René Mercier (end of the 19th century – 1 January 1973) was a 20th-century French composer and conductor.

Biography

Little is known about the life of René Mercier. Even his birth date is unknown. Composer of second rank, he is best known as a conductor. He never got very big personal success, apart from a few songs: : ''Elle s'était fait couper les cheveux'', in reference to the

flapper Flappers were a subculture of young Western women in the 1920s who wore short skirts (knee height was considered short during that period), bobbed their hair, listened to jazz, and flaunted their disdain for what was then considered acceptab ...

s of the 1920s. His patriotic song ', written during the war (1916) remains one of his great success, due to the circumstances. His

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

composer's career is uneven. ''J'te veux'' stayed 260 days in theaters. His biggest theatrical success is ''Déshabillez-vous'' (168 représentations). The following year, ''Bégonia'' was also successful, thanks to the presence of

Dranem Dranem (23 May 1869 – 13 October 1935) was a French comic singer, music hall, stage and film actor. History Born Armand Ménard, in Paris, he began working as an apprentice jeweler in a local shop before embarking on a career in entertainment ...

. He participated as a composer in several films of the 30s. After World War II, he was conductor in various music halls, including the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

from 1948 to 1955. At the

Théâtre des Capucines The Théâtre des Capucines was a former theatre on the boulevard des Capucines in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris. Built in 1889 by architect Édouard-Jean Niermans, it was taken over by two brothers, Émile Isola and Vincent Isola, in 1892 ...

, he composed the 1945 review with

Raoul Moretti Raoul Moretti (1893–1954) was a French composer of film scores.Lamb p.198 Specialising in light music, he also wrote operettas. Selected filmography * ''King of the Hotel'' (1932) * ''If You Wish It'' (1932) * ''Suburban Melody'' (1933) * ''Sin ...

. He directed the presentations of ''La Quincaillère de Chicago'' by

Louiguy Louis Guglielmi (3 April 1916 – 4 April 1991), known by his pen name Louiguy (), was a Spanish-born French musician of Italian descent. He wrote the melody for Édith Piaf's lyrics of "La Vie en Rose" and the Latin jazz composition "Ceris ...

in 1948, and ' by

Francis Lopez Francis Lopez (1916–1995) was a French composer of film scores.Powrie & Cadalanu p.113 He also wrote a number of operettas, many of which starred Luis Mariano. He was married several times including to the actress Sylvia Lopez. Selected film ...

in 1953 (1500 presentations).

Main works

;Vocal music * 1922 : ''Les Fifilles de Loth'' * 1923 : ''Benjamin'' * 1923 : ''J'te veux'' * 1925 : ''Le Pêché capiteux'' * 1928 : ''Déshabillez-vous !'' * 1930 : ''Bégonia'' * 1934 : ''Elles font toutes l'amour'' * 1935 : ''La Reine de la Sierra'' * 1936 : ''Un p'tit bout d'femme'' * 1937 : ''Échalote et ses amants'' ;Songs * 1916: '', lyrics by Eugène Joullot and Jack Cazol * 1925: ''Elle s'était fait couper les cheveux'', lyrics by Vincent Telly, sung by

Alexandre Dréan Alexandre Dréan, or simply Dréan, (12 November 1884 – 8 March 1977) was a 20th-century French actor and singer. His interpretation of the operetta '' Phi-Phi'' in 1920 made him popular. His best-known songs are ''Cache ton piano'' and ''El ...

* 1931: ', lyrics by Simon Deylon * 1932: ''Totor t'as tort ''

Filmography

* 1931: ''

The Man at Midnight ''The Man at Midnight'' (French: ''Le monsieur de minuit'') is a 1931 French comedy film directed by Harry Lachman and starring Jean Weber, Josseline Gaël and Marcel Simon.Cook p.514 It was the French-language version of the British film '' A ...

'' by

Harry Lachman Harry B. Lachman (June 29, 1886 – March 19, 1975) was an American artist, set designer, and film director. He was born in La Salle, Illinois on June 29, 1886. Lachman was educated at the University of Michigan before becoming a magazine and bo ...

* 1932: '' Sergeant X'' by Vladimir Strizhevsky * 1932: '' Kiss Me'' by

Léon Mathot Léon Mathot (5 March 1886, Roubaix, Nord-Pas-de-Calais - 6 March 1968, in Paris) was a French film actor and film director best known perhaps for playing Edmond Dantes in ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' film serial in 1918. He appeared in the 19 ...

(with

Vincent Scotto Vincent Scotto (21 April 1874 – 15 November 1952) was a French composer. Biography Early life Vincent Scotto was born on 21 April 1874 in Marseille to Pasquale Scotto d'Aniello and Antonia Intartaglia, from the island of Procida, north of th ...

) * 1934: '' C'était un musicien'' by

Maurice Gleize Maurice Gleize (1898–1974) was a French screenwriter and film director.Hayward p.201 Selected filmography Director * '' The Red Night'' (1923) * '' Madonna of the Sleeping Cars'' (1928) * ''A Hen on a Wall'' (1936) * ''Coral Reefs A coral ...

and

Friedrich Zelnik Frederic Zelnik (born Friedrich Zelnik, 17 May 1885 – 29 November 1950) was an Austrian producer, director, and actor. He was one of the most important producers-directors of the German silent cinema. Zelnik achieved success through period oper ...

* 1936: ''La Mariée du régiment'' by

Maurice Cammage Maurice Cammage is a French film director and dialoguist, born in 1882 and died on 15 April 1946 in Paris. Filmography * 1932 : '' Vive la classe'' * 1932 : '' Un beau jour de noces'' * 1932 : '' La Terreur de la pampa'' (script and dialogues b ...

External links

René Mercier
on data.bnf.fr *
Interprétation de ''Verdun ! On ne passe pas!''
by Jules Wolf (1878-1955)
''Adieu vieille Europe ''
by the

Légion étrangère The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, cavalry, engineers, airborne troops. It was created in 1831 to allow foreign nationals into the French Army. It ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mercier, Rene French operetta composers French film score composers French conductors (music) French male conductors (music) Date of birth unknown 1973 deaths French male film score composers