François Anatole Laurent de Rillé
Encyclopedia
François Anatole Laurent de Rillé (1828 Orléans
- 1915 Rennes
), was a French
composer
, writer
and musical theorist.
De Rillé composed a number of operettas and sacred music works, but his name is more frequently associated with the so called "Orphéonist" movement, which had also Hector Berlioz
and Charles Gounod
among its members, which sought to increase the knowledge of music among popular classes by way of setting up male choir associations. The name comes from the first of these associations, founded in Paris
, who named itself "Orphéon" (from Orpheus
).
Thanks to the efforts of De Rillé, who not only wrote many music pieces for male choir and arranged pieces of widely known composers such as Verdi
, Donizetti
and Rossini
but also books on how to organise a choir and train its members, the popularity of "orphéoniste" societies spread throughout France between the late 1800s and early 1900s, and as well in the United Kingdom
, where A.J. Foxwell wrote English lyrics for many of his pieces.
Though most of the music composed by De Rillé is almost forgotten nowadays, his choral works, and particularly "Les Ruines de Gaza (The Destruction of Gaza)" and "Les Martyres aux Arènes" (Martyrs of the Arena), are still among the favorites of male choir societies.
Orléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...
- 1915 Rennes
Rennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
), was a French
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...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and musical theorist.
De Rillé composed a number of operettas and sacred music works, but his name is more frequently associated with the so called "Orphéonist" movement, which had also Hector Berlioz
Hector Berlioz
Hector Berlioz was a French Romantic composer, best known for his compositions Symphonie fantastique and Grande messe des morts . Berlioz made significant contributions to the modern orchestra with his Treatise on Instrumentation. He specified huge orchestral forces for some of his works; as a...
and Charles Gounod
Charles Gounod
Charles-François Gounod was a French composer, known for his Ave Maria as well as his operas Faust and Roméo et Juliette.-Biography:...
among its members, which sought to increase the knowledge of music among popular classes by way of setting up male choir associations. The name comes from the first of these associations, founded 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...
, who named itself "Orphéon" (from Orpheus
Orpheus
Orpheus was a legendary musician, poet, and prophet in ancient Greek religion and myth. The major stories about him are centered on his ability to charm all living things and even stones with his music; his attempt to retrieve his wife from the underworld; and his death at the hands of those who...
).
Thanks to the efforts of De Rillé, who not only wrote many music pieces for male choir and arranged pieces of widely known composers such as Verdi
Giuseppe Verdi
Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi was an Italian Romantic composer, mainly of opera. He was one of the most influential composers of the 19th century...
, Donizetti
Gaetano Donizetti
Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti was an Italian composer from Bergamo, Lombardy. His best-known works are the operas L'elisir d'amore , Lucia di Lammermoor , and Don Pasquale , all in Italian, and the French operas La favorite and La fille du régiment...
and Rossini
Gioacchino Rossini
Gioachino Antonio Rossini was an Italian composer who wrote 39 operas as well as sacred music, chamber music, songs, and some instrumental and piano pieces...
but also books on how to organise a choir and train its members, the popularity of "orphéoniste" societies spread throughout France between the late 1800s and early 1900s, and as well in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, where A.J. Foxwell wrote English lyrics for many of his pieces.
Though most of the music composed by De Rillé is almost forgotten nowadays, his choral works, and particularly "Les Ruines de Gaza (The Destruction of Gaza)" and "Les Martyres aux Arènes" (Martyrs of the Arena), are still among the favorites of male choir societies.