Henri Benjamin Rabaud (10 November 187311 September 1949) was a French conductor, composer and pedagogue, who held important posts in the French musical establishment and upheld mainly conservative trends in French music in the first half of the twentieth century.Girardot A. Henri Rabaud. In: ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera.'' Macmillan, London and New York, 1997.Landormy P. ''La Musique Française après Debussy.'' Gallimard, Paris, 1943.

Life and career

Rabaud came from a musical background. He was the son of a cellist Hippolyte Rabaud (1839–1900), professor of cello at the

Paris Conservatoire 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 ...

, while his mother was a singer who almost created the role of Marguérite at the request of

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 ...

. His maternal grandfather was a well-known flautist, while his great aunt was

Julie Dorus-Gras Julie Dorus-Gras (born Valenciennes 7 September 1805 – 6 February 1896) was a Belgian operatic soprano. Early life and training She was born Julie-Aimée-Josèphe Van Steenkiste,Forbes, Elizabeth. "Dorus-Gras (née Van Steenkiste), Julie( ...

. Henri studied at the Conservatoire with André Gedalge and Jules Massenet. In 1908, he became a conductor at the Paris Opéra-Comique where he later conducted the 100th performance of his opera ''

Mârouf, savetier du Caire ''Mârouf, savetier du Caire'' (''Marouf, Cobbler of Cairo'') is an '' opéra comique'' by the French composer Henri Rabaud. The libretto, by Lucien Nepoty, is based on a tale from the '' Arabian Nights''. ''Mârouf'' was first performed at the ...

'', and from 1914 to 1918 he directed the Paris

Opéra This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names. "Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most c ...

. In 1918 he became musical director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra for only one season before returning to Paris. While in Boston, he was elected to membership in the Alpha chapter of

Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America (colloquially known as Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, Phi Mu Alpha, or simply Sinfonia) () is an American collegiate social fraternity for men with a special interest in music. The fraternity is open to men "w ...

fraternity, the national fraternity for men in music. Following the resignation of Gabriel Fauré in 1922, Rabaud was his successor as director of the Conservatoire, where he remained until his retirement in 1941. Notable students during those years were Olivier Messiaen,

Jean Langlais Jean François-Hyacinthe Langlais III (15 February 1907 – 8 May 1991) was a French composer of modern classical music, organist, and improviser. He described himself as "" ("Breton, of Catholic faith"). Biography Langlais was born in L ...

, and

Jehan Alain Jehan-Aristide Paul Alain (; 3 February 1911 – 20 June 1940) was a French organist, composer, and soldier. Born into a family of musicians, he learned the organ from his father and a host of other teachers, becoming a composer at 18, and compo ...

. Staff included

Paul Dukas Paul Abraham Dukas ( or ; 1 October 1865 – 17 May 1935) was a French composer, critic, scholar and teacher. A studious man of retiring personality, he was intensely self-critical, having abandoned and destroyed many of his compositions. His b ...

and

Jean Roger-Ducasse Jean Jules Aimable Roger-Ducasse (Bordeaux, 18 April 1873 – Le Taillan-Médoc ( Gironde), 19 July 1954) was a French composer. Biography Jean Roger-Ducasse studied at the Paris Conservatoire with Émile Pessard and André Gedalge, and was t ...

for composition,

Marcel Dupré Marcel Jean-Jules Dupré () (3 May 1886 – 30 May 1971) was a French organist, composer, and pedagogue. Biography Born in Rouen into a wealthy musical family, Marcel Dupré was a child prodigy. His father Aimable Albert Dupré was titular o ...

for organ,

Marcel Moyse Marcel Moyse (pron. ''moh-EEZ''; May 17, 1889, in St. Amour, France – November 1, 1984, in Brattleboro, Vermont, United States) was a French flautist. Moyse studied at the Paris Conservatory and was a student of Philippe Gaubert, Adolphe Hen ...

for flute, and

Claire Croiza Claire Croiza (14 September 1882 – 27 May 1946) was a French mezzo-soprano and an influential teacher of singers. Career Claire Croiza (née Conelly, or O'Connolly) was born in Paris, the daughter of an expatriate American father and an Italia ...

for singing. In October 1940, he helped compile a dossier describing in detail the racial make-up of all Conservatoire students for the occupying forces.

