Sapho (Gounod)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Sapho'' is a 3-act opera by
Charles Gounod Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...
to a libretto by
Émile Augier Guillaume Victor Émile Augier (; 17 September 182025 October 1889) was a French dramatist. He was the thirteenth member to occupy seat 1 of the Académie française on 31 March 1857. Biography Augier was born at Valence, Drôme Valence (, ...
which was premiered by the
Paris Opera 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 ...
at the
Salle Le Peletier The Salle Le Peletier or Lepeletier (sometimes referred to as the Salle de la rue Le Peletier or the Opéra Le Peletier) was the home of the Paris Opera from 1821 until the building was destroyed by fire in 1873. The theatre was designed and con ...
on 16 April 1851. It was presented only 9 times in its initial production, Lajarte 1878
p. 208
but was a ''succès d'estime'' for the young composer, with the critics praising Act 3 in particular.Huebner 1992, p. 176. It was later revived in 2-act (1858) and 4-act (1884) versions, achieving a total of 48 performances.Wolff 1962, pp. 198–199.


Background

The impetus for the composition of Gounod's first opera, and its acceptance for performance at France's premiere opera house, was primarily due to the influence of
Pauline Viardot Pauline Viardot (; 18 July 1821 – 18 May 1910) was a nineteenth-century French mezzo-soprano, pedagogue and composer of Spanish descent. Born Michelle Ferdinande Pauline García, her name appears in various forms. When it is not simply "Pauli ...
, who met the young composer in January or February 1850, shortly after her triumph there in Meyerbeer's ''
Le prophète ''Le prophète'' (''The Prophet'') is a grand opera in five acts by Giacomo Meyerbeer, which was premiered in Paris on 16 April 1849. The French-language libretto was by Eugène Scribe and Émile Deschamps, after passages from the ''Essay on the M ...
''.Huebner 1990, p. 26. In his memoirs Gounod relates that the violinist François Seghers, who at that time was the leader of the Concerts de la Société Sainte-Cécile on the Rue Chaussée-d'Antin, had presented some pieces by Gounod which had made a favorable impression. The Viardot family knew Seghers and through him Gounod received an invitation to play several of his compositions on the piano so they could hear them. After several hours Pauline Viardot asked Gounod why he had not yet written an opera. He responded that he did not have a libretto. When she asked with whom he might like to work, he mentioned that although he had known Augier in childhood, the latter had now become far more famous than he and would hardly care to risk working with someone with whom he had only played
hoops Hoop or Hoops may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * Hoops (TV series), ''Hoops'' (TV series), an American animated series Music * Hoops (band), an American indie pop band * Hoops (album), ''Hoops'' (album), a 2015 albu ...
. Viardot immediately told Gounod to seek out Augier and tell him that she would take the responsibility to sing the principal role in Gounod's opera, if Augier would write the poem. Gounod also says that Viardot recommended his opera to the director of the company, who at that time was
Nestor Roqueplan Louis-Victor-Nestor Roqueplan lso sometimes spelled Rocoplan(16 September 1805 – 24 April 1870) was a French writer, journalist, and theatre director. Early life and career Nestor Roqueplan was born near Montréal, Aude, and was the ...
. According to her daughter, Viardot made renewal of her contract for the 1850–1851 season at the Opéra conditional on a commission for Augier and Gounod. In any case, the contract between Augier, Gounod, and Roqueplan, which was dated 1 April 1850, specified a 2-act opera to be provided by 30 September 1850 and performed no later than 1 April 1851.


