Léontine de Maësen (15 July 1835 – 1906) was a Belgian

coloratura soprano A coloratura soprano is a type of operatic soprano voice that specializes in music that is distinguished by agile runs, leaps and trills. The term '' coloratura'' refers to the elaborate ornamentation of a melody, which is a typical component o ...

active on the

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 ...

stages of France from 1858 to 1868. She is most remembered today for having created the role of Leïla in

Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', which has become on ...

's 1863 opera, ''

Les pêcheurs de perles ' (''The Pearl Fishers'') is an opera in three acts by the French composer Georges Bizet, to a libretto by Eugène Cormon and Michel Carré. It was premiered on 30 September 1863 at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris, and was given 18 performances in ...

''.

Life and career

Born Léontine Van der Maësen d'Avionpuits in Esneux, Belgium, she was the daughter of the crown prosecutor in

Verviers Verviers (; wa, Vervî) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. The municipality consists of the following districts: Ensival, Heusy, Lambermont, Petit-Rechain, Stembert, and Verviers. It is also the ...

. Her father died when she was still a young girl, and after his death she entered the

Royal Conservatory of Liège Royal Conservatoire of Liège The Royal Conservatoire of Liège (RCL) ( French Conservatoire royal de Liège, Dutch Koninklijk Conservatorium Luik) is one of four conservatories in the French Community of Belgium that offers higher education cou ...

where she studied singing with Théophile Vercken. She then continued her studies at the

Paris Conservatory 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 Laure Cinti-Damoreau and later 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 ...

. De Maësen made her stage debut in

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

during the 1858 season and subsequently sang there as Marguerite in ''

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 ...

'' and Lucie in ''

Lucie de Lammermoor ''Lucia di Lammermoor'' () is a (tragic opera) in three acts by Italian composer Gaetano Donizetti. Salvadore Cammarano wrote the Italian-language libretto loosely based upon Sir Walter Scott's 1819 historical novel ''The Bride of Lammermoor''. ...

''.Heugel (11 February 1906) p. 48; Soubies (1900) p. 20 She returned in the 1861-62 season and sang with great success the title role in Massé's ''La reine Topaze'' for its first Marseille performance. During that season, she also sang in revivals of ''

The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), 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 premie ...

'' and ''

Der Freischütz ' ( J. 277, Op. 77 ''The Marksman'' or ''The Freeshooter'') is a German opera with spoken dialogue in three acts by Carl Maria von Weber with a libretto by Friedrich Kind, based on a story by Johann August Apel and Friedrich Laun from their 181 ...

''. After performances in

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...

, she was engaged by

Léon Carvalho Léon Carvalho (18 January 1825 – 29 December 1897) was a French impresario and stage director. Biography Born Léon Carvaille in Port Louis, British Mauritius, he came to France at an early age. He studied at the Paris Conservatory and sa ...

for his

Théâtre Lyrique The Théâtre Lyrique was one of four opera companies performing in Paris during the middle of the 19th century (the other three being the Opéra, the Opéra-Comique, and the Théâtre-Italien). The company was founded in 1847 as the Opéra-N ...

company in Paris, where in 1863 she created the role of Leïla in Bizet's ''

''. Her performance in the premiere was a sensation with the audience, according to the critic in '' Le Guide musical'', who went on to praise "the beauty of her voice, the perfection of her singing, her personal charm, and her talent as actress." Bizet would later dedicate his 1868 ''

mélodie A ''mélodie'' () is a form of French art song, arising in the mid-19th century. It is comparable to the German ''Lied''. A ''chanson'', by contrast, is a folk or popular French song. The literal meaning of the word in the French language is "melod ...

'', "Rêve de la bien-aimée" (Dream of the beloved), to her. After ''Les pêcheurs de perles'', she remained with the Théâtre Lyrique company, creating the roles of Christel in Edmond Chérouvrier's ''Le roi des mines'' and Anita in

Poniatowski The House of Poniatowski (plural: ''Poniatowscy'') is a prominent Polish family that was part of the nobility of Poland. A member of this family, Stanisław Poniatowski, was elected as King of Poland and reigned from 1764 until his abdicatio ...

's ''L'aventurier'' (both in 1865) as well as singing Gilda in ''

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 ...

'', Norina in ''

Don Pasquale ''Don Pasquale'' () is an opera buffa, or comic opera, in three acts by Gaetano Donizetti with an Italian libretto completed largely by Giovanni Ruffini as well as the composer. It was based on a libretto by Angelo Anelli for Stefano Pavesi's ...

'', and the title role in ''

Norma Norma may refer to: * Norma (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Astronomy *Norma (constellation) * 555 Norma, a minor asteroid *Cygnus Arm or Norma Arm, a spiral arm in the Milky Way galaxy Geography *Norma, Lazi ...

''. In the late 1860s she married Alfred Rabaud, a wealthy businessman and patron of the arts from Marseille, and retired from the stage. With her husband she ran a

salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon (P ...

frequented by many young composers of the day and devoted herself to charity in her later years. Alfred Rabaud died in 1886. Léontine lived on for another 20 years, dying in Marseille at the age of 70. Her younger sister Camilla was also a well-known soprano who sang in Belgium, France and Italy.Masson and Barré (1913) p. 412; Heugel (11 February 1906) p. 48

Notes and references

Sources

* *Heugel, Henri (11 February 1906)
"Nécrologie"
''Le Ménestrel'', Vol. 72, No. 6, p. 48 *'' Le Guide musical'' (13 February 1862)
"Belgique"
Vol. 7, No. 50, p. 2 *Masson, Paul and Barré, Henri (1913).
"Rabaud (Alfred)"
''Les Bouches-du-Rhône: Encyclopédie départementale'', Part 2, Vol. 11, p. 412. Archives départementales les Bouches-du-Rhône *Ruelle, Jules (8 October 1863)
"France"
'' Le Guide musical'', Vol. 9, No. 41, p. 3 *Soubies, Albert (1900)
''Histoire de la musique''
E. Fammarion {{DEFAULTSORT:Maesen, Leontine de 1835 births 1906 deaths Belgian operatic sopranos People from Esneux 19th-century Belgian women opera singers