composition (dance), practice and teaching of choreography *Composition (language), in literature and rhetoric, producing a work in spoken tradition and written discourse, to include v ...

and

music history Music history, sometimes called historical musicology, is a highly diverse subfield of the broader discipline of musicology that studies music from a historical point of view. In theory, "music history" could refer to the study of the history o ...

Career

In 1937, Amellér won a position as double bassist in the

. He played under conductors

Bruno Walter Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a German-born conductor, pianist and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French citizen in 1938, and settled in the Un ...

Arturo Toscanini Arturo Toscanini (; ; March 25, 1867January 16, 1957) was an Italian conductor. He was one of the most acclaimed and influential musicians of the late 19th and early 20th century, renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orch ...

Wilhelm Furtwängler Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler ( , , ; 25 January 188630 November 1954) was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. He was a major ...

, Albert Wolff and

Paul Paray Paul Marie-Adolphe Charles Paray () (24 May 1886 – 10 October 1979) was a French conductor, organist and composer. He was the resident conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1952 until 1963. Early life and education Paul Paray was ...

. When France entered World War II, his regiment was mobilized; he was taken prisoner and spent time as a prisoner of war in Oflag XIII. After being liberated, he returned to his position in the Opéra national in 1942. In April 1953, Amellér became the director of the École Nationale de Musique in

. He began adding classes and recruiting more teachers to the school. He also participated in the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

International Conference on the Role and Place of Music in Education of Youth and Adults in Brussels. In 1977, the school became the Conservatoire National de Région pour la Musique, l’Art Dramatique et la Danse. Amellér retired as director in 1981. Amellér was the vice-president of the

International Society for Music Education The International Society for Music Education (ISME) is a professional organization of persons involved with music education. It was founded in Brussels in 1953 during the UNESCO-sponsored conference on "The Role and Place of Music in the Educa ...

(ISME) from 1972 to 1976. He was also the president of the Ordre National des Musiciens and the Confédération Musicale de France. Amellér was also a prolific composer, creating almost 400 works, including pieces for

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

, voice, and numerous solo instruments.

Major compositions

Amellér composed numerous works, including: ;

Opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

s * ''La lance de Fingal'' (1957) * ''Cyrnos'' (1951-1960) ;Orchestral works * ''Annapurna'' (1952) * ''Danse de Séléné'' (1955) * ''À quoi rêvent les jeunes filles'' (1957) * ''Hétérodoxes'' (1970) * ''Dentelles et Broderies valencianes'' (1973) * ''Airs hétérogène'' (1966) * ''Crescendo pour grande formation d'harmonie'' (1974) * ''Les Camisards'',

symphonic poem A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music, usually in a single continuous movement, which illustrates or evokes the content of a poem, short story, novel, painting, landscape, or other (non-musical) source. The German term ''T ...

(1975) ;Concertante * Concerto for cello and orchestra (1947) * ''Fantaisie'' for 2 guitars and string orchestra (1986) ;Chamber music * ''Sarabande'' for viola solo, Op.80 (1953) * ''Jeux de table'' for alto saxophone and piano (1954) * ''Trois pièces faciles'' (3 Easy Pieces) for viola and piano, Op.208 (1973) * ''Mon premier concert'' (My First Concert), 6 Easy Pieces for viola and piano, Op.218 (1975) * ''L'arc-en-ciel'' (The Rainbow), 7 Easy Pieces for viola and piano, Op.221 (1975) * ''Sourire'' (Smile) for viola and piano, Op.307 (1983) * ''Petit nuage'' (Little Cloud) for viola and piano, Op.308 (1983) * ''Suite florentine'' for cello solo (1984) * Sonatina for viola or violin, Op.357 (1984) * ''Speranza'' for viola or violin and piano, Op.375 (1986)

Awards

* Officer of the

Légion d'Honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

(1978) * Commander of the

Ordre National du Mérite The Ordre national du Mérite (; en, National Order of Merit) is a French order of merit with membership awarded by the President of the French Republic, founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle. The reason for the order's esta ...

(1975) * Commander of the

Palmes Académiques Palmes is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Sir Brian Palmes, English landowner and politician *Sir Guy Palmes, English politician * Brian Palmes MP *Lieutenant General Francis Palmes Lieutenant-General Francis Palmes MP ( ...

(1981) * Chevalier des Arts et Lettres (1960) * Médaille de Vermeil de la Ville de Paris (1987)

References

External links

Association pour la Musique d'André Amellér
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ameller, Andre 1912 births 1990 deaths Conservatoire de Paris alumni People from Meurthe-et-Moselle French male conductors (music) 20th-century classical composers Commandeurs of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques Commanders of the Ordre national du Mérite French male classical composers French classical double-bassists Male double-bassists French opera composers Male opera composers 20th-century French composers 20th-century French conductors (music) 20th-century double-bassists 20th-century French male musicians