Massenet Festival (''Festival Massenet'') is a

biennale Biennale (), Italian for "biennial" or "every other year", is any event that happens every two years. It is most commonly used within the art world to describe large-scale international contemporary art exhibitions. As such the term was popularis ...

festival of music by French composer,

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' ...

held in

Saint-Étienne Saint-Étienne (; frp, Sant-Etiève; oc, Sant Estève, ) is a city and the prefecture of the Loire department in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Saint-Étienne is the t ...

, France, close to the area where the composer was born. The first Massenet Festival took place in November 1990 when the opera ''

Cléopâtre ''Cléopâtre'' is an opera in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Louis Payen. It was first performed at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo on 23 February 1914, nearly two years after Massenet's death. ''Cléopâtre'' is one of three ope ...

'' and the oratorio ''

La Vierge ''La Vierge'' is an oratorio (''légende sacrée'') in four scenes by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Charles Grandmougin. It was first performed at the Opéra in Paris on May 22, 1880. The oratorio is a recounting of the story of the V ...

'' were presented. In recent years, performances have been given in the Grand Théâtre Massenet, one of the theatres of the Opéra Théâtre de Saint-Etienne, and formerly known as L'Esplanade.

History

Appointed to run the Opéra de Saint-Etienne in 1986, Jean-Louis Pichon invited

Jean-Pierre Jacquillat Jean-Pierre Jacquillat (13 July 1935 – 6 August 1986) was a French conductor. Jacquillat was born in Versailles in 1935. He was named assistant to Charles Munch at the Orchestre de Paris in 1967. He was chief conductor of the Iceland Sy ...

to become musical director. Shortly afterwards, the elderly widow of a chief electrician at the Théâtre Eden handed over a mass of rare vocal scores, which included '' Amadis'' by Massenet. Intrigued, Pichon obtained a conductor's score for Jacquillat, but the conductor was killed in a road accident that August and a replacement was needed urgently. Eventually Pichon found Patrick Fournillier, then head of the Orchestre d'Auvergne.Laurent Bury
"Jean-Louis Pichon: 'Je pense avoir fait évoluer le regard des gens sur Massenet'"
Interview with Jean-Louis Pichon, 9 Nov 2011, on forumopera.com. Accessed 10 August 2014. The revival of ''Amadis'' in January 1988 was a great success, broadcast by Radio-France which led to a commercial issue with the orchestra and chorus of the Opéra de Paris. As part of the bicentenary celebration of the French revolution, ''Thérèse'' was staged in 1989 in several houses, Monte-Carlo, then Saint-Etienne, (whose production was selected to represent France at the European Festival of culture in Karlsruhe), then Łodz and Zagreb. Following the success of staging Massenet's ''Amadis'' in 1988 during this "unofficial" festival of his work, the organizers decided to seek funding for regular festivals; the Région Rhône-Alpes and France Télécom became main sponsors and the first Festival Massenet took place in November 1990. The Festival has occasionally incorporated a colloquy around the composer. In 1992 it was « Massenet et son œuvre dans le contexte esthétique de son temps ». Speakers in the latter included

Roger Delage Roger Delage (4 December 1922 – 8 February 2001) was a French musicologist and conductor. He was the leading authority on the life and works of the composer Emmanuel Chabrier, and as a conductor was known for reviving the music of early French c ...

on Massenet and Chabrier, Steven Huebner on Wagnerism in ''Esclarmonde'',

Hugh Macdonald Hugh John Macdonald (born 31 January 1940 in Newbury, Berkshire) is an English musicologist chiefly known for his work within the music of the 19th century, especially in France. He has been general editor of the ''Hector Berlioz: New Edition of ...

on Massenet and the comic, and the musical language of Massenet by

Gérard Condé Gérard Condé (born 26 January 1947) is a French composer and music critic. Life Born in Nancy, Condé was first self-taught until 1965 then studied harmony at the before following the teaching of Max Deutsch (composition) in Paris between ...

.Colloque International ~ Massenet et son temps. Notice in: ''L’Avant-Scène Opéra 148 – Esclarmonde ~ Grisélidis.'' L’Avant-Scène Opéra, Paris 1992, . In 2001 the subject was « Le livret d’opéra au temps de Massenet » (published as a book in 2002), with topics such as the career of

Louis Gallet Louis Gallet (14 February 1835 in Valence, Drôme – 16 October 1898) was a French writer of operatic libretti, plays, romances, memoirs, pamphlets, and innumerable articles, who is remembered above all for his adaptations of fiction —and ...

