Constance Nantier-Didiée (16 November 1831 – 4 December 1867) was a French

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

. According to commentators of her time, she was described as a true mezzo-soprano rather than a contralto. She had a wide range of comic, dramatic and

travesty A travesty is an absurd or grotesque misrepresentation, a parody, or grossly inferior imitation. In literary or theatrical contexts it may refer to: *Burlesque, a literary, dramatic, or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the m ...

roles in her theatrical career developed in Paris, London, Moscow and Madrid.

Career

Nantier-Didiée was born in

Saint-Denis, Réunion Saint-Denis (, , unofficially Saint-Denis de La Réunion for disambiguation; ) is the prefecture (administrative capital) of the French overseas department and region of Réunion, in the Indian Ocean. It is located at the island's northernmos ...

. She studied 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 ...

at 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 ...

, winning the first prize at opera in 1849. The following year she debuted in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

, as Emilia in

Saverio Mercadante Giuseppe Saverio Raffaele Mercadante (baptised 17 September 179517 December 1870) was an Italian composer, particularly of operas. While Mercadante may not have retained the international celebrity of Gaetano Donizetti or Gioachino Rossini beyond ...

's ''

La vestale ''La vestale'' (''The Vestal Virgin'') is an opera composed by Gaspare Spontini to a French libretto by Étienne de Jouy. It takes the form of a ''tragédie lyrique'' in three acts. It was first performed on 15 December 1807 by the Académie Impé ...

.'' Three years later, she appeared in ''

Luisa Miller ''Luisa Miller'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Salvadore Cammarano, based on the play ''Kabale und Liebe'' (''Intrigue and Love'') by the German dramatist Friedrich von Schiller. Verdi's initial idea for ...

'' in Paris at the Théâtre-Italien, being hired the following year for three seasons at the

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...

, where he sang in the premieres of ''

Rigoletto ''Rigoletto'' is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi. The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play ''Le roi s'amuse'' by Victor Hugo. Despite serious initial problems with the Austrian censors who had cont ...

'' and ''

Benvenuto Cellini Benvenuto Cellini (, ; 3 November 150013 February 1571) was an Italian goldsmith, sculptor, and author. His best-known extant works include the ''Cellini Salt Cellar'', the sculpture of ''Perseus with the Head of Medusa'', and his autobiography ...

'' on 2 July 1853. In 1854, she debuted at

Teatro Real The Teatro Real (Royal Theatre) is an opera house in Madrid, Spain. Located at the Plaza de Oriente, opposite the Royal Palace of Madrid, Royal Palace, and known colloquially as ''El Real'', it is considered the top institution of the performing a ...

in Madrid and traveled to North America. The 1856-1857 season was performed at the

Liceu The Gran Teatre del Liceu (, English: Great Theatre of the Lyceum), known as ''El Liceu'', is an opera house in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Located in La Rambla, it is the oldest running theatre in Barcelona. Founded in 1837 at another loca ...

in Barcelona. The journal ''

Diario de Barcelona The ''Diario de Barcelona'' (catalán: ''Diari de Barcelona'') (The Barcelona Journal) was a newspaper founded in 1792 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. With a few interruptions it was published in paper form until 1994, and in digital form until ...

'' exulted her as a "nice mezzo-soprano, and a contralto in some lower keys; someone of great intelligence, purity and ability in singing, very clean and agile execution, expressive and a good actress.""mezzosoprano de veu simpàtica i acontraltada en els punts greus; cantatriu de gran intelligència, puresa i habilitat en el cant glossat, de molt neta i àgil execució, expressiva i bona actriu." Nantier-Didiée returned to the Covent Garden on 15 May 1858 to play Urbain in

Les Huguenots () is an opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer and is one of the most popular and spectacular examples of grand opera. In five acts, to a libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work suc ...

at the opening season, singing there every year until 1864.

Meyerbeer Giacomo Meyerbeer (born Jakob Liebmann Beer; 5 September 1791 – 2 May 1864) was a German opera composer, "the most frequently performed opera composer during the nineteenth century, linking Mozart and Wagner". With his 1831 opera ''Robert le di ...

's ''

Dinorah ''Dinorah'', originally ''Le pardon de Ploërmel'' (''The Pardon of Ploërmel''), is an 1859 French opéra comique in three acts with music by Giacomo Meyerbeer and a libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré. The story takes place near the rura ...

'' and

Gounod Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...

's ''

Faust Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust ( 1480–1540). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a pact with the Devil at a crossroads ...

'' present

aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

s written especially for her. ''Quando a te lieta,'' later translated to French as ''Si le bonheur a sourire t'invite'' was added by Gounod to a romance for her character. She was the first Preziosilla at the premiere of ''La forza del destino'' in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

in 1862, and also played Siébel for a production in Italian of ''Faust e Margherita'' at the Covent Garden in London in 1863. She died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

on 4 December 1867 during performances of

Gaetano Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the '' bel canto'' opera style dur ...

's ''

La favorite ''La favorite'' (''The Favourite'', sometimes referred to by its Italian title: ''La favorita'') is a grand opera in four acts by Gaetano Donizetti to a French-language libretto by Alphonse Royer and Gustave Vaëz, based on the play ''Le comt ...

'' at Teatro Real de Madrid.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nantier-Didiee, Constance 1831 births 1867 deaths French women singers French operatic mezzo-sopranos People from Saint-Denis, Réunion Italian mezzo-sopranos 19th-century Italian singers 19th-century Italian women singers 19th-century French singers Deaths from pneumonia in Spain