Theater Music in France, 1864-1914 Peter Lamothe

Theater Music in France, 1864-1914
Peter Lamothe
A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in
partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the
Department of Music.
Chapel Hill
2008
Approved by:
Annegret Fauser, chair
Tim Carter
Jon Finson
Jocelyn Neal
Severine Neff

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© 2008
Peter Lamothe
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

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ABSTRACT
PETER LAMOTHE: Theater Music in France, 1864-1914
(Under the direction of Annegret Fauser)
Incidental music served as a major outlet for composers during the latter half of the
nineteenth century and the start of the twentieth century. Over three hundred and fifty
premières and dozens of major revivals of older works took place during the fifty-year span
of this study. Composers who contributed incidental music included Bizet, Bruneau,
Chausson, Debussy, Delibes, Fauré, Gounod, Massenet, Pierné, Saint-Saëns, and many other
less celebrated composers.
This study examines the nature and significance of this oft-neglected genre. The topic
is approached through five case studies meant to provide various cross-sections of
noteworthy aspects of the genre over this fifty-year span. The approach to the case studies is
twofold: through studies of the institutions which produced the most incidental music during
this period, and through three productions which provide a variety of approaches with regard
to their dates, theaters, compositional styles, and their respective places in their composers’
careers. The Comédie-Française is examined across this fifty-year time, with particular
regard to the contributions made by Léo Delibes and by Laurent Léon, the orchestral director
of the theater from 1871-1913. The Théâtre de l’Odéon (1884-1892) and the Grand-Théâtre
(1892-1893) are studied during the directorships of Paul Porel, the director who was
responsible for reviving Bizet’s L’Arlésienne after its thirteen-year slumber. Examinations of
Jules Massenet’s music for the tragedy Les Érinnyes (1873/1876), Claude Terrasse’s music

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for the farce Ubu roi (1896), and Claude Debussy’s music for the mystery play Le Martyre
de Saint Sébastien (1911) impart varied insights into the range of musical styles present, into
the interactions between theater and music, into the nature of the genre, and into the roles
which incidental music played in the careers of composers. The breadth and depth of the
genre is indicated by an appendix which lists the major premières and revivals of incidental
scores from the years 1864-1914, with some coverage of the years before and after the
period.

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DEDICATION
To Ginny, whose love and encouragement have meant so much through this long process.