The Feuiiletons of Castil-Blaze in the Joumal Des DéBats
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THE FEUILLETONS OF CASTIL-BLAZE IN THE JOURNAL DES DÉBATS (1820-1832): A CRITICAL EXAMINATION By LEONARD L. H. TURNEVICIUS, Mus. Bac., SolistDiplom, B. Ed. A Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in Partial FuI filment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts McMaster University © Copyright by Leonard L. H. Turnevicius, June 1994 MAsTER OF ARTS (1994) McMASTER UNIVERSITY (Music Criticism) Hamilton, Ontario TITLE: The Feuilletons of Castil-Blaze in the Journal des Débats (1820-1832): A Critical Examination AUTHOR: Leonard L. H. Turnevicius, Mus. Bac. (University of Toronto) Solist Diplom (Det kongelige danske Musikkonservatorium, K0benhavn, Danmark) B. Ed. (University of Toronto) SUPERVISOR: Dr. James A. Deaville NUMBER OF PAGES: vii, 229 ii ABSTRACT The feuilletons that François-Henri-Joseph Blaze, better known as Castil-Blaze, wrote for the Parisian daily newspaper the Journal des Débats between 1820 and 1832 represent his greatest involvement with music journalism. His appointment as chief music feuilletonist was a turning point for music criticism in France as it opened the door for trained musicians rather than just literary critics to proffer their opinions about music. While establishing himself as a translatoI of operas and adapter of pasticcios for the French stage, he addressed musical issues and created vivid portraits of the musical scene in Paris through his feuilletons signed "X.x.X." . His analyses of works were evocative in nature, calling upon the reader to re-create the events in his or her mind. Castil-Blaze's feuilletons contain opinions about music which were prefigured in his two volume book De l'Opéra en France. His views, however, did not remain static, but were . modified over time through encountering new works by Weber, Auber, Rossini, Meyerbeer, as weIl as Beethoven. His feuilletons also provide insight into the issues, personalities, institutions, and vocal and instrumental virtuosi of his time and place. In short, they are a window onto their author and the musicallife of France during the Restoration. Chapter One deals with the life and Career of Castil-Blaze. Chapter Two examines both the text and the reading of the feuilleton. Castil-Blaze's manner of analysis, identified herein as "evocative analysis," is explored in light of reader-response criticism. Chapter Three considers Castil-Blaze's reviewing of the Parisian vocal and instrumental music scene and highlights notable institutions, musical personalities and issues of that era. Chapter Four concerns itself with his feuilletons about opera, while the fifth chapter investigates those about Beethoven. Chapter Six furnishes this document with a conclusion. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS It is with this document that my four-and-a-half year pilgrimage through McMaster University comes to an end. There have been many along the road who have helped me reach this goal. l must start with the faculty at McMaster's Department of Music; firstly, to all of the staff for their kindness and sensitivity in accommodating my teaching schedule into their programme, and secondly, to individual staff members whose guidance made my sojourn at McMaster all the more stimulating. Dr. James DeaviIIe, my advisor, who has been warmly encouraging and scrupulously critical of my work. His advice at every stage of my research, writing and revising was of indispensable value. l am sincerely thankful for his expert assistance. Dr. Alan Walker who served as second reader of this thesis, and who nurtured the dialectical skills of aIl those under his tutelage. Dr. Hugh Hartwell who so ably guided us through various labyrinthine analytical approaches and theories. Dr. Paul Rapoport who stretched our ears and hence, the boundaries we had built around music, its performance and notation. William Littler, music and dance critic at the Toronto Star, who trained oUr pens in the fme art of music journalism. l must also give special thanks to Prof. Pauline Pocknell of McMaster's French Department. In spite of her schedule, she took time to examine not on1y the very first rough drafts of this thesis, but also the final drafts and my translations of French as weIl. Her suggestions and corrections have been welcomed with immense gratitude. l thank Dr. William Renwick, Dr. Frederick Hall, and Dr. Hans Schulte for their efforts in helping me to obtain and print out Donald Gfslason's dissertation on Castil-Blaze. l am iv grateful to Donald Gislason not only for making his dissertation available to me, but for his advice, 'suggestions and encouragement in studying Castil-Blaze. l must also thank the staff at McMaster University's Inter-Library Loans who saw to it that my numerous requests were handled as quickly as possible. Thanks are also to due to Mr. Harry Der Nederlanden for his insightful comments and "deconstruction" of my "evocative analysis." l should also thank those "generations" of students, too numerous to mention here by name, who served as classmates and colleagues between the years 1989 and 1994. l will always carry fond memories of their genuine love of music and friendship. l would be remiss not to thank my employers, the Association for Christian Education of St. Catharines, who so graciously granted me release time during the school year to attend classes at McMaster and for allowing me to use my summer work obligations to write this thesis. l am indebted to my sister, Lorraine, who helped with the presentation of this document. l also thank my parents without whose support this thesis would not have come about. It is to them that this volume is dedicated. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract . .. iii Acknowledgements ....... .. iv Table of Contents. ............................................. vi Preface .................................................... 1 Chapter One: Biography: The Life and Work of Castil-Blaze .................. 4 Chapter Two: The Feuilleton ...................................... 26 Artistic: The Text Towards a Defmition of "Feuilleton" ...... 26 The Parisian Press and the Development of the Feuilleton . 30 Authorship of a Feuilleton .................................... 40 The Eclecticism of the Feuilleton ............................... 43 The Feuilleton Categorized ........... 44 Qualities of the Feuilletonist .................................. 44 Qualities of a Music Feuilletonist ............................... 48 The Music Feuilletonist Categorized ............................. 50 The Style of the Littérateur at the Journal des Débats .................. 51 Aesthetic: Reading . 56 Readership in Paris during the Restoration .......................... 56 Castil-Blaze's Readers ...................................... 59 Re-creation and Recreation: Reading the Feuilleton. 60 Evocative Analysis ........................................ 60 Reader Response: A Model for Inner Listening ....................... 65 Chapter Three: The Musical Scene in Paris: 1820-1832 ...................... 74 Vocal Music Theatres and Opera Houses of Paris ............................. 75 Théâtre de l'Opéra ....................................... 76 Salle Feydeau or Opéra-Comique/Salle Ventadour ................... 77 Salle des Menus-Plaisirs/Salle des Concerts ....................... 77 Théâtre Royale de l'Odéon . 78 Théâtre-Italien ......................................... 79 Salle Louvois .......................................... 80 Salle Favart .................................... ". 81 Gymnase-Dramatique ..................................... 81 Théâtre des Nouveautés .................................... 82 Singing and Vocalists . 82 Parisian Theatre Audiences . 85 Instrumental Music The Concert Series in Paris . 87 Chamber Music .......................................... 89 vi Notable Musicians Hector Berlioz . 90 Franz Liszt . 94 Niccolà Paganini ......................................... 98 François-Joseph Fétis . .. 106 Issues The Ballet: Castil-Blaze's Conversion . .. 108 Government Funding of the Arts: A Change of Heart ................. 109 Chapter Four: Opera .......................................... , 113 Mozart: Of Zealots and Moderates . .. 113 Mozartmania in the "Chronique Musicale" ........................ 115 Gluck: A Critical View and the Question of Transposition .. " 119 Méhul: The Master of Our School ............................. 123 Boïeldieu: A Man's Honour . .. 124 Grand Opera ............................................. 129 The Feuilletons about La Muette de Portici ........................ 129 Rossini and the Guillaume Tell Feuilletons ........................ 132 Meyerbeer and the Roben le diable Feuilletons .................... " 139 Weber and the Der Freischütz / Robin des Bois Feuilletons .............. 144 Chapter Five: Beethoven . .. 151 Beethoven in Paris .......................................... 151 The Feuilletons about Beethoven's Symphonies and Overtures ............... 155 Symphony No. 1 and Symphony No. 2 ......................... " 156 Symphony No. 3 ........................................ 159 Symphony No. 4 ........................................ 161 Symphony No. 5 ........................................ 162 Symphony No. 6 ........................................ 163 Symphony No. 7 ........................................ 165 Symphony No. 8 ........................................ 169 Symphony No. 9 ........................................ 169 Egmont Overture ........................................ 170 Le Mont des Oliviers . .. 171 Missa solemnis . .. 173 The Feuilletons about Beethoven's Fidelio Overture to Fidelio