T O O T E R S A N D TUTORS: Flute P e r f o r m a n c e P r a c t i c e D e r i v e d fro m P e dagogical T r e a t i s e s of the P a r i s C o n s e r v a t o i r e 1838-1927 by M a r y C a t h e r i n e J e t t Byrne B . M . , U n i v e r s i t y of Michigan, 1985 M.M., U n i v e r s i t y of Michigan, 1986 A D i s s e r t a t i o n S u b m i t t e d in P a r t i a l F u l f i l l m e n t of the R e q u i r e m e n t s for the D e g r e e of
A C C E P T E D
F A C U L T Y
OF GRADUATE STUDIES in t h e Dep a r t m e n t of M u s i c We a c c e p t t his thesis as c o n f o r m i n g to t h e re q u i r e d s t a n d a r d D O C T O R O F P H I L O S O P H Y DEANDr. E.P. Schwandt, S u p e r v i s o r (Department of Music)
Dr. H.M. Krebs, D e p a r t m e n t a l M e m b e r (Department of Music)
are-^ch, Dep<
G. Lazare'^çh, D e p a r t m e n t a l M e m b e r ( D epartment of Music)
/Dr.
_______________________________________ ■^Go^h, " u t s i d e M e m b e r (Department of English)
Dr. B?A. H a n l ^ , O u t s i d e M e m b e r (Department of Education)
Dr.
II.
Terey-/smith,External Examiner
0 M A R Y C A T H E R I N E JET T BYRNE, 1993 U n i v e r s i t y of V i c t o r i a
A l l R i g h t s reserved. D i s s e r t a t i o n m a y n o t be r e p r o d u c e d in w h o l e or in part, by p h o t o c o p y i n g or o t h e r means, w i t h o u t
11
Supervisor; Dr. Erich S c h w a n d t
A B S T R A C T
T h r o u g h o u t the t w o h u n d r e d y e ars of the Paris Conservatoire, the P r o f e s s o r s of Flute h a v e c a r e f u l l y d o c u m e n t e d their p h i l o s o p h i e s in n u merous large-scale, c o m p r e h e n s i v e treatises. B u i l d i n g on t h e b i o g r a p h i c a l and h i s t o r i c a l studies by e a r l i e r scholars, t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n will s t udy three m a j o r t r e a t i s e s by P r o f e s s o r s of Flute at the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e to shed light on the p e r f o r m a n c e p r a c t i c e of the f lutists p e r f o r m i n g or t r a i n e d in Paris: the M é t h o d e p o u r s e r v i r à 1 * e n s e i g n e m e n t de la n o u v e l l e
f l ûte [1838] by V i c t o r Coche, the M é t h o d e p o u r f l û t e s y s t è m e B o e h m [c. 1880] by J o s e p h H enri Altès, and L ' A r t de la flûte
c o l l e c t e d by Claude Paul Taffanel, c o m p l e t e d in two p a rts by P h i l i p p e G a u bert [Méthode complète, 1923] and L o u i s Fleury
["La Flûte," 1927].
C h apters l t h r o u g h 4 p r o v i d e an h i s t o r i c a l context for the dissertation, including: a h i s t o r y of the P aris
C o n s e r v a t o i r e with p a r t i c u l a r em p h a s i s on p r e v a i l i n g
p e d a g o g i c a l trends at t h a t institution, t h e e v o l u t i o n of the flute c u l m i n a t i n g in the i n n o v a t i o n s of T h e o b a l d Boehm,
factors bearing on t h e p r o f e s s i o n a l f l u t i s t in Paris, and h i s t o r i c a l i n f o r m a t i o n on t h e flute t r e a t i s e s examined. In c h a p t e r s 5 t h r o u g h 7, e a c h of the t h r e e m e t h o d t r e a t i s e s by Coche, Altès, and T a f f a n e l w i t h G a u b e r t and F l e u r y are
m
e v a l u a t e d for i m p l i c a t i o n s of p e r f o r m a n c e p r a c t i c e based on the typ e of i n s t r u c t i o n and e x e r c i s e s d e v o t e d to t h e various c o m p o n e n t p a r t s of e ach of six p r o p o s e d e l e m e n t s of music - pitch, rhythm, timbre, dynamic, form and m u s i c a l st y l e - as wel l as areas of in t e r e s t r e c e i v i n g spe c i a l e m p h a s i s by each t r e a t i s e composer. T h e c o n c l u d i n g cha p t e r c o l l a t e s the data of t h e e a r l i e r c h a p t e r s and offe r s i l l u m i n a t i o n on flute p e r f o r m a n c e p r a c t i c e in F r ance d u r i n g the p e r i o d 1838 to 1927.
Examiners:
Dr. E.P. Schwandt, S u p e r v i s o r (Department of Music)
Dr. H.M. Krebs, D e p a r t m e n t a l M e m b e r (Department of Music)
G. Lazarevich, D e p a r t m e n t a l M e m b e r (Department of Music)
'î'njü^ide M e m b e r (Department of English)
Dr. B . M H a n l e ^ O u t s i d e M e m b e r (Department of Education)
_____________________________ Dr. M. Terfey-Smith,/
External Examiner (Univ. of West. Washington)
IV Ta b l e of C o n t e n t s A b stract li Table of Co n t e n t s iv A c k n o w l e d g e m e n t s vi I n t r o d u c t i o n 1
Chapter 1 ~ H i s t o r y of the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e 11 Th e E s t a b l i s h m e n t of the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e 14
M e t h o d s and T r e a t i s e s 2^
The S u c c u r s a l e s 21
D i r e c t o r s of the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e 28
Co urse of Study 36
Cha p t e r 2 - The D e v e l o p m e n t of the Flute 5(J
The Flute b e fore B o e h m 53
Boehm's W o r k 63
Cha p t e r 3 - M u s i c a l Life in Paris 86
The M u s i c P r o f e s s i o n in Paris 86 French T e n d e n c i e s in C o m p o s i t i o n 94 S t a ndard R e p e r t o i r e 98 C h a p t e r 4 - I n t r o d u c t i o n to the T r e a t i s e s 110 Cha p t e r 5 - M é t h o d e à l ' e n s e i g n e m e n t by V i c t o r C o c h e 123 C o ntents of the T r e a t i s e 125 Six E l e m e n t s of M u s i c 138 Pi t c h 139 R h y t h m 14 5 T i m b r e 149 D y n a m i c 153 F o r m 155 M u s i c a l style 157 A r e a s of S p e c i a l E m p h a s i s 161 C h a p t e r 6 - M é t h o d e p o u r flûte by H e n r i A l t è s 190 Format and C o n t e n t s 192 T h e Six M u s i c a l E l e m e n t s 2 03 Pitch 2 03 R h y t h m 208 T i m b r e 211 D yn a m i c 214 Fo r m 217 M u s i c a l Style 218 T o p i c s of Spe c i a l A t t e n t i o n 223 C ha p t e r 7 - "L'Art de la flûte" by P a u l T a f f a n e l 255 Format of the M é t h o d e c o m p l è t e 258
Co n t e n t s of "La Flûte" 267 T he Six Elements of M u s i c 272 Pitch 272 R h y t h m 277 T i m b r e 280 Dy n a m i c s 286 For m 287 M u s i c a l st y l e 287 A r e a s of Spe c i a l I n terest 294 C h a p t e r 8 - C o n c l u s i o n s 317 B i b l i o g r a p h y 341 A p p e n d i x I - T e a c h e r s at the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e 363 T h e F r e n c h I n f l u e n c e in N o r t h A m e r i c a 366 A p p e n d i x II - C o n c o u r s Win n e r s for Flute 367 A p p e n d i x III - Dated M e t h o d Bo o k s P u b l i s h e d in France
V I
A c k n o w l e d g e m e n t s
A ny p e rson who w r ites a d i s s e r t a t i o n and w h o cl aims that it was done w i t h o u t t h e h e l p of o t h e r s is p r o b a b l y not being truthful to h e r s e l f or himself. Wh i l e the r e s e a r c h and thoughts, as w ell as the w o r d s on the page wh i c h c o nvey them will be o r i g i n a l to t h e author, the
d i s s e r t a t i o n is neve r t h e l e s s a p r o d u c t of the s i l e n t c o l l a b o r a t i o n between the a u thor a n d h e r or his s u p p o r t group. In a t t e m p t i n g to t h a n k t h o s e w h o m a d e this
d i s s e r t a t i o n possible, I w ill no d o u b t leave out m a n y m e m b e r s of my own g r o u p . . . I h o p e t h e y w i l l for g i v e me!
M o s t of all I m u s t t h a n k m y h u s b a n d M i c h a e l for p a t i e n t l y a l l o w i n g me the time, freedom, and r e s o u r c e s over the last five ye a r s to see thi s p r o j e c t t h r o u g h to its
completion. I k n o w he will be as g l a d as I w h e n t his pa p e r finally ro l l s off the press in its c o m p l e t e d a n d a p p r o v e d form. T h i s is the stuff t h a t g o o d m a r r i a g e s a r e m a d e of!
T o my family and f a m i l y - i n - l a w I o f f e r g r e a t t h a n k s for h e l p offered (and I m u s t say a c c e p t e d ) . T h a n k s go e s p e c i a l l y to my Mom who a c t u a l l y c l a i m e d to en j o y
s t a n d i n g at t h e c ard ca t a l o g u e s of t h e L i b r a r y of C o n g r e s s c h e c k i n g to see if the lib r a r y h e l d p a g e a f t e r p a g e of b i b l i o g r a p h i c entries in t h e i r c o l l e c t i o n . T h a n k s als o to my f a t h e r - i n - l a w w h o spent t h e b e t t e r p a r t of a y e a r t r y i n g to t r a c k d o w n a c o m p u t e r p r o g r a m m e t o t r a n s f e r m y fi r s t
V I 1
my dad and m o t h e r - i n - l a w I received p e r h a p s the most
invaluable h e l p . . . t h o s e reg u l a r p h o n e c h e c k - u p s to see just h o w it was g o i n g and how m u c h I had w r i t t e n this week.
Th a n k s are always in o r d e r fc • my advisory
committee, e s p e c i a l l y my s u p e r v i s o r Dr. L'ich Schwandt. As a whole, this c o m m i t t e e s e emed to inst. '-ively know just wh e n to leave me a l o n e to do my own thing and then how to s ave me fro m myself. Each m e m b e r has t r u l y come to bat Cor me in her or h i s own way.
T h a n k s go too to the U - V i c g r a d students w h o have b u c k e d - m e - u p all along. M o s t of all I wan t to thank my dear
friend and c o l l e a g u e Sylvia I m eson for all the t h i n g s she may not h a v e r e a l i z e d t hat she d i d for me, but which
n e v e r t h e l e s s k e p t m y h e a r t and m i n d in the w r i t i n g of this paper.
Past t e a c h e r s c a nnot go uncred i t e d . I of f e r great thanks to K e i t h B r y a n and Lois Wynn, bot h of w h o m instilled their love of t h e Fren c h r e p e r t o i r e in me t h r o u g h o u t my
flute studies, a n d a l s o to Carol K n i e o u s c h Noe v/ho taught me to a p p r e c i a t e and r e s p e c t the v a l u e of the t e a c h i n g s of the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e flute professors.
T h e r e are, of course, many, m a n y o t h e r s . . . m y friends and a s s o c i a t e s at the V i c t o r i a C o n s e r v a t o r y and at M e t r o p o l i t a n U n i t e d C h u r c h to name a few. To all those who did deeds g r e a t and small I offer m y u n d y i n g thanks!
I n t r o d u c t i o n
Young students, you w h o m u s t g r i e v e the w a s t e of eve n one p r e c i o u s m o m e n t of you r studies, it is upo n you to p r o m o t e by y o u r a b i l i t i e s the a r t i s t s who h ave l a vished t h e i r a t t e n t i o n on you: D e v o t e yo u r s e l v e s e n t i r e l y to the art w h i c h y o u embrace, so tha t the h ope of d e s e r v e d l y c e l e b r a t i n g the h e r o i c acts, w h i c h a r e f ashioned e v e r y d a y by rep u b l i c a n pageantry, a r o u s e s and g o v e r n s y o u r emulation! You do h o n o u r to y our country! T h e fame of the F r ench s c hool w ill be the r e c o m p e n s e of y our masters.^
The Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e flute scho o l has e n j o y e d a c o n t i n u o u s d e v e l o p m e n t ove r t h e pas t t w o h u n d r e d y e a r s w i t h m a n y flute alumni a s s u m i n g the p o s i t i o n of P r o f e s s o r of
Flute at t hat institution, t h u s c a r r y i n g on the p h i l o s o p h i e s of th e i r teachers. Such an u n b r o k e n chain of i n s t r u c t i o n
^ [François] Gossec, " D i s c o u r s — P r o n o n c é p a r le c i t o y e n GossEC, doyen d'âge des i n s p e c t e u r s d e l ' e n s e i g n e m e n t du C o n s e r v a t o i r e de Mu s i q u e " r e p r i n t e d in O r g a n i s a t i o n du
C o n s e r v a t o i r e de m u s i q u e [1795], p u b l i s h e d u n d e r the
a u s p i c e s of Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e n a t i o n a l e d e m u s i q u e et d e d é c l a m a t i o n (Paris: I m p r i m e r i e de la Republ i q u e , an V), 57:
"Jeunes élèves, vou s qui avez d û g é m i r de la p e r t e d 'un te m p s p r é c i e u x à vos études, c ' e s t à vou s d e seconder, p a r v o t r e aptitude, les a r t i s t e s q u i v o n t vous p r o d i g u e r leurs
soins: livrez-vous en e n t i e r à l'art q u e v o u s a vec embrassé; q u e l ' e s p o i r de c é l é b r e r d i g n e m e n t les a c t e s h é r o ï q u e s dont, c h a q u e jour, les f a stes r é p u b l i c a i n s sont
formés, an i m e et d i r i g e v o t r e émulation! V o u s illu s t r e z vo t r e pays; la g l o i r e de l'é c o l e f r a n ç a i s e s e r a la
b e a r i n g the names of so man y flute virtuosi has not existed at any ot h e r time or place. T h e s y s t e m and p h i l o s o p h y ot flute i n s t r u c t i o n and flute p e r f o r m a n c e at the Paris
C o n s e r v a t o i r e h ave bee n e x t e n s i v e l y r e c o r d e d by the P r o f e s s o r s of Flute in the f orm of c o m p r e h e n s i v e m e thod t r e a t i s e s .
T h e Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e has been at the forefront of flute p e r f o r m a n c e p r a c t i c e and p e d a g o g y t h r o u g h o u t its two h u n d r e d yea r history. However, d u ring the n e arly ninety years from 1838 to 1927, the P r o f e s s o r s of Flute at the
Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e g a v e birth to and n u r t u r e d two important h i s t o r i c a l events: the l a r g e - s c a l e a d o p t i o n of the silver B o e h m - m o d e l flute, our m o d e r n flute, as the o f f i c i a l
i n s t r u m e n t of the P a r i s C o n s e r v a t o i r e and thu s of ail France, and the e x p o r t a t i o n of several p r o m i n e n t Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e - t r a i n e d f l u t i s t s to the new o r c h e s t r a s of
No r t h America, p l a n t i n g the se e d s for w h a t has b e c o m e in the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y the N o r t h A m e r i c a n Flute School.
T h e imp o r t a n c e of t h e Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e
Pr o f e s s o r s of Flute has b een n e i t h e r o v e r l o o k e d nor denied in c r i t i c a l w r i t i n g s of the p a s t fifteen years. Several d i s s e r t a t i o n s and small m o n o g r a p h s d e a l i n g w i t h v a r i o u s facets of the F r ench Flute S c h o o l hav e p a v e d the way for further r e s e a r c h t h r o u g h d o c u m e n t a t i o n of b i o g r a p h i c a l information.
One of the first b i o g r a p h i c a l works is the 1980 M.A. thesis by Patricia Joan Ahmad, "The Flute P r o f e s s o r s of the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e from D e v i e n n e to Taffanel, 1795- 1908" (MA Thesis, North Texas St a t e University, 1980). T his fairly brief w o r k surveys the lives and c o m p o s i t i o n s of the various P r o f e s s o r s active d u r i n g the i nclusive d a t e s as
drawn from s t a ndard sources on m u s i c and m u s i c a l life of the period. In addition, Ah m a d g i v e s the b r i e f e s t of
b i o g raphical sk e t c h e s on m a n y of Paul T a f f a n e l ' s s t u d e n t s who w e r e a c t i v e in France d u r i n g the early t w e n t i e t h
century.
In the simil a r l y f o r m a t t e d m o n o g r a p h The F r e n c h
Flute School, 1 860-1950 [1983, t r a n s l a t e d by E d w a r d B l a k e m a n
(London: T o n y Bingham, 1986)], C l a u d e D o r g e u i l l e e x p l o r e s the b i o g r a p h i e s of impor t a n t f i g u r e s of the F r e n c h F l u t e School. D o r g e u i l l e ' s m a i n focus is, however, to a s s e s s and d o c u m e n t the q u a l i t i e s and c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of t h e F r e n c h Flute School t h r o u g h an a n a l y s i s of n u m e r o u s s o u n d
r e c o r d i n g s r e l e a s e d between 1903 and c. 1950 by P a r i s C o n s e r v a t o i r e flute Pr o f e s s o r s a n d students. T h e m o s t va l u a b l e c o n t r i b u t i o n s w h i c h D o r g e u i l l e ma k e s i n c l u d e a c o m p r e h e n s i v e list of first p r i z e w i n n e r s and c o m p o s i t i o n s of the a n nual c o m p e t i t i o n s h e l d at the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e d u r i n g the time of his study, a large flute d i s c o g r a p h y and bibliography, as wel l as p u b l i c a t i o n of s e v e r a l articles.
Interviews, and "recollections" c o n t r i b u t e d by important figures of the French Flute School.
Only one writer has a c c e p t e d the c h a l l e n g e to pro d u c e a d e t a i l e d study of one of the m ost d i s t i n g u i s h e d flutists of the late nineteenth and early twent i e t h
centuries. P e n e l o p e Ann F i s c h e r ' s d i s s e r t a t i o n "Philippe Gaubert: Flutist, Composer, Conductor, T e a cher" (DMA, U n i v e r s i t y of Maryland, ]082) e x p l o r e s the life and i n f l u e n c e of t his musician.
D a v i d Eugene Etienne has w r i t t e n the only paper s p e c i f i c a l l y d e v o t e d to the t e a c h i n g m e t h o d s of r e cent Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e flute Professors and their students - "A
C o m p a r i s o n and A p p l i c a t i o n of S e l e c t T e a c h i n g Methods Cor the Flute by Henri Altès, Paul Taffanel, P h i lippe Gaubert, M a rcel M o y s e and T r e v o r Wye" (DMA d i ssertation, Louisiana State University, 1988). T his d i s s e r t a t i o n is a brief a c c o u n t of h o w each of the men e n u m e r a t e d above taught or t ea c h e s four c o m p o n e n t s of flute p e r f o r m a n c e and
i nstruction: emb o u c h u r e formation, s i n g l e tongue, d o u b l e tongue, and d a i l y exercises. E t i e n n e gi v e s only limited e m p h a s i s to p e r f o r m a n c e practice.
T h e F r ench Flute s c hool f i g u r e s p r o m i n e n t l y in W a n d a Sue S w i l l e y ' s d i s s e r t a t i o n "A C o m p r e h e n s i v e P r o j e c t in Flute L i t e r a t u r e w i t h an Essay on F l u t e Emb o u c h u r e P e d agogy in the U n i t e d States from ca. 1925- 1 9 7 7 as D e s c r i b e d in
S elected Writ i n g s " (DI4A, U n i v e r s i t y of Iowa, 1978) .
Swilley's d i s c u s s i o n deals with the F r e n c h a p p r o a c h as it is sp e c ifically a p p l i e d to the i n s t r u c t i o n and d e v e l o p m e n t of the flute e m b o u c h u r e p e d a g o g y p r a c t i c e d in the United
S t a t e s .
