Description

GABRIEL SOULACROIX (VILLENEUVE-SUR-LOT (DEP. LOIRE-ET-GARONNE), 11 DECEMBER, 1853 – PARIS, 16 AUGUST, 1905)

 

 

 

He studied singing at the conservatoires of Toulouse and Paris. He made his debut in 1878 at the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels in C. Gounod’s Mireille. After significant success in Brussels and the French provinces, he was engaged in 1885 by the Opéra-Comique in Paris, making his debut as Bellamy in A. Maillart’s Les dragons de Villars. During his time at the Opéra-Comique, he took part in several important premieres, including A. Messager’s La Basoche (30 May 1890), Bizet’s Pêcheurs de perles (1893), and the French premiere of G. Verdi’s Falstaff (1894).

In 1887, he became a hero when he saved the lives of many people during a fire at the Opéra-Comique. He remained with the Opéra-Comique until 1894, after which he primarily sang at the Théâtre Gaité Lyrique in Paris. However, he continued to guest at the Opéra-Comique, where he performed in the French premiere of G. Puccini’s La Bohème in 1898.

His career also extended to Covent Garden in London, where he performed from 1881 to 1904, singing roles such as Figaro in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Escamillo in Carmen, and Mercutio in Roméo et Juliette by C. Gounod. In 1884, he took part in the English premiere of E. Reyer’s Sigurd at Covent Garden.

At the opera house of Monte Carlo, he participated in the premiere of I. de Lara’s opera Messaline alongside Francesco Tamagno and Meyriane Héglon. On 18 February 1902, he performed in the premiere of J. Massenet’s Le Jongleur de Notre Dame at the same house. Unfortunately, his promising career was cut short when he died quite suddenly at the height of his success.

 

TRACKLIST

 

 

1. Barbiere di Siviglia (Rossini) Air de Figaro 3712 Pathé cylinders & discs, Paris 1902/1903
2. Basoche (Messager) A ton amour 0293 Pathé cylinders & discs, Paris 1902
3. Basoche (Messager) A ton amour 32656 1025G Berliner, Paris 1900-07
4. Basoche (Messager) Je suis aime de la plus belle 0291 Pathé cylinders & discs, Paris 1902
5. Basoche (Messager) Quand tu connaitras Colette Pathé 0292 Pathé cylinders & discs, Paris 1902
6. Bonjour, Suzon (Pessard) 3-32035 2837F G&T, Paris 1904
7. Carmen (Bizet) Couplets du Toreador 33436 Odeon, Paris 1904
8. Don Giovanni (Mozart) Sérénade 32675 1095G Berliner, Paris 1900-07
9. Dragons de Villars (Maillart) Quand le dragon 0340 Pathé cylinders & discs, Paris 1902
10. Faust (Gounod) Il etait temps (Invocation) 32880 1023G Berliner, Paris 1900-07
11. Favorite (Donizetti) Pour tant d’amour 33430 Odeon, Paris 1904
12. François les Bas Bleus (Messager) Il faut laisser 3-32018 2874F G&T, Paris 1904
13. Hamlet (Thomas) Spectre infernal 32882 996G Berliner, Paris 1900-07
14. Herodiade (Massenet) Vision fugitive 32700 994G Berliner, Paris 1900-07
15. Jongleur de Notre-Dame (Massenet) Air du prieur 3704 Pathé cylinders & discs, Paris 1902/1903
16. Jongleur de Notre-Dame (Massenet) Legende de la sauge 3691 Pathé cylinders & discs, Paris 1902/1903
17. La Rosilla (Yradier) 33468 Odeon, Paris 1904
18. Le pressoir (Faure) 33467 Odeon, Paris 1904
19. L’etoile d’amour (Delmet) 155882 Dutreih cylinders & discs, Paris
20. Martha (Flotow) Romance 33464 Odeon, Paris 1904