Jean-Blaise Martin, full name Nicolas Jean-Blaise Martin
/ref> (February 24, 1768 in Paris – October 28, 1837 in Tourzel-Ronzières) 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 libr ...

singer whose

tessitura In music, tessitura (, pl. ''tessiture'', "texture"; ) is the most acceptable and comfortable vocal range for a given singer or less frequently, musical instrument, the range in which a given type of voice presents its best-sounding (or characte ...

lay between

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...

and

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the ...

, which became later known as " baryton-martin".

Life and career

Jean-Blaise Martin began singing publicly as a child, before his voice broke. He made his professional operatic debut in 1789, at the Théâtre Feydeau, in Paris, in a parody called . He then studied with Madame Dugazon, and made his debut at 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 1794, and sang there until 1823. He became a member of the theatre's administrative committee in 1801. He also taught at the

Conservatoire de Musique 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 ...

of Paris, from 1825 to 1837. He composed one

opéra comique ''Opéra comique'' (; plural: ''opéras comiques'') is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged from the popular '' opéras comiques en vaudevilles'' of the Fair Theatres of St Germain and St Laurent (and to a l ...

, , produced at the Théâtre Feydeau in 1796. During his career, he created some 15 roles in operas by

Nicolas Dalayrac Nicolas-Marie d'Alayrac (; bapt. 13 June 175326 November 1809), nicknamed the Musician poet, more commonly Nicolas Dalayrac, was a French composer of the Classical period. Intended for a military career, he made the acquaintance of many mu ...

, François Devienne, André Grétry,

Étienne Méhul Étienne Nicolas Méhul (; 16 November 1765 ~ 24 December 1817) was a French composer of the classical period. He was known as "the most important opera composer in France during the Revolution". He was also the first composer to be called a ...

Nicolas Isouard Nicolas Isouard (also known as ''Nicolò'', ''Nicolò Isoiar'' or ''Nicolò de Malte''; 18 May 1773 – 23 March 1818) was a Maltese-born French composer. Biography Born in Porto Salvo, Valletta, Malta, Isouard studied in Rabat or Mdina with Fra ...

Ferdinando Paer Ferdinando Paer (1 July 1771 – 3 May 1839) was an Italian composer known for his operas. He was of Austrian descent and used the German spelling Pär in application for printing in Venice, and later in France the spelling Paër. Life and career ...

, etc. Martin's voice was described as a "", meaning a deep-voiced dark tenor, or as a "", meaning a clear-voiced high baritone; the compass was E flat to a, with a

falsetto ''Falsetto'' (, ; Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ligamentou ...

extension to a'. His vocal type became known as , most often found in French

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 ...

. Modern examples of this voice type include French baritone

Michel Dens Michel Dens (22 June 1911 in Roubaix – 19 December 2000 in Paris) was a French baritone, particularly associated with the French repertory, both opera and operetta. Born Maurice Marcel, the son of a journalist, he studied at the Academy ...

, and more recently

Bernard Sinclair Bernard Sinclair (1937 – 27 November 2015) was a French singer (baritone) particularly associated with the repertoire of the opéra comique and operetta, but also opera. He is also an actor, playwright and director. He died in the 10th arrondi ...

, who can be heard in a few operetta recordings such as ''

La fille de Madame Angot ''La fille de Madame Angot'' (''Madame Angot's Daughter'') is an opéra comique in three acts by Charles Lecocq with words by Clairville, Paul Siraudin and Victor Koning. It was premiered in Brussels in December 1872 and soon became a success ...

'', '' Les cloches de Corneville'', and ''

Valses de Vienne ''Walzer aus Wien'' ("Waltzes from Vienna," titled ''The Great Waltz'' in English) is a singspiel pasticcio in three acts, libretto by Alfred Maria Willner, and Ernst Marischka, music by Johann Strauss II (son), arranged by Erich Wolfgang Korng ...

''. In the operatic repertoire, the most famous role for is Pelléas in

Claude Debussy (Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most infl ...

's '' Pelléas et Mélisande''.

Camille Maurane Camille Maurane (November 29, 1911 – January 21, 2010), born Camille Moreau, was a French baryton-martin singer. His father was a music teacher and he started singing as a child in the Maîtrise Saint-Evode in Rouen. The sudden death of his moth ...

and Jacques Jansen are widely recognized as having been the best exponents of the role.

Roles created

*1804: A bard in ''

Ossian, ou Les bardes ''Ossian, ou Les bardes'' (English: ''Ossian, or The Bards'') is an opera in five acts by the French composer Jean-François Le Sueur. The libretto, by Alphonse François "Paul" Palat-Dercy and Jacques-Marie Deschamps, is based on the Ossian p ...

'' by

Jean-François Le Sueur Jean-François Le Sueur (more commonly Lesueur; ) (15 February 17606 October 1837) was a French composer, best known for his oratorios and operas. Life He was born at Plessiel, a hamlet of Drucat near Abbeville, to a long-established family of ...

*1821: Barnabé in ''

Le maître de chapelle ''Le maître de chapelle, ou Le souper imprévu'' (''The Chapelmaster, or The Unexpected Supper'') is an opéra comique in two acts by the Italian composer Ferdinando Paer. The French libretto, by Sophie Gay, is based on ''Le souper imprévu, ou ...

'' by

Sources

* Roland Mancini and Jean-Jacques Rouveroux, (orig. H. Rosenthal and J. Warrack, French edition), ''Guide de l’opéra'', Les indispensables de la musique (Fayard, 1995).

References

Biography of Jean-Blaise Martin (in German) at Operissimo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Jean-Blaise 1768 births 1837 deaths Singers from Paris French operatic baritones Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery