Marcelle Demougeot (18 June 1876 – 24 November 1931), born Jeanne Marguerite Marcelle Decorne, was a French soprano, "the best-known French

Wagnerian Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

singer of her generation".

Early life

Jeanne Marguerite Marcelle Decorne was born 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 ...

, where she studied with

Charles Laurent Charles Louis Laurent (18 March 1879 – 10 July 1965) was a French trade union leader. From 1899, Laurent worked for the Deposits and Consignments Fund, eventually rising to become office manager. He became interested in trade unionism, a ...

. She trained further as a singer 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 ...

Career

Demougeot made her professional debut in 1902, as

Donna Elvira ''Don Giovanni'' (; K. 527; Vienna (1788) title: , literally ''The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni'') is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. Its subject is a centuries-old Spanish ...

in Paris. She was known for singing Wagnerian roles including

Brünnhilde Brunhild, also known as Brunhilda or Brynhild ( non, Brynhildr , gmh, Brünhilt, german: Brünhild , label=Modern German or ), is a female character from Germanic heroic legend. She may have her origins in the Visigothic princess Brunhilda o ...

and

Kundry ''Parsifal'' ( WWV 111) is an opera or a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is loosely based on the 13th-century Middle High German epic poem ''Parzival ...

. She sang in several premiere productions, including ''Le fils de l’étoile'' (1904) by

Camille Erlanger Camille Erlanger (25 May 186324 April 1919) was a French opera composer. He studied at the Paris Conservatory under Léo Delibes (composition), Georges Mathias (piano), as well as Émile Durand and Antoine Taubon (harmony).Jacobshagen, Arnold: "E ...

, '' Ariane'' (1906) by

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'' ...

, a French-language production of ''

Das Rheingold ''Das Rheingold'' (; ''The Rhinegold''), WWV 86A, is the first of the four music dramas that constitute Richard Wagner's ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'' (English: ''The Ring of the Nibelung''). It was performed, as a single opera, at the National ...

'' (1909) by Wagner, ''

Déjanire ''Déjanire'' is an opera (tragédie lyrique) in 4 acts composed by Camille Saint-Saëns to a libretto in French by Louis Gallet and Camille Saint-Saëns. The last of Saint-Saëns' operas, it premiered on 28 August 1898 in the new arènes in Be ...

'', (1911) by

Camille Saint-Saëns Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (; 9 October 183516 December 1921) was a French composer, organist, conductor and pianist of the Romantic music, Romantic era. His best-known works include Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso (1863), the Piano C ...

, and the Paris premiere of ''Parsifal'' (1914). She made several recordings before 1910. In 1916, Demougeot sang at a benefit for blind veterans in

Vichy Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais. It is a Spa town, spa and resort town and in World ...

. She sang

La Marseillaise "La Marseillaise" is the national anthem of France. The song was written in 1792 by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle in Strasbourg after the declaration of war by France against Austria, and was originally titled "Chant de guerre pour l'Armée du R ...

outside the

Palais Garnier The Palais Garnier (, Garnier Palace), also known as Opéra Garnier (, Garnier Opera), is a 1,979-seatBeauvert 1996, p. 102. opera house at the Place de l'Opéra in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, France. It was built for the Paris Opera from ...

to mark the signing of peace at the end of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and later sang at a victory festival in

Ostend Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

. In 1919 she sang at the official

Bastille Day Bastille Day is the common name given in English-speaking countries to the national day of France, which is celebrated on 14 July each year. In French, it is formally called the (; "French National Celebration"); legally it is known as (; "t ...

celebrations in Paris. In 1924 she sang during festivities surrounding the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

in Paris.

Personal life

Demougeot died in 1931, in Paris.

References

External links

* Arakelyan, Ashot
"Marcelle Demougeot (Soprano) (Dijon 1876 - Paris 1931)"
''Forgotten Opera Singers'' (June 6, 2014). A blogpost with images and links.
A 1904 recording of Demougeot
and tenor

Agustarello Affre Agustarello Affre (23 October 1858 - 27 December 1931) was a French operatic tenor. He possessed a powerful, firm and exceptionally beautiful voice which garnered him the nickname the "French Tamagno" in comparison to the great Italian tenor. He ...

singing a duet from ''

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 ...

'', on YouTube.
A 1905 recording of Demougeot
singing "Sombre forêt", from YouTube. {{DEFAULTSORT:Demougeot, Marcelle 20th-century French women opera singers French operatic sopranos 1876 births 1931 deaths Musicians from Dijon