Marcelle Demougeot (18 June 1876 – 24 November 1931), born Jeanne Marguerite Marcelle Decorne, was a French soprano, "the best-known French Wagnerian singer of her generation".[1]

Marcelle Demougeot
A white woman, standing, hand on forehead, wearing a gown and headdress typical of 1900s Wagnerian opera.
Marcelle Demougeot as Brünnhilde
Born18 June 1876
Dijon
Died24 November 1931
Paris
OccupationOpera singer (soprano)

Early life

edit

Jeanne Marguerite Marcelle Decorne was born in Dijon,[2] where she studied with Charles Laurent. She trained further as a singer at the Conservatoire de Paris.[1][3]

Career

edit

Demougeot made her professional debut in 1902, as Donna Elvira in Paris. She was known for singing Wagnerian roles including Brünnhilde and Kundry.[1] She sang in several premiere productions, including Le fils de l’étoile (1904) by Camille Erlanger, Ariane (1906) by Massenet, a French-language production of Das Rheingold (1909) by Wagner, Déjanire, (1911) by Camille Saint-Saëns, and the Paris premiere of Parsifal (1914).[4] She made several recordings before 1910.[5]

In 1916, Demougeot sang at a benefit for blind veterans in Vichy.[6] She sang La Marseillaise outside the Palais Garnier to mark the signing of peace at the end of World War I, and later sang at a victory festival in Ostend.[7] In 1919 she sang at the official Bastille Day celebrations in Paris.[8] In 1924 she sang during festivities surrounding the Summer Olympics in Paris.[9]

Personal life

edit

Demougeot died in 1931, in Paris.[1]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d Cummings, David (2002). "Demougeot, Marcelle". Grove Music Online. doi:10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.o901219. ISBN 978-1-56159-263-0. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
  2. ^ "Marcelle Demougeot (1876-1931)". BnF Data. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
  3. ^ Aspertini (April 1908). "Grand Théatre Municipale de Dijon". Le Théatre: 18–20.
  4. ^ "Opera Singers in a Clash". Chicago Tribune. 1914-01-11. p. 11. Retrieved 2020-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Kelly, Alan (1990). His Master's Voice: The French Catalogue : a Complete Numerical Catalogue of French Gramophone Recordings Made from 1898 to 1929 in France and Elsewhere by the Gramophone Company Ltd. ABC-CLIO. p. 410. ISBN 978-0-313-27333-9.
  6. ^ de Valdor, Joseph (August 25, 1916). "Music Abroad". Music News. 8: 26.
  7. ^ "Plays and Players". The Nebraska State Journal. 1919-10-12. p. 19. Retrieved 2020-08-13 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Music Plays Big Part in Paris Bastille Day Celebration". Musical Courier. 79: 7. August 21, 1919.
  9. ^ Nectoux, Jean-Michel (2004-12-16). Gabriel Fauré: A Musical Life. Cambridge University Press. p. 428. ISBN 978-0-521-61695-9.
edit