Description

PAUL FRANZ (PARIS, FRANCE, 30 NOVEMBER, 1876 – PARIS, FRANCE, 20 APRIL, 1950)

 

 

 

 

His real name was François Gauthier. Initially a railroad employee, he later pursued singing studies at the Conservatoire in Paris and perfected his vocal technique privately under Louis Delaquerrière. In 1908, he won a competition for amateur singers, which caught the attention of the director of the Grand Opéra in Paris. His debut that same year as Lohengrin in Nantes was a resounding success, leading to his long-standing engagement with the Grand Opéra, where he remained an esteemed member until 1938.

At the Grand Opéra, Gauthier participated in several significant premieres, including:

1914: Parsifal (Richard Wagner)

1920: La Légende de Saint Christophe (Vincent d’Indy)

1921: Antar (Gabriel Dupont)

1921: Les Troyens (Hector Berlioz)

1923: Padmâvati (Albert Roussel)

In 1922, he had a notable success at the Grand Opéra as Walther von Stolzing in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. That same year, he made a guest appearance at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo, and in 1923, he sang in the premiere of Raoul Gunsbourg’s Lysistrata there. He also made appearances in Brussels.

From 1910 to 1914, he sang with great success at Covent Garden, London, where his repertoire included roles such as Samson in Saint-Saëns’ Samson et Dalila, Radamès in Aida, Raoul in Meyerbeer’s Les Huguenots, Don José in Carmen, and Julien in Charpentier’s Louise. Siegfried Wagner had intended for him to perform at the Bayreuth Festival in 1915, but these plans were thwarted by the outbreak of World War I.

In 1910, Gauthier also performed at La Scala in Milan, and in 1918, he sang at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. He made guest appearances at the Opera in Antwerp as well.

Following his retirement from the stage, he was appointed a professor at the Conservatoire National de Paris. He was also active as a composer, writing the ballet L’Orchestre en liberté, and he translated German song texts by Schubert and Schumann.

 

Chronology of some appearances

 

1909-1938 Paris Grand Opéra

1910 Milano La Scala

1910-1914 London Covent Garden

1918 Buenos Aires Teatro Colón

1922-1923 Monte-Carlo Opéra

 

TRACKLIST

 

 

Aida (Verdi) O céleste Aida 032238 02233v Gramophone, Paris 1911-11-28

Attaque du Moulin (Bruneau) Adieux à la forêt 0428 1649 Pathé, Paris 1924

Carmen (Bizet) La fleur 032239 02234v Gramophone, Paris 1911-11-28

Cid (Massenet) O noble lame 0258, 5636 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Cid (Massenet) O souverain 0260 5636 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Damnation de Faust (Berlioz) Invocation 0258 5560 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Fille de Roland (Rabaud) Chanson d’épée 3162 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Fille de Roland (Rabaud) Chanson des épées LF23 WL2024-1 Columbia, Paris 1930 – 1932

Götterdämmerung (Wagner) Mort de Siegfried 0286, 5641 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Guillaume Tell (Rossini) Asile héréditaire 3-32807 5779h Gramophone, Paris 1908

Hérodiade (Massenet) Ne pouvant réprimer LFX56 WLX1351 Columbia, Paris 1930 – 1932

Hérodiade (Massenet) Ne pouvant réprimer X90048 N250252 Pathé, Paris 1933

Hosanna (Granier) DF255 WL2529-1 Columbia, Paris 1930 – 1932

Huguenots (Meyerbeer) Plus blanche 032268 02616v Gramophone, Paris 1912-12-07

Hymne à la France (Büsser) 3162 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Joseph (Méhul) Vainement, Pharson, pt 1 pt 2 0427, 0427 Pathé, Paris 1924

Le Prophète (Meyerbeer) Hymne triomphal Roi du ciel X90047 250244 Pathé

Les rameaux (Faure) DF255 WL2520-1 Columbia, Paris 1930 – 1932

Lohengrin (Wagner) Adieu, cher cygne, pt 1, pt 2 0720, 0720 Pathé, Paris 1930 – 1931

