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| In memoriam
Jules Massenet 1842–1912
by M.-D. Calvocoressi
By the death of Jules[1]
Massenet, which occurred on August 14, France loses her most popular
and, besides Dr. Saint-Saëns, most famous composer – a
composer on whose actual merits, perhaps, exacting critics do not
agree, but whose career may well be described as an almost uninterrupted
series of successes.
Jules Massenet was born, May 12, 1842, at Montaud, then a suburb
of Saint-Etienne, the great manufacturing city of the centre of
France – the youngest of twenty-one children. His biographers
relate many more or less romantic anecdotes showing his early propensity
for music; telling us, for instance, how his keen desire to study
the art impelled him to escape from home with the intention of going
to Paris and the hope of finding there the suitable teacher whom
he had vainly sought for in Saint-Etienne. His father, a manufacturer
ruined by the Revolution of 1848, left Montaud for Paris, and there
the boy became, in 1851, a pupil of the Conservatoire, studying
the pianoforte in Laurent’s class and winning the first prize
in 1859. He began to learn harmony with Bazin in 1853; but after
this master (a poor musician and poor teacher) had discouraged him,
he became a pupil of Reber. In 1860 he entered Ambroise Thomas’s
class of composition, and in 1863 he won the first prize for fugue
and the Grand Prix de Rome. His first works were principally songs
and short pianoforte pieces, orchestral suites of facile and unpretentious
style, a short opera-comique in one act, ‘La Grand Tante’
(produced in Paris, 1867), and a ‘Requiem’ (unpublished).
In 1868 he made the acquaintance of the publisher, Georges Hartmann,
who from the very outset had faith in him and greatly assisted him
during the first stages of his career.
Massenet’s first ambitious work, the opéra-comique
in four acts, ‘Don César de Bazan’ (Paris, 1872),
was an absolute failure. But in 1873 the young composer scored two
decisive successes with the incidental music to Leconte de Lisle’s
tragedy, ‘Les Erynnies,’ and with the dramatic oratorio,
‘Marie-Magdeleine,’ both of which were performed at the
Théâtre de l’Odéon. As early as 1876 he
was decorated with the Légion d’Honneur. In
1877, ‘Le Roi de Lahore,’ one of his best operatic scores
(although comparatively little known), was produced at the Paris
Opéra; the following year he was elected professor of composition
at the Paris Conservatoire and member of the Institut, thus succeeding
his former teacher and vituperator François Bazin.[2]
Since then, and until the end of his life, honours, fame and fortune
came to him in profusion. The absolute failure of a comparatively
great quantity of his works passed unperceived under the favour
of several radiant and protracted triumphs, the most memorable of
which are those of ‘Manon’ (Paris, Opéra-Comique,
1884), ‘Werther’ (Vienna, 1892; Paris, Opéra-Comique,
1893), and ‘Thaïs’ (Paris, Opéra, 1894). ‘Esclarmonde,’
which, when produced in 1889 at the Opéra-Comique, had a
very satisfactory run of performances, has never since been revived.
Massenet has certainly been one of the most prolific of French
composers. He has written no less than twenty-four operas or opéra-comiques
(three of which, ‘Panurge,’ ‘Amadis,’ and ‘Cleopâtre,’
are as yet unknown, but we are told, are ready for publication),
incidental music for several plays, pianoforte pieces, a great quantity
of songs, choruses, and a few specimens of church-music. Besides
‘Marie-Magdeleine,’ he has composed the oratorios ‘Eve’
(1875), ‘La Vierge’ (1880), ‘La Terre Promise’
(1900), and the lyric scenes, ‘Narcisse’ (1878), and ‘Biblis’
(1887). His instrumental music is neither very abundant nor very
pregnant, consisting chiefly of picturesque suites and other minor
works. He never attempted to deal with the more earnest types of
instrumental forms except once, and this attempt (a Pianoforte concerto
written in 1903) was pronounced a failure even by his most enthusiastic
devotees.
The last opera of his performed during his lifetime, ‘Roma’
(Paris, Opéra, 1911), is also an isolated and not particularly
felicitous attempt towards classical severity and grandeur.