, use of

Pierre Loti Pierre Loti (; pseudonym of Louis Marie-Julien Viaud ; 14 January 1850 – 10 June 1923) was a French naval officer and novelist, known for his exotic novels and short stories.This article is derived largely from the ''Encyclopædia Britannica El ...

in the lyric theatre and Massenet's choice of operatic subjects. The L'Esplanade opera house in Saint-Étienne burned down (by arson) in September 1998, and the originally planned co-production of ''Le Roi de Lahore'' with the

Opéra de Bordeaux This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names. "Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most c ...

was first seen in that city before being staged in Saint-Etienne the following year in a temporary theatre on the site of the Foire-Exposition. The re-opening of the Théâtre de l’Esplanade in March 2001 featured Hérodiade (with Alexia Cousin,

Alain Fondary Alain Fondary (born 9 October 1932 in Bagnolet) is a French baritone. Biography Before embarking on his lyrical career, Alain Fondary followed the family tradition of glass blower, like his parents, in Paris, Boulevard Voltaire. He attended glas ...

, Béatrice Uria-Monzon and Luca Lombardo), and the sixth Festival in November that year offered ''Roma'' which Pichon had already produced for Martina Franca in 1999.

Festival highlights

In 1992 ''

Esclarmonde ''Esclarmonde'' () is an opéra (french: opéra romanesque) in four acts and eight tableaux, with prologue and epilogue, by Jules Massenet, to a French libretto by Alfred Blau and Louis Ferdinand de Gramont. It was first performed at the Expos ...

'' was staged (with Denia Mazzola Gavazzeni in the title role) along with ''

Grisélidis ''Grisélidis'' is an opera (described as a ' conte lyrique') in three acts and a prologue by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Armand Silvestre and Eugène Morand. It is based on the play by the same authors first performed at the Comédi ...

'' and the oratorio ''La Terre Promise'' (with

Laurent Naouri Laurent Naouri, Chevalier L.H. (born May 23, 1964) is a French bass-baritone. Initially beginning his education at the École Centrale de Lyon, Naouri decided to concentrate on opera in 1986 and continued his musical studies at the Guildhall S ...

), while the Third Massenet Festival in 1994 brought revivals of '' Panurge'', and ''

Le Cid ''Le Cid'' is a five-act French tragicomedy written by Pierre Corneille, first performed in December 1636 at the Théâtre du Marais in Paris and published the same year. It is based on Guillén de Castro's play ''Las Mocedades del Cid''. Castro' ...

''. In 2003 the 7th Festival included '' Sapho'', conducted by

Laurent Campellone Laurent Campellone (born January 23, 1972) is a French Conductor (music), conductor. Known around the world for his expertise in the French opera of the Romantic era music, Romantic era, he is often compared to Michel Plasson. Critics consider him ...

. Over the years, the following Massenet operas have been presented: *''

'' and the oratorio ''

'' (1990) *''Esclarmonde'', ''Grisélidis'' (concert) and the oratorio ''La Terre Promise'' (1992) *''Panurge'', and ''Le Cid'' (concert) (1994) *''

Thaïs Thaïs or Thais ( el, Θαΐς; flourished 4th century BC) was a famous Greek ''hetaira'' who accompanied Alexander the Great on his campaigns. Likely from Athens, she is most famous for instigating the burning of Persepolis. At the time, Thaï ...

'' (1996) *''

Le roi de Lahore ''Le roi de Lahore'' ("The king of Lahore") is an opera in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Louis Gallet. It was first performed at the Palais Garnier in Paris on 27 April 1877 in costumes designed by Eugène Lacoste and setti ...

'' and ballets ''Le Carillon'', and ''Le Cid'' (ballet music) (1999) *''

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

'' (November 2001) *''Sapho'' (2003) *'' Le jongleur de Notre-Dame'' (2005), preceded by the ballet ''Le Cigale'', contemporary with the opera *'' Ariane'' (2007) *''

Manon ''Manon'' () is an ''opéra comique'' in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille, based on the 1731 novel '' L'histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut'' by the Abbé Prévost. It was first ...

'' (2009) *''

Cendrillon ''Cendrillon'' (''Cinderella'') is an opera—described as a "fairy tale"—in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Caïn based on Perrault's 1698 version of the Cinderella fairy tale. It had its premiere performance on 24 ...

'' and '' Le mage'' (October/November 2012)

Recordings

Festival performances before 1995 were released on

audio CD Compact Disc Digital Audio (CDDA or CD-DA), also known as Digital Audio Compact Disc or simply as Audio CD, is the standard format for audio compact discs. The standard is defined in the ''Red Book'', one of a series of Rainbow Books (named fo ...

(on the label Koch-Schwann) and others have followed, such as ''Thérèse'' from 2012 (on Ediciones Singulares).Andrew Clements
"Jules Massenet: ''Thérèse'' – review"
13 July 2013. Accessed 27 June 2014.

References

Notes

External links

Massenet Festival Official Web-siteLibrary on Massenet Festivals
{{Authority control Music festivals in France Opera festivals Recurring events established in 1990 1990 establishments in France Saint-Étienne

History

Festival highlights

Recordings

See also

References

External links