Nelly Martyl (1 April 1884 – 9 November 1953), born Nelly Adèle Anny Martin, was a French opera singer based in Paris who participated in several world premieres. During

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 the

1918 flu epidemic The 1918–1920 influenza pandemic, commonly known by the misnomer Spanish flu or as the Great Influenza epidemic, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. The earliest documented case was ...

, she worked as a nurse and received the

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

for her service.

Early life

Nelly Adèle Anny Martin was born in Paris, the daughter of Jules Edouard Martin and Hélène Fleming. Her mother was English. She trained 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 ...

, studying with teachers Martini and

Jacques Isnardon Jacques Isnardon (15 February 1860 – 14 November 1930) was a French bass-baritone, writer and voice teacher. After winning a competition at the Paris Conservatory, he made his debut as Baxter in Émile Paladilhe's ''Diane (Paladilhe), Diane'' ...

Career

Martyl was a soprano opera singer in Paris. She made her professional debut in 1907 in Gluck's '' Armide''. She joined 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 1909, where she appeared as Micaela 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 ...

'', Sophie in Massenet's ''

Werther ''Werther'' is an opera (''drame lyrique'') in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Édouard Blau, Paul Milliet and Georges Hartmann (who used the pseudonym Henri Grémont). It is loosely based on Goethe's epistolary novel ''The S ...

'', Mimi in Puccini's ''

La bohème ''La bohème'' (; ) is an opera in four acts,Puccini called the divisions ''quadri'', ''tableaux'' or "images", rather than ''atti'' (acts). composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895 to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe G ...

'' and in the title role of Massenet's ''

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 ...

'', among others. Martyl performed in several world premieres, including Le Borne's ''La Catalane'' (1907), Erlanger's ''La Sorcière'' (1912), and, at the

Monte Carlo Opera Monte may refer to: Places Argentina * Argentine Monte, an ecoregion * Monte Desert * Monte Partido, a ''partido'' in Buenos Aires Province Italy * Monte Bregagno * Monte Cassino * Montecorvino (disambiguation) * Montefalcione Portugal * Mont ...

, Massenet's '' Amadis'' in 1922. She appeared in London's

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

Covent Garden in 1910, and recorded a duet in 1911. She was featured in fashion magazines, wearing gowns by Paris designers. Nelly Martyl sings La Marseillaise at a Scottish hospital during World War I - Original

Nelly Martyl sings La Marseillaise at a Scottish hospital during World War I - Original

During World War I, she became a

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

nurse. She served at the

Battle of Verdun The Battle of Verdun (french: Bataille de Verdun ; german: Schlacht um Verdun ) was fought from 21 February to 18 December 1916 on the Western Front in France. The battle was the longest of the First World War and took place on the hills north ...

in 1916, where she was called "la fée de Verdun" (the fairy of Verdun), and at the

Second Battle of the Aisne The Second Battle of the Aisne (french: Bataille du Chemin des Dames or french: Seconde bataille de l'Aisne, 16 April – mid-May 1917) was the main part of the Nivelle Offensive, a Franco-British attempt to inflict a decisive defeat on the Germa ...

in 1917. She also gave recitals in the military hospitals, and sang at benefit concerts. She was wounded and gassed, and after the war continued as a nurse during the

. She was decorated with the

with the carte du combattant (signifying service under particular hazard) in 1920. After the war, Martyl created a charitable medical foundation with automobile racer Magdeleine Goüin, and the Nelly-Martyl Foundation's dispensary opened in 1929 in Paris; the building was razed in 2017, despite some efforts to preserve it.

Personal life

In 1909, Nelly Martyl married French artist

Georges Scott Georges Bertin Scott (10 June 1873 – 10 January 1943)Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...

. In 2016, to mark the centenary of Verdun, a novel about Martyl, ''La fée de Verdun'' by , was published.

References

External links

* Ashok Arakelyan (May 21, 2017)
"Forgotten Opera Singers: Nelly Martyl (Soprano) (1884–1953)"
a blog post about Martyl. * Gerard (December 27, 2019)
"Nelly Martyl, la fée de Verdun"
''Paris à Nu,'' a blog post about Martyl.
A recording of Nelly Martyl singing
in 1911, from YouTube. {{DEFAULTSORT:Martyl, Nelly 1884 births 1953 deaths Singers from Paris French women in World War I Recipients of the Croix de Guerre (France) Health professionals from Paris French women nurses 20th-century French women opera singers Conservatoire de Paris alumni French people of English descent