Jean Noté

Jean -Baptiste Noté, better known as Jean Noté ( born May 6, 1858 in Tournai, Belgium, † April 1, 1922 in Brussels) was a Belgian opera, concert and chanson singer with the voice baritone.

Life

The singer came from humble beginnings. He was born as an illegitimate child in the working class neighborhood of Sainte-Marguerite and, after attending an elementary school already ten years old, working at home in warp knitting. He later found a job as a shunter on the railway. He volunteered for six years to the military after the then customary in Belgium lottery had signed him up for military service. On the regimental school, he could improve his education something. However, from the service, he seems to have suffered; at least he fled to escape punishment for a few months over the French border to Lille and suggested there as a tram driver and worker at the gas works through, but then returned back to the troop.

Noté had already collected musical experiences: first ( civique Guard ) in a carnival company in Tournai as well as a drummer in the Civil Guard, and later with small vocal performances in cafes, in order to supplement the meager salary or wages. In a ceremony of the military in Ghent his musical talent was discovered. Patrons funded Noté the first two years of studies at the Conservatory in Ghent, after which he was awarded a scholarship by the Belgian State and benefits of Tournai. After the end of the training was followed by a series of engagements at various opera houses: 1885 in Lille, from 1887 to 1889 in Antwerp, from 1888 to 1891 in Lyon, 1892-1893 in Marseille.

1893 moved Noté at the Paris Opera. There he remained employed for almost thirty years. Guest performances have taken him to the Court Opera Unter den Linden in Berlin and at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden ( 1897). 1908/1909 he was part of the ensemble of the Metropolitan Opera in New York. As a concert singer he stepped forward, especially with church concerts at the Paris church of Ste Madeleine. He is also known as a chanson singer. Noté was considered a philanthropist and participated in numerous benefit concerts.

In his lifetime just to developing sound recording industry Noté was one of the most prolific singers. He has made numerous recordings of different nature, of an opera recordings to popular songs, for a number of companies. Notes vocals exist Edison cylinders and shellac discs of the company G & T, Odéon, Zonophone, anchor, Chantal de Luxe Belge, Béka ideal, APGA, Lyrophone and Pathé. But the Pathé catalog of 1914 lists no less than 50 plates with the performer Noté.

In this context, Noté profiled as an advocate for the rights of artists. He was in May 1906 the founding members of the Association Phonique des Grands Artistes ( APGA ), a company founded by singers record company that had the aim to make even the performers get a portion of the proceeds from sales of recorded music. Until then, only the authors and publishers had received royalties. However, the APGA was only until 1910.

Also in other new media of his time was one of the pioneers Noté. So Georges Mendel with Noté 1907 using a mechanical coupling of phonograph and Kinetograph a precursor of the talkies: a three-minute version of the Marseillaise. Noté appears in front of a cannon salutes and sings the French national anthem. On December 29, 1921 Noté was involved in a radio concert in honor of the Belgian royal couple. It was held in the basement of the Eiffel Tower; at the Royal Palace in Laken and the Aero - Club de Bruxelles could receive it, which at the time was considered quite amazing since had only a few days earlier also broadcast from the Eiffel Tower from the first public radio broadcast. Noté sang an aria from the Roi de Lahore, and the French and Belgian National Anthem ( La Marseillaise and Brabançonne ).

1922 died Noté surprising about the consequences of a stone surgery.

Work and reception

Opera

Noté was mainly through his interpretation of Richard Wagner's opera roles known as Friedrich von Telramund in Lohengrin, Sixtus Beckmessers in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and Wolfram in Tannhäuser; at the Paris Opera he sang also in 1901 Alberich in Siegfried and 1909 Donner in Das Rheingold listed in French.

Another focus was on the classical works of Giuseppe Verdi's middle period, especially the title role of Rigoletto and the Conte Luna in Il Trovatore. The Rigoletto made ​​his debut at the Paris Opera in 1893, the Count di Luna sang Noté in Paris in 1904 in a new production of Il Trovatore in French (Le trouvère ). 1912 brought the record company Pathé, the first overall sound recordings of the two operas out, in both cases with Noté.

Finally Noté also worked in the field of French opera. His interpretation of the title role of Guillaume Tell ( Rossini ), the Scindia in Jules Massenet's Le Roi du Lahore, of Hamlet in the eponymous opera by Ambroise Thomas, and especially of Giacomo Meyerbeer's L' Nélusco in Africaine are deemed outstanding. In New York, his debut was the role of Valentin in Charles Gounod's Faust; while he stood with Enrico Caruso and Geraldine Farrar on stage. Later, he also sang Escamillo in Carmen, also with Caruso and Farrar in the cast list as well with Arturo Toscanini conducting.

In addition Noté was involved in several world premieres, so 1897 Messidor by Alfred Bruneau with libretto by Émile Zola ( Paris ), 1903 Le cup of Eugène d' Harcourt and 1912 Roma by Massenet (both in Monte Carlo ). Still in 1921 he sang in the world premiere of Gabriel Dupont's opera Antar the Amarat.

On the Sängerlexikon Noté is "one of the most beautiful baritone voices" attests, " who had the French opera within his generation of artists ." JB Steane manifests itself in the New Grove Dictionary of Opera somewhat skeptical; he thinks NOTES WOULD singing style to his recordings a little coarse and uninteresting, but fell by a rugged, powerful audio. The powerful voice particularly emphasized in contemporary reviews. So Gregoir quotes a criticism of his performance as Ashton in Lucia di Lammermoor:

Chanson, Pop Culture

Among the most popular songs, which started Noté include patriotic songs, such as Le violon brisé ( German as: " The Broken Fiddle" ), a song with revenge themes, the melancholy tones in the loss of Alsace- Lorraine, in the German - Prussian War complains. But also for his interpretation of lyrical pieces such as the skipper romance L' Angelus de la mer ( " The Angelus on the Sea" ) was Noté known. This Léon Durocher (text) and Gustave Goublier (Music) wrote Chanson is dedicated as the " barytonnerre " (a play on the words " baritone " and "thunder" ) of the Paris Opera Noté.

Noté enjoyed great popularity especially in Belgium. His name was used as an advertising medium for many objects ( " cafes, drinks, bottles " ), even record players were called Notéphone.

Honors

His hometown Tournai has named a street and a school after Jean Noté and erected a monument in his honor.