Composition history

Gounod, Augier, and Viardot were well suited for a collaboration. In reaction to some of the excesses of
French romanticism 19th-century French literature concerns the developments in French literature during a dynamic period in French history that saw the rise of Democracy and the fitful end of Monarchy and Empire. The period covered spans the following political re ...
, Augier (in addition to
François Ponsard François Ponsard (1 June 1814 – 7 July 1867) was a French dramatist, poet and author and was a member of the Académie française. Biography Ponsard was born at Vienne, Isère in 1814 and trained as a lawyer. His first literary work wa ...
) had become one of the leaders of a movement in which a primary aim was the restoration of classical subjects to French drama. Viardot had a well-known interest in Greek literature, and Gounod himself, partly from his religious studies of biblical subjects, had become fascinated with the ancient world. The legends concerning the Greek poet
Sappho Sappho (; el, Σαπφώ ''Sapphō'' ; Aeolic Greek ''Psápphō''; c. 630 – c. 570 BC) was an Archaic Greek poet from Eresos or Mytilene on the island of Lesbos. Sappho is known for her Greek lyric, lyric poetry, written to be sung while ...
were selected for the story of the opera, not least because this would provide a suitably serious and impressive title role for Viardot. In his memoirs Gounod writes that on 2 April, shortly after Augier had completed the libretto, Gounod's architect brother Urbain became gravely ill. The following day Gounod signed the contract, and on 6 April Urbain died, leaving behind a two-year-old child and a widow who was two-months pregnant, a distraught mother, and several unfinished architectural projects. It was a month before Gounod could even begin to think about working on the opera. Pauline Viardot, who was in Germany performing, wrote and offered her house in
Brie Brie (; ) is a soft cow's-milk cheese named after Brie, the French region from which it originated (roughly corresponding to the modern ''département'' of Seine-et-Marne). It is pale in color with a slight grayish tinge under a rind of white m ...
to Gounod as a tranquil retreat where he could focus on his composition as well as tend to the needs of his mother. Louis Viardot, Pauline's husband, had also offered money, presumably to help defray unanticipated expenses arising from Urbain's untimely demise. Pauline Viardot also asked the Russian poet
Ivan Turgenev Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev (; rus, links=no, Ива́н Серге́евич Турге́невIn Turgenev's day, his name was written ., p=ɪˈvan sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ tʊrˈɡʲenʲɪf; 9 November 1818 – 3 September 1883 (Old Style dat ...
, with whom she had an increasingly intimate relationship and who was on the verge of returning to Russia, to remain in France and join Gounod and his mother in Brie in order to provide additional support and comfort. A 16 May 1850 letter from Turgenev to Viardot provides an early glimpse of Gounod as composer:
What Gounod lacks somewhat is a brilliant and popular side. His music is like a temple: it is not open to all. I also believe that from his first appearance he will have enthusiastic admirers and great prestige as a musician with the general public; but fickle popularity, of the sort that stirs and leaps like a Bacchante, will never throw its arms around his neck. I even think that he will always hold it in disdain. His melancholy, so original in its simplicity and to which in the end one becomes so attached, does not have striking features that leave a mark upon the listener; he does not prick or arouse the listener—he does not titillate him. He possesses a wide range of colours on his palette but everything he writes—even a drinking song such as "Trinquons"—bears a lofty stamp. He idealizes everything he touches but in so doing he leaves the crowd behind. Yet among that mass of talented composers who are witty in a vulgar sort of way, intelligible not because of their clarity but because of their triviality, the appearance of a musical personality such as Gounod's is so rare that one cannot welcome him heartily enough. We spoke about these matters this morning. He knows himself as well as any man knows himself. I also do not think that he has much of a comic streak; Goethe once said "man ist am Ende … was man ist" one is in the end … what one is"
By early September Gounod had nearly finished writing the music, when Pauline Viardot returned to France. She expressed herself as quite satisfied with the music he had written and within a few days had learned it well enough to accompany herself on the piano from memory, a musical feat which Gounod regarded as one of the most extraordinary he had ever witnessed. This did not mean, however, that she did not want alterations. Among several suggested changes, was the use of the melody of Gounod's earlier "Chanson du pêcheur" for Sapho's final soliloquy "Ô ma lyre immortelle". This was subsequently to become the most famous number from the opera.
Gustave-Hippolyte Roger Gustave-Hippolyte Roger (17 December 1815 – 12 September 1879) was a French tenor. He is best known for creating the leading tenor roles in ''La damnation de Faust'' by Berlioz in 1846 and Meyerbeer's ''Le prophète'' in 1849. Early years and ...
, who was originally intended to sing the lead tenor role of Phaon, also visited and found that his part was too insubstantial, so Augier was asked to make additions and more changes to his poem.
Henry Chorley Henry Fothergill Chorley (15 December 1808 – 16 February 1872) was an English literary, art and music critic, writer and editor. He was also an author of novels, drama, poetry and lyrics. Chorley was a prolific and important music and litera ...
, another friend of the Viardots, also visited and may have made suggestions. In the end the opera had expanded to three acts and would occupy an entire evening. Rehearsals at the Opéra began the first week of February 1851. Further changes were required by the censor. An exchange of a political document for sexual favors between
Pythéas Pytheas of Massalia (; Ancient Greek: Πυθέας ὁ Μασσαλιώτης ''Pythéas ho Massaliōtēs''; Latin: ''Pytheas Massiliensis''; born 350 BC, 320–306 BC) was a Greeks, Greek List of Graeco-Roman geographers, geographer, explor ...
and Glycère caused a change in the line "prenez-moi pour amant" ("take me as a lover") to "traitez-moi tendrement" ("treat me tenderly"). Pythéas's verses "Oui, je comprends mignonne / Ton désir / Le mystère assaisonne / Le plaisir " ("Yes, I understand my sweet / Your desire / The spicy secret / The pleasure") became "Oui, j'aime ton caprice / De candeur / Le mystère est complice / Du bonheur" ("Yes, I like your whim / Of candor / The secret is an accessory / To happiness"). In the first act the character Alcée urges his fellow conspirators to slay the tyrant Pittacus. The censors' report of 12 April, four days before the premiere, suggested this passage could be an "inducement to popular agitation". The day before the premiere a new report stated: "Although the modifications diminish the danger we feared, they do not eliminate it completely." The political situation was becoming more precarious at the time:
Louis Napoleon Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...
was to declare himself emperor on 2 December.