Compositions

Rabaud's cantata ''Daphné'' won the Premier

Grand Prix de Rome The Prix de Rome () or Grand Prix de Rome was a French scholarship for arts students, initially for painters and sculptors, that was established in 1663 during the reign of Louis XIV of France. Winners were awarded a bursary that allowed them t ...

in 1894. His opéra comique ''

'' combines the

Wagnerian Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

and the exotic. He wrote other operas, including ''L'appel de la mer'' based on

J. M. Synge Edmund John Millington Synge (; 16 April 1871 – 24 March 1909) was an Irish playwright, poet, writer, collector of folklore, and a key figure in the Irish Literary Revival. His best known play ''The Playboy of the Western World'' was poorly r ...

's ''

Riders to the Sea ''Riders to the Sea'' is a play written by Irish Literary Renaissance playwright John Millington Synge. It was first performed on 25 February 1904 at the Molesworth Hall, Dublin, by the Irish National Theater Society with Helen Laird playing Ma ...

'', as well as incidental music and

film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to e ...

s, such as the 1925 score for ''Joueur d'échecs'' (''Chess Player''). Orchestral music by Rabaud includes a ''Divertissement'' on Russian songs, an ''Eglogue'', a Virgilian poem for orchestra, as well as the symphonic poem ''La procession nocturne'', his best known orchestral work, still occasionally revived and recorded. He also wrote music for

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

and orchestra and two symphonies. His chamber music includes several works for cello and

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

as well as a ''Solo de concours'' for clarinet and piano — a virtuosic competition piece written in 1901 for Conservatoire contests. Conservative as a composer, he was known for his mantra, "

modernism Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

is the enemy."

Selected list of works

Stage *''La Fille de Roland''. Opera (1904) *''

'' Op. 14. Opera (1914) *''L'Appel de la mer''. Opera, 1924 (based on ''

'' by

John Millington Synge Edmund John Millington Synge (; 16 April 1871 – 24 March 1909) was an Irish playwright, poet, writer, collector of folklore, and a key figure in the Irish Literary Revival. His best known play ''The Playboy of the Western World'' was poorly r ...

)Wolff S. ''Un Demi-siècle d'Opéra-Comique (1900-1950).'' André Bonne, Paris, 1953. *''Rolande et le mauvais garçon''. Opéra en 5 actes (1934) Voice with orchestra *''Job'' Op. 9. Oratorio (1900) Orchestra *''Divertissement sur des chansons russes'' Op. 2 (1899) *''Procession nocturne''. "Symphonic poem after Nicolas Lenau" Op. 6 (1899) *''Eglogue''. Poème virgilien Op. 7 (1899) *Orchestration of Fauré's ''Dolly Suite'' (1906) *''Prélude et Toccata'' for piano and orchestra *Symphony No. 1 in D minor Op. 1 (1893) *Symphony No. 2 in E minor Op. 5 (1899)BNF Autograph Orchestral Score of Symphony 2
dated April 1899 Chamber music *String Quartet Op. 3 (1898) *Andante et Scherzo for flute, violin and piano Op. 8 (1899) *''Solo de Concours pour Clarinet et Piano'' Op. 10 (1901) Other *Incidental music for 'The Merchant of Venice', 1917 based on works by

William Byrd William Byrd (; 4 July 1623) was an English composer of late Renaissance music. Considered among the greatest composers of the Renaissance, he had a profound influence on composers both from his native England and those on the continent. He ...

Giles Farnaby Giles Farnaby (c. 1563 – November 1640) was an English composer and virginalist whose music spans the Transition from Renaissance to Baroque in instrumental music, transition from the Renaissance to the Baroque period. Life Giles Farnaby was ...

and others *Film scores for ''Le Miracle des Loups'' (1924) and ''Joueur d'échecs'' (1926)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rabaud, Henri 1873 births 1949 deaths Musicians from Paris Lycée Condorcet alumni French classical composers French male classical composers French male conductors (music) French conductors (music) French opera composers Male opera composers French film score composers French male film score composers Prix de Rome for composition Conservatoire de Paris alumni Members of the Académie des beaux-arts Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Directors of the Conservatoire de Paris

Life and career

Compositions

Selected list of works

See also

References

External links