Eugène Dufriche
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Eugène Dufriche (born 1848, date of death unknown) was a French
baritone A baritone is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the bass (voice type), bass and the tenor voice type, voice-types. It is the most common male voice. The term originates from the ...
, who had a career on the operatic stage from the 1870s in Paris through to the 1900s in New York.


Life and career

Having studied at the
Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), or 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 Jean Ja ...
, Dufriche sang Lothario from ''
Mignon ''Mignon'' () is an 1866 ''opéra comique'' (or opera in its second version) in three acts by Ambroise Thomas. The original French libretto was by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré, based on Goethe's 1795-96 novel '' Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre''. ...
'' at the prize concert in 1873. Dufriche made his debut at the Paris
Opéra-Comique The Opéra-Comique () is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular Théâtre de la foire, theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief riva ...
on 27 August 1874 as Loïc in '' Le pardon de Ploërmel''Soubies A, Malherbe C. ''Histoire de l'opéra comique – La seconde salle Favart 1840–1887.'' Flammarion, Paris, 1893. going on to sing in the 100th performance of the piece that September.Wolff S. ''Un demi-siècle d'Opéra-Comique (1900–1950).'' André Bonne, Paris, 1953. On 3 March 1875 he sang Zuniga in the world premiere of 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 novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...
'' at the Opéra-Comique. In December 1875 he sang the judge in the centenary performances of ''
Le calife de Bagdad ''Le calife de Bagdad'' (''The Caliph of Baghdad'') is an ''opéra comique'' in one act by the French composer François-Adrien Boieldieu with a libretto by Claude Godard d'Aucourt de Saint-Just. Dedicated to the landscape painter Bidauld it wa ...
'' by Boieldieu and in 1876 he sang Girot in ''
Le pré aux clercs ''Le pré aux clercs'' (, ''The Clerks' Meadow'') is an opéra comique in three acts by Ferdinand Hérold with a libretto by François-Antoine-Eugène de Planard based on Prosper Mérimée's ''Chronique du temps de Charles IX'' of 1829.Pougin A ...
''. In 1878 he undertook Roland in ''Les mousquetaires de la reine'' and Amgiad in ''
La statue ''La statue'' (''The Statue'') is an opera in three acts and five tableaux by Ernest Reyer to the libretto by Michel Carré and Jules Barbier based on tales from ''One Thousand and One Nights'' and ''La statue merveilleuse'', an 1810 carnival p ...
''. In 1879 he appeared as Scindia in ''Le roi de Lahore'' in Genoa. That year he also appeared in the Opéra-Populaire season at the Théâtre de la Gaîté, as Capulet in the Marquis d'Ivry's ''Amants de Vérone'', Montauban in ''Gilles de Bretagne'' by Kowalski, and Sainte-Croix in ''Paul et Virginie''. He left the Opéra-Comique in early 1882 to tour as a guest artist. Dufriche appeared in Monte Carlo in 1883 as Valentin in ''
Faust Faust ( , ) is the protagonist of a classic German folklore, German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust (). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a deal with the Devil at a ...
'' and Lothario in ''
Mignon ''Mignon'' () is an 1866 ''opéra comique'' (or opera in its second version) in three acts by Ambroise Thomas. The original French libretto was by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré, based on Goethe's 1795-96 novel '' Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre''. ...
''; Walsh comments that "like so many male singers of the period he appears to have been afflicted with the tremolo." His association with the
Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...
, London, began in 1890, and continued until 1905, roles including Quasimodo in ''Esmeralda'', Rabbi Davide in ''
L'amico Fritz ''L'amico Fritz'' () is an opera in three acts by Pietro Mascagni, premiered in 1891 to a libretto by P. Suardon ( Nicola Daspuro) (with additions by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti), based on the 1864 French novel ' by Émile Erckmann and Alexandr ...
'', creating Bustamente in ''
La Navarraise ''La Navarraise'' (, "The Woman of Navarre") is an opera in two acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Jules Claretie and Henri Cain, based on Claretie's short story ''La cigarette'' (1890). It was first performed at Royal Opera House, Co ...
'', and Amonasro in ''
Aida ''Aida'' (or ''Aïda'', ) is a tragic opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Antonio Ghislanzoni. Set in the Old Kingdom of Egypt, it was commissioned by Cairo's Khedivial Opera House and had its première there on 24 De ...
''. He also sang in St Petersburg, Buenos Aires and at the
Teatro di San Carlo The Real Teatro di San Carlo ("Royal Theatre of Saint Charles"), as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is a historic opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and ...
Naples, as well as returning to 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 kn ...
as Alphonse in ''
La favorite ''La favorite'' (''The Favourite'', frequently referred to by its Italian title: ''La favorita'') is a grand opera in four acts by Gaetano Donizetti to a French-language libretto by Alphonse Royer and Gustave Vaëz, based on the play ''Le com ...
'', Telramund in ''
Lohengrin Lohengrin () is a character in German Arthurian literature. The son of Parzival (Percival), he is a knight of the Holy Grail sent in a boat pulled by swans to rescue a maiden who can never ask his identity. His story, which first appears in Wo ...
'' and Amonasro in ''Aida''. In March 1892 he sang the 2nd tableau of the first act of ''
Parsifal ''Parsifal'' ( WWV 111) is a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is freely based on the 13th-century Middle High German chivalric romance ''Parzival'' of th ...
'' (in French) in a Paris Conservatoire concert conducted by Danbé. Between 1893 and 1908 Dufriche appeared regularly at the
Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...
, New York, mainly in supporting roles. In this time he also taught at the
National Conservatory of Music of America National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ...
. His wide repertoire there included roles in three Mozart operas, Donizetti and Rossini, the French repertory (including returning to ''Carmen'' as Dancaire), three
Meyerbeer Giacomo Meyerbeer (born Jakob Liebmann Meyer 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 ''Ro ...
operas, four Verdi operas, five Wagner operas, Italian
verismo In opera, , from , meaning 'true', was a post-Romantic operatic tradition associated with Italian composers such as Pietro Mascagni, Ruggero Leoncavallo, Umberto Giordano, Francesco Cilea and Giacomo Puccini. ''Verismo'' as an operatic ge ...
and operetta.Search results for: Dufriche, Eugène aritoneon the Metopera Database, accessed 10 December 2010. http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/frame.htm In 1880 he married singer
Suzanne Lagier Suzanne Lagier (30 November 1833 – 1893) was a French theatre actress and an opera singer. She often performed with Thérésa and made many appearances in Paris and Saint Petersburg. Biography Lagier was born in Dunkirk on 30 Novembe ...
in London.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dufriche, Eugene French operatic baritones 1848 births Year of death missing