Jean Mouliérat (13 November 1853 – 20 April 1932) was a French
tenor
A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...
. He spent most of his career at the
Opéra comique
''Opéra comique'' (; plural: ''opéras comiques'') is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged from the popular '' opéras comiques en vaudevilles'' of the Fair Theatres of St Germain and St Laurent (and to a l ...
in Paris.
Origins
Born in
Vers, near
Cahors
Cahors (; oc, Caors ) is a commune in the western part of Southern France. It is the smallest prefecture among the 13 departments that constitute the Occitanie Region. The main city of the Lot department and the historical center of the Quer ...
, Mouliérat was the son of an hotelier. The paternal hotel-restaurant, ''La truite dorée'' ("the golden trout"), was very well known in the region and already frequented by the "tourists" of the time. Having started his life as a simple shepherd at the age of 20, he joined the army. Incorporated into the 18th foot chasseurs regiment of the , it is here that General Gaucher, remarked this young man with a golden voice when on 14 July 1875, the tenor sang the patriotic song: ''
Vous n'aurez pas l'Alsace et la Lorraine ''Vous'' is the plural form of "you" (also used as "polite" singular) in the French language.
Vous may refer to:
*Vous (song), "Vous" (song), debut solo single of French singer Merwan Rim
*Vous Island, a small Greek island
{{disambig ...
''. Mouliérat then attended classes at the
Conservatoire national de musique et de déclamation of Paris, under professor Grosset's protective wing.
Career
At the
Opéra-Comique
The Opéra-Comique is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief rival, the Comédie-Italienne ...
in Paris who hired him, Mouliérat was entrusted with the main roles of the repertoire: Wilhelm Meister in Ambroise Thomas' ''
Mignon
''Mignon'' is an 1866 ''opéra comique'' (or opera in its second version) in three acts by Ambroise Thomas. The original French libretto was by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré, based on Goethe's 1795-96 novel '' Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre''. The ...
'', Tybalt in Gounod's ''
Roméo et Juliette'', Don José in Bizet's ''
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 Carmen (novella), novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first perfo ...
'', Tamino in Mozart's ''
The Magic Flute
''The Magic Flute'' (German: , ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a ''Singspiel'', a popular form during the time it was written that inclu ...
'', Alfredo in Verdi's ''
La traviata
''La traviata'' (; ''The Fallen Woman'') is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on ''La Dame aux camélias'' (1852), a play by Alexandre Dumas ''fils'' adapted from his own 18 ...
''. In 1893, Werther in
Massenet's work, consecrated him.
An affection for the vocal chords put an end to his singing career in 1898. From then on, the singer became fascinated by the medieval castle which he acquired in 1896 at
Prudhomat
Prudhomat (; oc, Prudomat) is a commune in the Lot department in south-western France.
The Château de Castelnau-Bretenoux is located in Prudhomat.
See also
*Communes of the Lot department
The following is a list of the 313 communes of t ...
, in the Lot department, the
Château de Castelnau-Bretenoux
The Château de Castelnau-Bretenoux () is a castle in the commune of Prudhomat, Lot ''département'', France. One of the most impressive in the Quercy region, it has been listed as a ''monument historique'' by the French Ministry of Culture since ...
. He restored the monumental edifice where he liked to receive personalities of letters, arts or politics such as
Colette
Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (; 28 January 1873 – 3 August 1954), known mononymously as Colette, was a French author and woman of letters. She was also a mime, actress, and journalist. Colette is best known in the English-speaking world for her ...
,
Auguste Rodin
François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a uniqu ...
, the queen of Madagascar,
Ranavalona III
Ranavalona III (; 22 November 1861 – 23 May 1917) was the last sovereign of the Kingdom of Madagascar. She ruled from 30 July 1883 to 28 February 1897 in a reign marked by ultimately futile efforts to resist the colonial designs of the go ...
, more commonly known as Queen Ranavalo,
Henri Lavedan
Henri Léon Emile Lavedan (9 April 1859 – 4 September 1940), French dramatist and man of letters, was born at Orléans, the son of , a well-known Catholic and liberal journalist.
Lavedan contributed to various Parisian papers a series of witty ...
of the Académie française, painter
Henri Martin,
Anatole de Monzie
Anatole de Monzie (22 November 1876, Bazas, Gironde – 11 January 1947, Paris) was a French administrator, encyclopaedist ('' Encyclopédie française''), political figure and scholar. His father was a tax collector in Bazas, Gironde whe ...
...
Mouliérat died in Paris on 20 April 1932. He donated his castle
Le château de Castelnau-Bretenoux
on Judrand to the State (Ministry of Fine Arts). He is buried at Montparnasse Cemetery
Montparnasse Cemetery (french: link=no, Cimetière du Montparnasse) is a cemetery in the Montparnasse quarter of Paris, in the city's 14th arrondissement. The cemetery is roughly 47 acres and is the second largest cemetery in Paris. The cemetery ...
.
References
External links
Jean Mouliérat biography
on Artlyriquefr
''1 lettre de Jean Mouliérat à Jules Massenet'' (undated)
on Gallica
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moulierat, Jean
1853 births
1932 deaths
People from Lot (department)
French operatic tenors
Knights of the Legion of Honour
Burials at Montparnasse Cemetery