Camille Maurane
Encyclopedia
Camille Maurane, born Camille Moreau (November 29, 1911 – January 21, 2010), was a French
baritone
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 mother and family upheaval meant a break of twelve years in regular singing.
He studied at the Paris Conservatoire
in the class of Claire Croiza
from 1936-1939. He began his professional career as a singer in 1940 at the Opéra-Comique
in Paris
. After his debut as the Moine musicien in Le Jongleur de Notre-Dame
on 14 January 1940, he went to create the following roles at the Opéra-Comique:
He also sang in The Barber of Seville
, La Basoche
, Carmen
, Lakmé
, Louise
, Madame Bovary, Madame Butterfly, Werther
and Pelléas et Mélisande
. He was occasionally billed under the name Moreau.
His voice was typical of the baryton-martin range (between baritone
and tenor
). He is famous for his interpretation of Debussy
's Pelléas, for which he took part in three complete recordings of Pelléas et Mélisande
. He is also regarded as one of the best interpreters of French mélodies, of which he left many recordings, since reissued on CD, and of Fauré
's Requiem. His repertoire extended back to music of Rameau
through to Honegger and other contemporaries.
A dedicated teacher, he taught at the Paris Conservatory until 1981.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
baritone
Baritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
singer. His father was a music teacher and he started singing as a child in the Maîtrise Saint-Evode in Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
. The sudden death of his mother and family upheaval meant a break of twelve years in regular singing.
He studied at the Paris Conservatoire
Conservatoire de Paris
The Conservatoire de Paris is a college of music and dance founded in 1795, now situated in the avenue Jean Jaurès in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, France...
in the class of Claire Croiza
Claire Croiza
Claire Croiza was a French mezzo-soprano and an influential teacher of singers.-Career:Claire Croiza was born in Paris, the daughter of an expatriate American father and an Italian mother, and as a child she excelled at piano and singing...
from 1936-1939. He began his professional career as a singer in 1940 at the Opéra-Comique
Opéra-Comique
The Opéra-Comique is a Parisian 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 at the Hôtel de Bourgogne, and was also called the...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. After his debut as the Moine musicien in Le Jongleur de Notre-Dame
Le jongleur de Notre-Dame
Le jongleur de Notre-Dame is an opera in three acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Maurice Léna. It was first performed in Monte Carlo on 18 February 1902.-History:...
on 14 January 1940, he went to create the following roles at the Opéra-Comique:
- the captain (Nèle Dooryn, 1940)
- Doria (Ginevra, 1942)
- a man, a peasant (Mon Oncle Benjamin, 1942)
- a young man (Le Oui des Jeunes Filles, 1949).
- Un Soldat (Dolorès, 1952)
He also sang in The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville
The Barber of Seville, or The Futile Precaution is an opera buffa in two acts by Gioachino Rossini with a libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was based on Pierre Beaumarchais's comedy Le Barbier de Séville , which was originally an opéra comique, or a mixture of spoken play with music...
, La Basoche
La Basoche
La Basoche is an opéra comique in three acts of 1890, with music by André Messager and a French libretto by Albert Carré.-History:Messager's 1889 opérette Le mari de la reine at Bouffes-Parisiens was a disappointment, and the composer and his wife were struggling to afford even basic necessities...
, Carmen
Carmen
Carmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself possibly influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies by Alexander Pushkin...
, Lakmé
Lakmé
Lakmé is an opera in three acts by Léo Delibes to a French libretto by Edmond Gondinet and Philippe Gille. Delibes wrote the score during 1881–82 with its first performance on 14 April 1883 at the Opéra Comique in Paris. Set in British India in the mid 19th century, Lakmé is based on the 1880 novel...
, Louise
Louise (opera)
Louise is an opera in four acts by Gustave Charpentier to an original French libretto by the composer, with some contributions by Saint-Pol-Roux, a symbolist poet and inspiration of the surrealists....
, Madame Bovary, Madame Butterfly, Werther
Werther
Werther is an opera in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Édouard Blau, Paul Milliet and Georges Hartmann based on the German epistolary novel The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe....
and Pelléas et Mélisande
Pelléas et Mélisande (opera)
Pelléas et Mélisande is an opera in five acts with music by Claude Debussy. The French libretto was adapted from Maurice Maeterlinck's Symbolist play Pelléas et Mélisande...
. He was occasionally billed under the name Moreau.
His voice was typical of the baryton-martin range (between baritone
Baritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
and tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
). He is famous for his interpretation of Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
's Pelléas, for which he took part in three complete recordings of Pelléas et Mélisande
Pelléas et Mélisande (opera)
Pelléas et Mélisande is an opera in five acts with music by Claude Debussy. The French libretto was adapted from Maurice Maeterlinck's Symbolist play Pelléas et Mélisande...
. He is also regarded as one of the best interpreters of French mélodies, of which he left many recordings, since reissued on CD, and of Fauré
Faure
Faure or Fauré is a French family name and may refer to:People:* Edgar Faure, French politician* Élie Faure, French art historian and essayist* Émile Alphonse Faure, lead battery pioneer* Cédric Fauré, French football striker...
's Requiem. His repertoire extended back to music of Rameau
Jean-Philippe Rameau
Jean-Philippe Rameau was one of the most important French composers and music theorists of the Baroque era. He replaced Jean-Baptiste Lully as the dominant composer of French opera and is also considered the leading French composer for the harpsichord of his time, alongside François...
through to Honegger and other contemporaries.
A dedicated teacher, he taught at the Paris Conservatory until 1981.
External links
- Camille Maurane, baryton français (Wikipedia France, with discography)