Marie Le Rochois (c. 1658 – 8 October 1728) was a French

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 ...

tic

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

who belonged to the

Académie Royale de Musique The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be ...

. She is often referred to as Marthe Le Rochois or simply La Rochois.

Opera career

She was introduced to

Jean-Baptiste Lully Jean-Baptiste Lully ( , , ; born Giovanni Battista Lulli, ; – 22 March 1687) was an Italian-born French composer, guitarist, violinist, and dancer who is considered a master of the French Baroque music style. Best known for his operas, he ...

, possibly by his father-in-law

Michel Lambert Michel Lambert (1610 – 29 June 1696) was a French singing master, theorbist and composer. Career Lambert was born at Champigny-sur-Veude, France. He received his musical education as an altar boy at the Chapel of Gaston d'Orléans, a brother of ...

who may have been her teacher, and became a member of the

Paris Opéra The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be k ...

in 1678. She sang in operas by Lully,

Pascal Collasse Pascal Collasse (or Colasse) (22 January 1649 (baptised) – 17 July 1709) was a French composer of the Baroque era. Born in Rheims, Collasse became a disciple of Jean-Baptiste Lully during the latter's domination of the French operatic stage ...

, Henri Desmarets,

Marc-Antoine Charpentier Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'', ''Marche en rondeau''. This theme is still us ...

André Campra André Campra (; baptized 4 December 1660 – 29 June 1744) was a French composer and conductor of the Baroque era. The leading French opera composer in the period between Jean-Baptiste Lully and Jean-Philippe Rameau, Campra wrote several '' tra ...

Marin Marais Marin Marais (; 31 May 1656, in Paris – 15 August 1728, in Paris) was a French composer and viol player. He studied composition with Jean-Baptiste Lully, often conducting his operas, and with master of the bass viol Monsieur de Sainte-Colomb ...

, and

André Cardinal Destouches André Cardinal Destouches (sometimes called des Touches) (baptised 6 April 1672 – 7 February 1749) was a French composer best known for the ''opéra-ballet'' ''Les élémens''. Biography Born in Paris, the son of Étienne Cardinal, a ...

but she was best regarded for her portrayal of '' Armide'' in Lully's opera. Unlike some of her wilder colleagues at the opera,

Julie d'Aubigny Julie d'Aubigny (; 1673–1707), better known as Mademoiselle Maupin or La Maupin, was a French opera singer. Little is known for certain about her life; her tumultuous career and flamboyant lifestyle were the subject of gossip, rumour, and co ...

and

Fanchon Moreau Françoise 'Fanchon' Moreau (1668 – after 1743) was a French operatic soprano who belonged to the Académie Royale de Musique, also a celebrated beauty who was a favourite of the Great Dauphin. Opera career Following her older sister Lou ...

, she enjoyed a reputation for moral rectitude. Less of a celebrity, she was more of an artist, as indicated by the number of important roles with which she was entrusted by Lully and his successors.

Retirement

After retiring from the stage in 1698, she became a teacher, while remaining active in the contemporary arts social world. Her students included Marie Antier and

Françoise Journet Françoise Journet (born Lyon, died Paris 1720) was a French operatic soprano. Beginning her career at the Lyon Opera, Journet eventually became a pupil of Marie Le Rochois in Paris. In 1699 she appeared as Mélisse in the premiere of ''Amadis de ...

. She died in Paris in 1728.

Roles created

*Arethusa in Lully's '' Proserpine'' (Paris, 1680) *Merope in Lully's ''

Persée ''Persée'' (''Perseus'') is a tragédie lyrique with music by Jean-Baptiste Lully and a libretto by Philippe Quinault, first performed on 18 April 1682 by the Opéra at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal in Paris. Roles Synopsis ACT I: The Pal ...

'' (Paris, 1682) *Arcabonne in Lully's '' Amadis'' (Paris, 1684) *Angéligue in Lully's ''

Roland Roland (; frk, *Hrōþiland; lat-med, Hruodlandus or ''Rotholandus''; it, Orlando or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the ...

'' (Paris, 1684) *Armide in Lully's '' Armide'' (Paris, 1686) *Galatée in ''

Acis et Galatée ''Acis et Galatée'' (''Acis and Galatea'') is an opera by Jean-Baptiste Lully. Unlike most of his operas, which are designated '' tragédies en musique'', Lully called this work a '' pastorale-héroïque'', because it was on a pastoral theme an ...

'' (Paris, 1686) *Polixène in the Lully-Collasse ''

Achille et Polyxène ''Achille et Polyxène'' (''Achilles and Polyxena'') is a tragédie lyrique containing a prologue and five acts based on Virgil's ''Aeneid'' with a French libretto by Jean Galbert de Campistron. The opera's overture and first act were composed by ...

'' (Paris, 1687) *Thétis in Collasse's ''Thétis et Pélée'' (Paris, 1689) *Lavinie in Collasse's ''Enée et Lavinie'' (Paris, 1690) *The title role in Desmarets's '' Didon'' (Paris, 1693) *The title role in Charpentier's ''

Médée ''Médée'' is a dramatic tragedy in five acts written in alexandrine verse by Pierre Corneille in 1635. Summary The heroine of the play is the sorceress Médée. After Médée gives Jason twin boys, Jason leaves her for Creusa. Médée ...

'' (Paris, 1693) *Ariane in Marin Marais's ''Ariane et Bacchus'' (Paris, 1696) *Vénus in Desmarets's ''

Vénus et Adonis ''Vénus et Adonis'' is an opera (''tragédie en musique'') in a prologue and 5 acts composed by Henri Desmarets to a libretto by Jean-Baptiste Rousseau. Based on the story of Venus and Adonis in Book X of Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'', it was first ...

'' (Paris, 1697) *The title role in Destouches's ''

Issé Issé (; br, Izeg) is a Communes of France, commune on the banks of the river Don (Vilaine), Don in the Loire-Atlantique Departments of France, department in western France. It is situated 10 km southeast of Châteaubriant. Population Tr ...

'' (Paris, 1697) *Roxane in Campra's ''

L'Europe galante ''L'Europe galante'' (''Galant Europe'') is an opéra-ballet in a prologue and four entrées by André Campra to a French libretto by Antoine Houdar de la Motte. The opera is regarded as the first opéra-ballet, with the entrées sharing a comm ...

'' (Paris, 1697)

Sources

*Anthony, James R (1992), 'Le Rochois, Marie' in ''The

New Grove Dictionary of Opera ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera, considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volu ...

'', ed. Stanley Sadie (London)

External links

Photoarchive/Grove page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Le Rochois, Marie 1650s births 1728 deaths French operatic sopranos 17th-century French women opera singers 18th-century French women opera singers