Performance history

The opera finally opened on 16 April 1851. The sets were designed by
Charles Séchan Charles Polycarpe Séchan (29 June 1803 – 14 September 1874) was a French painter and theatre designer. Life Born in Paris, son of the tailor merchant Jean-Fris Séchan, he lost his parents, who had no fortune, very early on. He learned the ...
and
Édouard Desplechin Édouard Desplechin His name is often spelt "Despléchin" » with an acute accent. (12 April 1802 – 10 December 1871), was a 19th-century French scenic designer, one of the most famous of his time. Biography He created numerous settings for ...
, and the '' mise en scène'' was by Leroy. Although there was some indulgence for a composer's first work, and many in the audience found much to like, the opera did not do well. The music was unusual for its time, and focused on the psychological drama between Sapho and Glycère. The diverse elements and historical subject matter of
grand opera Grand opera is a genre of 19th-century opera generally in four or five acts, characterized by large-scale casts and orchestras, and (in their original productions) lavish and spectacular design and stage effects, normally with plots based on o ...
were missing, and some critics complained about the absence of a ballet. In some respects, it seemed a throwback to the style of
Christoph Willibald Gluck Christoph Willibald (Ritter von) Gluck (; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the Holy Roman Empire, he g ...
rather than an advancement over
Giacomo Meyerbeer Giacomo Meyerbeer (born Jakob Liebmann Beer; 5 September 1791 – 2 May 1864) was a German opera composer, "the most frequently performed opera composer during the nineteenth century, linking Mozart and Wagner". With his 1831 opera ''Robert le di ...
. Beginning with the third performance a ballet with music by Edouard Deldevez was added after the opera, to send the audience away in happier frame of mind, but it ended up making the evening far too long.
Hector Berlioz In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...
, writing in the ''
Journal des Débats The ''Journal des débats'' ( French for: Journal of Debates) was a French newspaper, published between 1789 and 1944 that changed title several times. Created shortly after the first meeting of the Estates-General of 1789, it was, after the ou ...
'' (22 April 1851), besides praising the music, was very positive about the subject of Gounod's opera:
It seems I have the misfortune to be neither of my time nor of my country. For me, Sapho's unhappy love and that other obsessive love of Glycera's and Phaon's error, Alcaeus' unavailing enthusiasm, the dreams of liberty that culminate in exile, the Olympic festival and the worship of art by an entire people, the admirable final scene in which the dying Sapho returns for a moment to life and hears on one side the last distant farewell of Phaon to the Lesbian shore and on another the joyous song of a shepherd awaiting his young mistress, and the bleak wilderness, the deep sea, moaning for its prey, in which that immense love will find a worthy tomb, and then the beautiful Greek scenery, the fine costumes and elegant buildings, the noble ceremonies combining gravity and grace — all this, I confess, touches me to the heart, exalts the mind, excites and disturbs and enchants me more than I can say.
Unfortunately, also unlike Meyerbeer, the inexperienced Gounod had failed to ensure that the principal singers would be available for an extended run. Viardot had accepted other engagements for the latter part of May. Her sixth and last performance was on 12 May, when she was replaced by Elisabeth Masson. However, even when Viardot was appearing, receipts were only in the range of 4000 frances, about half of what they would have been for a performance of ''Le prophète'' or ''