Lohengrin (Wagner) Les adieux de Lohengrin 0287 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Lohengrin (Wagner) Ma confiance en toi 7-32007 18782u Gramophone, Paris 1914-04-22

Lohengrin (Wagner) Mon cygne aimé 2-032013 02953v Gramophone, Paris 1914-04-22

Lohengrin (Wagner) Récit du Graal 032212 02158v Gramophone, Paris 1911-10-27

Lohengrin (Wagner) Récit du Graal, pt 1, pt 2 0429, 0429 Pathé, Paris 1924

Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner) L’aube vermeille 0272 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Wagner) L’aube vermeille LF23 WL2220-1 Columbia, Paris 1930 – 1932

Noël (Adam) DF253 WL2522-1 Columbia, Paris 1930 – 1932

Othello (Verdi) Tout m’abandonne X90047 250253 Pathé

Parsifal (Wagner) Hagards nes yeux 032303 02883v Gramophone, Paris 1914-01-10

Parsifal (Wagner) Hagards, mes yeux voient 7238 Pathé, Paris 1930 – 1931

Parsifal (Wagner) Une arme seule 032302 02884v Gramophone, Paris 1914-01-10

Parsifal (Wagner) Une arme seule est sûre 7238 250098 Pathé, Paris 1930 – 1931

Roméo et Juliette (Gounod) Ah, lève-toi, soleil 032244 02377v Gramophone, Paris 1912-04-29

Roméo et Juliette (Gounod) Salut, tombeau 0265, 0804 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Roméo et Juliette (Gounod) Salut, tombeau 032227 02198v Gramophone, Paris 1911-11-14

Samson et Dalila (Saint-Saëns) Arrêtez, ô mes frères 4-32274 16920u Gramophone, Paris 1911-10-27

Samson et Dalila (Saint-Saëns) Scène de la meule, pt 1 (w. chorus) X90043 N250242 Pathé, Paris 1933

Samson et Dalila (Saint-Saëns) Scène de la meule, pt 1 0259 1954 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Samson et Dalila (Saint-Saëns) Scène de la meule, pt 2 (w. chorus) X90043 N250243 Pathé, Paris 1933

Samson et Dalila (Saint-Saëns) Scène de la meule, pt 2 0259 1959 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Siegfried (Wagner) Chant de la forge 0266, 0822, Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Siegfried (Wagner) Chant de la forge LF45 WL2345 Columbia, Paris 1930 – 1932

Siegfried (Wagner) Chant du glaive 4-32353 2739ah Gramophone, Paris 1913-09-19

Siegfried (Wagner) Chant du glaive 4-32353x 18622½u Gramophone, Paris 1914-01-10

Siegfried (Wagner) Murmures de la forêt, pt 1 pt 2 7235, 7235 Pathé, Paris 1930 – 1931

Sigurd (Reyer) Esprits gardiens 0265 2033 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Sigurd (Reyer) Esprits gardiens 032245 02378v Gramophone, Paris 1912-04-29

Sigurd (Reyer) Le bruit des chants LFX56 WLX642 Columbia, Paris 1930 – 1932

Sigurd (Reyer) Le bruit des chants X90048 N250251 Pathé, Paris 1933

Sigurd (Reyer) Un souvenir poignant 4-32306 17200u Gramophone, Paris 1912-05-13

Soleil de France (Büsser) 0287 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Tannhäuser (Wagner) Récit de Rome, pt 1, pt 2 2-032014 02954v, 2-032015  02955v Gramophone, Paris 1914-04-22

Tannhäuser (Wagner) Retour de Rome, pt 1, pt 2 7237, 7237, 250126, 250127 Pathé, Paris 1930 – 1931

Tristan und Isolde (Wagner) Où Tristan va se rendre 0286 Pathé, Paris 1919 – 1920

Walküre (Wagner) Chanson du printemps 4-32352x 18623u Gramophone, Paris 1914-01-10