Jeanne Élisabeth Marie Vieu, also known as Jane Vieu, (15 July 1871, in

Béziers Béziers (; oc, Besièrs) is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Hérault Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region of Southern France. Every August Béziers hos ...

– 8 April 1955, in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

), 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 ...

who also published works under the pseudonym Pierre Valette.

Biography

Vieu was born as Jeanne Fabre at

. Vieu was the daughter of pianist Marie-Élodie Fabre, who taught music. She started composing at the age of 11. Vieu studied composition with

Jules Massenet Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet (; 12 May 1842 – 13 August 1912) was a French composer of the Romantic era best known for his operas, of which he wrote more than thirty. The two most frequently staged are '' Manon'' (1884) and ''Werther' ...

, singing with

Marie Caroline Miolan-Carvalho Marie Caroline Miolan-Carvalho (31 December 1827 in Marseille – 10 July 1895 in Château-Puys, near Dieppe) was a famed French operatic soprano, particularly associated with light lyric and coloratura roles. Biography Born Marie Caroline ...

, and

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 ...

and

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 ...

with

André Gedalge André Gedalge (27 December 1856 – 5 February 1926) was a French composer and teacher. Biography André Gedalge was born at 75 rue des Saints-Pères in Paris where he first worked as a bookseller and editor, specialising in ''livres de prix' ...

. She gained recognition thanks to her

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

''Madame Tallien'' (1902), and because of her fairy tale ''La belle au bois dormant'' (1902), the first performance of which took place at the

Théâtre des Mathurins The théâtre des Mathurins, also called Les Mathurins, is a Parisian theatre located 36, rue des Mathurins in the 8th arrondissement of Paris established in 1897. Directions * 1898–1901: Marguerite Deval * 1901–1908: Jules Berny * 1908: ...

. Other successful titles of her hand are ''Au bal de Flore'', ''Les Petites entravées'' (1911), and ''Aladin, ombres chinoises'' (1904). Vieu published about 100 works, some under her pseudonym Pierre Valette, including orchestral, chamber, piano, and operas. Her music has been classified as 19th-century due to its formal and harmonic character. She operated a publishing company with her presumed husband Maurice Vieu between 1907 and 1925. They opened a publishing house in Paris called Maurice Vieu and Jane Vieu. She died in Paris in 1955.

Works

Selected works include: *''Puisque c'est l'été'' (text: Robert de la Villehervé) *''Madame Tallien (Thérésia Cabarrus)'', (historical piece, text: Paul Berthelot and Claude Roland) *''La belle au bois dormant'' (song) *''Sérénade japonaise'' (song) * '' Arlette'' (operetta, text: Claude Roland and Louis Bouvet) *''Le Bonhomme de neige'' * ''L'Amour en grève'' (operetta, text: Jacques Lemaire and

Henry Houry Henry Houry (1874–1972) was a French stage actor. He also appeared in and directed films.Waldman & Slide p.229 He worked for a while in the United States during the silent era, directing the 1918 Corinne Griffith film ''Love Watches''. Selecte ...

) *''Les Yeux Verts'' (song) *''Salomette'' (operetta, text: Jean Séry) *''Sur le pont d'Avignon'' (fantasie-oper''é''tte, text: L. de Lahitte) *''Piege d,Amour'' (operetta)

References

1871 births 1955 deaths People from Béziers 20th-century classical composers French classical composers French women classical composers 20th-century French women musicians 20th-century French composers 20th-century women composers {{france-composer-stub