‘Massenet’s prolonged and widespread success,’ says
Mr. Fuller Maitland in ‘Grove’s Dictionary’, ‘is
one of the puzzling phenomena of modern musical history. While those
who look a little below the surface find his music inexpressibly
monotonous, casual hearers are surprised by his superficial versatility
. . . few of the real lovers of music will expect any of his works
to remain among the compositions that keep their popularity after
the death of the author.’
Harsh as it may appear, I believe this verdict to be a sound one.
The chief idiosyncrasy of Massenet, as a man and as an artist, was
an overwhelming desire to court success. His object was to seduce;
and from the time when he found that his music proved effective
and became popular he carefully avoided changing his manner. The
characteristic melody ‘à la Massenet,’ graceful
and elegant enough, but almost stereotyped, runs through all his
scores, doing duty for Manon and Thaïs alike, for Roman Vestal
or for gay Spanish lady, for dreamy German maiden and for haughty
princess of yore. His early scores are, for the greater part, his
best, with the one exception of the very pleasing and chaste ‘Jongleur
de Nôtre-Dame’ (1902). Later, and for the plain reason
that he never attempted to renovate his style, he sank into sheer
mannerism. Indeed, one can but marvel that so gifted a musician,
who lacked neither individuality nor skill, should have so utterly
succeeded in throwing away his gifts. Success spoiled him. As M.
Claude Debussy once humorously remarked, ‘he fell a victim
to the butterfly-play of fascinating lady admirers.’ Hence
the monotony of works in the greater part of which he sedulously
resorts to his favourite never-failing devices. Hence, also, the
‘superficial versatility.’ For if the actual progress
of musical art during the past forty years left Massenet unmoved
(and indeed he has taken no part in the evolution of modern music),
the success of certain works appears to have influenced him not
inconsiderably, inducing him to attempt a number of changes in manner
if not in style. Thus, at a time when Wagner’s dramas were
becoming the order of the day in Paris, he wrote ‘Esclarmonde,’
in which the example of ‘Lohengrin’ is easily traceable.
The popularity of Italian ‘veristic’ opera helps to account
for the appearance in 1894 of ‘La Navarraise,’ and in
1897 of ‘Sapho’; and Humperdinck’s ‘Hansel und
Gretel’ seems to have prompted him to write ‘Cendrillon’
(1899).
The earnest ideals, the thirst for progress that are inseparable
from genius remained unknown to him. He directed his ambitions towards
a less distant goal. He wrote for this time, and his time has repaid
his labours well, as appears from the history of his life and deeds.
Avoiding arduous roads, well satisfied with what was within his
grasp, he remained untormented by doubt or by longing. As a man
he was not only kind, but courteous and eager to court favour, lavish
in praise upon all young composers or artists who came into contact
with him.
He held the position of Professor of Composition at the Paris Conservatoire
until 1896, his principal pupils being Alfred Bruneau, Gustave Charpentier,
Gabriel Pierné, Xavier Leroux, Paul Vidal, Georges Marty,
Lucien Hillemacher, and Augustin Savard.
He can hardly be said to have exercised a wholesome influence as
a teacher, and generally speaking, such of his pupils as have displayed
more than ordinary merits as composers did not follow his example.
In the works of M. Alfred Bruneau, for instance, no trace of Massenet’s
methods is to be found, except for a few melodic mannerisms. Not
even as much remains in those of M. Pierné or M. Savard.
In addition to the works mentioned above, Massenet wrote the following:
‘Bérangère et Anatole’ (1876), ‘Hérodiade’
(1881; London Opera House, 1911), ‘Le Cid’ (1885), ‘Le
Mage’ (1891), ‘Le Carillion’ (1892), ‘Grisélidis’
(1901), ‘Chérubin’ (1905), ‘Ariane’ (1906),
‘Bacchus’ (1909), ‘Don Quichotte’ (1910; London
Opera House, 1912).
The funeral of M. Massenet took place at Egreville on August 17,
and in accordance with the composer’s wishes, was simple in
character. Only members of the family were invited. Wreaths were
sent by the Prince of Monaco, M. Gunsbourg (director of the Monte
Carlo Opera), and by M. Carré (for the Opéra-Comique).
Musical Times, September 1912
Notes
1. In spite of the composer’s known antipathy
to the name Jules, we think it best to use the name by which he
was widely known. He preferred to be called ‘M. Massenet’
simply. [back]
2. At that election Dr. Saint-Saëns was
his unsuccessful competitor. [back]
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