La juive ''La Juive'' () (''The Jewess'') is a grand opera in five acts by Fromental Halévy to an original French libretto by Eugène Scribe; it was first performed at the Opéra, Paris, on 23 February 1835. Composition history ''La Juive'' was one of t ...
''. Probably more significant were "structural weaknesses" in the opera itself. The pace was considered too slow and the declamatory sections too long. Later productions were not much more successful. ''Sapho'' received a single performance at London's
Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...
on 9 August 1851 with Viardot as Sapho, and a Paris revival on 26 July 1858 at the Opéra, which compressed the work to two acts, was presented only ten times. A later revision of the opera, presented by the Paris Opéra at the
Palais Garnier The Palais Garnier (, Garnier Palace), also known as Opéra Garnier (, Garnier Opera), is a 1,979-seatBeauvert 1996, p. 102. opera house at the Place de l'Opéra in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, France. It was built for the Paris Opera from ...
from 2 April to 29 December 1884, expanded it to four acts, with Gabrielle Krauss in the title role, but had little more success. A new character, Pittacus, was introduced; the composer conducted the first three performances of the 29-performance run.Noel and Stoullig 1885
pp. 4–9
(in French).
The score of this version was never published, but Augier included the libretto in the first volume of his ''Théâtre complète''. The opera received its American professional premiere on November 18, 2018, at
Lisner Auditorium Lisner Auditorium is a performance venue sited on the Foggy Bottom campus of The George Washington University, at 730 21st Street Northwest, Washington, D.C. Named for Abram Lisner (1852-1938), a university trustee and benefactor whose will provide ...
in
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Washington Concert Opera Washington Concert Opera is a professional opera company located in Washington, D.C. in the United States which presents operas in a Concert version, concert format with full orchestra and chorus. WCO's distinctive repertoire consists of operas wh ...
presented the work, with
Kate Lindsey Kate Lindsey (born 1980) is a mezzo-soprano opera singer from the United States. She is married to the documentary filmmaker Olly Lambert. Lindsey was born in Richmond, Virginia, and holds a Bachelor of Music Degree with Distinction from India ...
in the title role.


Roles


Synopsis

The story of the opera is based on the legends of the Greek poet
Sappho Sappho (; el, Σαπφώ ''Sapphō'' ; Aeolic Greek ''Psápphō''; c. 630 – c. 570 BC) was an Archaic Greek poet from Eresos or Mytilene on the island of Lesbos. Sappho is known for her Greek lyric, lyric poetry, written to be sung while ...
, her love for
Phaon In Greek mythology, Phaon (Ancient Greek: Φάων; ''gen''.: Φάωνος) was a mythical boatman of Mytilene in Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of ...
and her
suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
. :Place:
Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
and on the isle of
Lesbos Lesbos or Lesvos ( el, Λέσβος, Lésvos ) is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of with approximately of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece. It is separated from Anatolia, Asia Minor ...
:Time: 6th century BC


Act 1

''The Olympic games'' Phaon is torn in love between the poet Sapho and the courtesan Glycère, and is teased by Pythéas. Sapho wins the poetry competition from Alcée. Phaon declares his devotion to her.


Act 2

''Phaon's villa'' Phaon is involved in a revolutionary plot to establish freedom and justice. Pythéas agrees to supply details of the plot to Glycère in return for her favours. Glycère secretly informs the authorities, but deceitfully tells Sapho she will not inform if Phaon leaves Lesbos without Sapho. Phaon arranges to leave Lesbos, Sapho maintaining that she will not accompany him. Her inflexibility causes Phaon to turn to Glycère.


