Dumesnil (also known as Louis Gaulard Dumesny) ( fl. 1677–1700, died 1702) was a French operatic

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, 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 lo ...

. His surname is sometimes found spelt Duménil, Dumény, du Mény, or Du Mesny. Little is known about Dumesnil's early life, legend has it that he was working as a cook when

Jean-Baptiste Lully Jean-Baptiste Lully ( , , ; born Giovanni Battista Lulli, ; – 22 March 1687) was an Italian-born French composer, guitarist, violinist, and dancer who is considered a master of the French Baroque music style. Best known for his operas, he ...

heard him singing and was impressed by his natural and well focused voice, his vocal range was then known as

haute-contre The haute-contre (plural hautes-contre) was the primary French operatic tenor voice, predominant in French Baroque and Classical opera, from the middle of the seventeenth century until the latter part of the eighteenth century. History This voice ...

. He made his stage debut in 1677,In fact, Dumesny (spelt Du Mesnil) is already cited as a member of the chorus performing the Hours of the Day, in the 1676 libretto of Lully's '' Atys'' (accessible for free online a
Gallica - B.N.F.
. singing a small part in ''

Isis Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...

'', and then went on creating all roles within his range in a series of operas by Lully. After Lully's death he created several other roles in operas by different composers, notably

Pascal Collasse Pascal Collasse (or Colasse) (22 January 1649 (baptised) – 17 July 1709) was a French composer of the Baroque era. Born in Rheims, Collasse became a disciple of Jean-Baptiste Lully during the latter's domination of the French operatic stage ...

Marc-Antoine Charpentier Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'', ''Marche en rondeau''. This theme is still us ...

, André Campra, and

André Cardinal Destouches André Cardinal Destouches (sometimes called des Touches) (baptised 6 April 1672 – 7 February 1749) was a French composer best known for the ''opéra-ballet'' ''Les élémens''. Biography Born in Paris, the son of Étienne Cardinal, a ...

. An excellent actor with a powerful voice, he seemed to have learned all his roles by memory as he did not know how to read music. Reputed as a libertine, and for his dispute with La Maupin.

Roles created

* 1682: The title role in ''

Persée ''Persée'' (''Perseus'') is a tragédie lyrique with music by Jean-Baptiste Lully and a libretto by Philippe Quinault, first performed on 18 April 1682 by the Opéra at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal in Paris. Roles Synopsis ACT I: The Pal ...

'' by Lully * 1684: The title role in '' Amadis'' by Lully * 1686: Renaud in '' Armide'' by Lully * 1686; Acis in ''

Acis et Galatée ''Acis et Galatée'' (''Acis and Galatea'') is an opera by Jean-Baptiste Lully. Unlike most of his operas, which are designated '' tragédies en musique'', Lully called this work a '' pastorale-héroïque'', because it was on a pastoral theme an ...

'' by Lully * 1687: Achille in ''

Achille et Polyxène ''Achille et Polyxène'' (''Achilles and Polyxena'') is a tragédie lyrique containing a prologue and five acts based on Virgil's ''Aeneid'' with a French libretto by Jean Galbert de Campistron. The opera's overture and first act were composed by ...

'' by Lully and Collasse * 1689: Pélée in ''Thétis et Pélée'' by Collasse * 1690: Énée in ''Énée et Lavinie'' by Collasse * 1693: Énée in '' Didon'' by Henri Desmarets * 1693: Jason in ''

Médée ''Médée'' is a dramatic tragedy in five acts written in alexandrine verse by Pierre Corneille in 1635. Summary The heroine of the play is the sorceress Médée. After Médée gives Jason twin boys, Jason leaves her for Creusa. Médée ...

'' by Marc-Antoine Charpentier * 1697: Octavio in ''

L'Europe galante ''L'Europe galante'' (''Galant Europe'') is an opéra-ballet in a prologue and four entrées by André Campra to a French libretto by Antoine Houdar de la Motte. The opera is regarded as the first opéra-ballet, with the entrées sharing a comm ...

'' by André Campra * 1697: Philémon in ''

Issé Issé (; br, Izeg) is a Communes of France, commune on the banks of the river Don (Vilaine), Don in the Loire-Atlantique Departments of France, department in western France. It is situated 10 km southeast of Châteaubriant. Population Tr ...

'' by Destouches * 1697: Adonis in ''

Vénus et Adonis ''Vénus et Adonis'' is an opera (''tragédie en musique'') in a prologue and 5 acts composed by Henri Desmarets to a libretto by Jean-Baptiste Rousseau. Based on the story of Venus and Adonis in Book X of Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'', it was first ...

'' by Henri Desmarets * 1699: in ''Amadis de Grèce'' by Destouches

References

* Weller, Philip (1992), 'Dumesnil' in ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', ed. Stanley Sadie (London) * ''Le guide de l'opéra, les indispensables de la musique'', R.Mancini & J.J.Rouvereux, (Fayard, 1986), {{DEFAULTSORT:Dumesnil French operatic tenors 1702 deaths Year of birth unknown 17th-century French male opera singers