Act 3

''A windswept beach with the setting sun'' Phaon, Glycère and the conspirators bid farewell to their country. Sapho has come to bid them farewell but Phaon curses her. Nonetheless she forgives and blesses Phaon, and then commits suicide by leaping into the ocean.


Recordings

*
Katherine Ciesinski Katherine Ciesinski (born October 13, 1950) is an American mezzo-soprano, stage director, and voice professor. Ciesinski was born to Delaware Sports Hall of Famer Roman Ciesinski and Katherine Hansen Ciesinski. She is the sister of opera singer ...
, mezzo-soprano (Sapho); Éliane Lublin, soprano (Glycère);
Alain Vanzo Alain Vanzo (April 2, 1928 – January 27, 2002) was a French opera singer and composer, one of few French tenors of international standing in the postwar era. He, along with such singers as Henri Legay and the Canadian Léopold Simoneau, represen ...
, tenor (Phaon); Frédéric Vassar, bass-baritone (Pythéas); Alain Meunier, baritone (Alcée); French Radio Chorus and New Philharmonic Orchestra;
Sylvain Cambreling Sylvain Cambreling (born 2 July 1948 in Amiens, France) is a French conductor. Biography Trained as a trombone player, Cambreling studied at the Paris Conservatoire. He joined l' Orchestre Symphonique de Lyon (OSL) as a trombonist in 1971. In 19 ...
, conducting. Harmonia Mundi 2453/4 (3 LPs); 32453/4 (2 CDs). Text included. Recorded at a public performance in La Maison de la Radio Paris on 5 January 1979.Review of the Cambreling recording
''Gramophone'' (August 1986)
* Michèle Command, soprano (Sapho); Sharon Coste, soprano (Glycère); Christian Papis, tenor (Phaon); Eric Faury, tenor (Alcée); Lionel Sarrazin, bass-baritone (Pythéas); Saint-Étienne Lyric Chorus and Nouvel Orchestra;
Patrick Fournillier Patrick Fournillier (born 26 December 1954 in Neuilly-sur-Seine) is a French people, French Conducting, conductor, particularly associated with opera and with the works of Jules Massenet. He studied in Paris with Louis Fourestier and Pierre Derva ...
, conducting. Koch-Schwann (2 CDs). Notes, text, and translation included. Recorded live in March 1992 at the Grand Théâtre de la Maison de la Culture et de la Communication 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 ...
.Review of the Fournillier recording
''Gramophone'' (July 1994)
The final number "Ô ma lyre immortelle" has been recorded by many great singers beginning with
Félia Litvinne Félia Litvinne (11 October 1860, Saint Petersburg – 12 October 1936, Paris) was a Russian-born, French-based dramatic soprano. She was particularly associated with Wagnerian roles, although she also sang a wide range of parts by other opera co ...
and
Ernestine Schumann-Heink Ernestine Schumann-Heink (15 June 186117 November 1936) was a Bohemian-born Austrian-American operatic dramatic contralto of German Bohemian descent. She was noted for the flexibility and wide range of her voice. Early life She was born Ernest ...
down to
Grace Bumbry Grace Melzia Bumbry (born January 4, 1937), an American opera singer, is considered one of the leading mezzo-sopranos of her generation, as well as a major soprano earlier in her career. She is a member of a pioneering generation of African-Ameri ...
,
Shirley Verrett Shirley Verrett (May 31, 1931 – November 5, 2010) was an American operatic mezzo-soprano who successfully transitioned into soprano roles, i.e. soprano sfogato. Verrett enjoyed great fame from the late 1960s through the 1990s, particularly wel ...
, and
Marilyn Horne Marilyn Horne (born January 16, 1934) is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer. She specialized in roles requiring beauty of tone, excellent breath support, and the ability to execute difficult coloratura passages. She is a recipient of the Natio ...
among others.


References

Notes Sources * Augier, Émile (1894). "''Sapho'', opéra, musique de Charles Gounod" (libretto in French of the 1884 four-act version), pp. 451–504 in ''Théâtre complète de Émile Augier'', volume 1. Paris: Calmann Lévy. Extracted copy at
Wikimedia Commons Wikimedia Commons (or simply Commons) is a media repository of free-to-use images, sounds, videos and other media. It is a project of the Wikimedia Foundation. Files from Wikimedia Commons can be used across all of the Wikimedia projects in ...
. * Cairns, David (1999). ''Berlioz. Volume Two. Servitude and greatness 1832–1869''. Berkeley, California: University of California Press. . *
Chouquet, Gustave Gustave Chouquet (16 April 1819 – 30 January 1886)Grove & Charlton 2001. was a French music historian, music critic, and teacher of French. Early life and career Born Adolphe-Gustave Chouquet in Le Havre, he spent six years in Paris studying ...
(1873). ''Histoire de la musique dramatique en France'' (in French), pp. 309–425. Paris: Didot
View
at
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...
. * Gounod, Charles (1896). ''Mémoires d'un artiste'' (in French). Paris: Calmann, Lévy
View
at
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...
. * Gourret, Jean (1982). ''Dictionnaire des chanteurs de l'Opéra de Paris''. Paris: Albatros
View formats and editions
at
WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the OCL ...
. * Gourret, Jean (1987). ''Dictionnaire des cantatrices de l'Opéra de Paris''. Paris: Albatros. . * Huebner Steven (1990). ''The Operas of Charles Gounod.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press. . * Huebner Steven (1992). "''Sapho'' (i)" in Sadie 1992, vol. 4, . *
Kutsch, K. J. Karl-Josef Kutsch, also known as K. J. Kutsch, (born 11 May 1924) is a German physician and co-author with Leo Riemens of the ''Großes Sängerlexikon'', the standard reference for opera singers. Life and work Born in Gangelt, Kutsch studied me ...
;
Riemens, Leo Leonardus Antony Marinus Riemens (3 December 1910 – 3 April 1985) was a Dutch musicologist and cultural journalist. He wrote a book about Maria Callas, and together with Karl-Josef Kutsch began a reference book about opera singers in 1962, which ...
(2003). ''
Großes Sängerlexikon ''Großes Sängerlexikon'' (''Biographical Dictionary of Singers'', literally: Large singers' lexicon) is a single-field dictionary of singers in classical music, edited by Karl-Josef Kutsch and Leo Riemens and first published in 1987. The first ...
'' (fourth edition, in German). K. G. Saur, Munich. . * Lajarte, Théodore (1878). ''Bibliothèque musicale du Théâtre de l'Opéra'', volume 2 793–1876 Paris: Librairie des Bibliophiles
View
at
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...
. *Loewenberg, Alfred (1978). ''Annals of Opera 1597–1940'' (third edition, revised). London, John Calder. . Totowa, New Jersey: Rowman and Littlefield. . * Meissner, Günter, editor (2000). ''The Artists of the World: Bio-bibliographical Index A–Z'' (10 volumes). Munich: K. G. Sauer. . * Noel, Édouard; Stoullig, Edmond (1885). ''
Les Annales du théâtre et de la musique ''Les Annales du Théâtre et de la Musique'' ("The Annals of Theatre and Music") was an annual French periodical which covered French dramatic and lyric theatre for 42 years, from 1875 to 1916. The volumes also covered concert series and ne ...
, dixième année, 1884''. Paris: G. Charpentier
View
at
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...
. * Pitou, Spire (1990). ''The Paris Opéra: An Encyclopedia of Operas, Ballets, Composers, and Performers. Growth and Grandeur, 1815–1914''. New York: Greenwood Press. . * Sadie, Stanley, editor (1992). ''
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 ...
''. London: Macmillan. . * Wolff, Stéphane (1962). ''L'Opéra au Palais Garnier (1875–1962)''. Paris: Deposé au journal L'Entr'acte . Paris: Slatkine (1983 reprint) .


External links

*
''Sapho'' French libretto (Brussels, 1851)
at
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...

''Sapho'' French libretto (1884 version)
from ''Théâtre complet de Émile Augier'' (vol. 1, Paris, 1894) at
HathiTrust HathiTrust Digital Library is a large-scale collaborative repository of digital content from research libraries including content digitized via Google Books and the Internet Archive digitization initiatives, as well as content digitized locally ...
{{Authority control Operas 1851 operas Cultural depictions of Sappho French-language operas Operas by Charles Gounod Opera world premieres at the Paris Opera Operas set in ancient Greece