A n u mber of s c h olars h a v e a d d r e s s e d various specific t o pics with regard to the F r e n c h flute school
through a r t i c l e s publi s h e d largely in flute trade journals -
The F l u t i s t 's Q u a r t e r l y (Journal of the N a t i o n a l Flute
Association, U S A ) , F l u t e Talk, Pan (Journal of the British Flute Society) - and other s m a l l e r fl u t e jo u r n a l s t h r o u g h o u t the past two decades. A number of a r t i c l e s h a v e also
appeared in b r o a d e r - b a s e d m u s i c o l o g i c a l j o u r n a l s from the early dec a d e s of this cent u r y to the present. For the most part these h ave been limited to b i o g r a p h i c a l and brief
h i s t orical sur v e y s of important figu r e s and trends. B e y o n d th e s e s p e c i a l i z e d w o r k s of s c h o l a r l y
research, n u m e r o u s books on the g e n e r a l h i s t o r y of the flute and other w o o d w i n d i nstruments h a v e d e v o t e d a c u r s o r y a m ount of space to the life and i n f l u e n c e of t h e Paris
C o n s e r v a t o i r e fl u t e Professors. T h e s e t i t l e s m a y be found in the c o n c l u d i n g bibliography.
Th e m a n w h o ho l d s the p o s i t i o n of P r o f e s s o r of the flute class at the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e is e x t r e m e l y
influential." T h r o u g h o u t most of the n i n e t e e n t h and early t w e n t i e t h centuries, the same man often h o l d s not only the p o s i t i o n of Professor, but the principal c h a i r in both the O p é r a o r c h e s t r a and the Soc i é t é des concerts. As a result, he is t h e mo d e l for the c u r r e n t g e n e r a t i o n of French
flutists. His sound, his style, his m a n n e r of p l a y i n g the i n s t r u m e n t is the s t a n d a r d of flute p e r f o r m a n c e practice. T he n i n e t e e n t h and t w e n t i e t h - c e n t u r y e x p o r t a t i o n of Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e - t r a i n e d f l u tists to North A m e r i c a n shores g i v e s i n c r e a s e d b r e a d t h to the influence of the P r o f essors of F l u t e . 3 Bec a u s e of the stature of the p o s i t i o n , it is p o s s i b l e to d e r i v e the p r e v a i l i n g p e r f o r m a n c e p r a c t i c e from ^ T h e r e h a v e been no f e male Pro f e s s o r s of Fl u t e at the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e un t i l the 1980s.
^ Cha r l e s Molé, a stud e n t of Altès, p l a y e d w i t h the Boston S y m p h o n y from 1887 to 1896. He was s u c c e d e d by another Al t è s student, L éon J a c q u e t for three years. J a c q u e t was
f o l l o w e d by yet a n o t h e r Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e s t u d e n t Andre M a q u a r r e (he was j o i n e d in the section by his b r o t h e r Daniel
for a brief t i m e ) . An d r é M a q u a r r e u l t i m a t e l y loft Boston for the Los A n g e l e s P h i l h a r m o n i c Orchestra. T h e French lineage in B o s t o n c o n t i n u e d into the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y with G e o r g e s L a u r e n t w h o held the p r i n c i p a l chair for over three decades. In New York, the Paris i nfluence was d r i v e n by the t o w e r i n g f i gure of G e o r g e s Bar r è r e for m u c h of the first h al f of the t w e n t i e t h c e n t u r y (Adrian Brett, "The French
Style in Amer i c a , " T he Fl u t e Worker, vol. 2, no. 2 (December 1983), 1, 5). R ené LeRoy, a s t u d e n t of Taffanel, taught at the C o n s e r v a t o r y of Q u e b e c for a number of y e a r s before r e t u r n i n g to Pa r i s (Harry Moskowitz, "René LeR o y , " W o o d w i n d
World, B r a s s and Percussion, vol. 14, no. l (January 1975),
14) In the latter half of this c e n t u r y T a f f a n e l ' s student M a r c e l M o y s e has c o n t i n u e d the F r ench t r a d i t i o n s in North America. T h e lineage of Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e t e a c h e r s and t h e i r s t u d e n t s in N o r t h A m e r i c a is e x p a n d e d f u r t h e r in A p p e n d i x 1.
the writings of one single flutist, the P r o f e s s o r at the Paris Conservatoire.
W ha t was the style and m a n n e r of flute p l a y i n g d e m o n s t r a t e d and taught by t h e m a s t e r s of the Paris
C o n s e r v a t o i r e d u ring the m o s t a c t i v e p e r i o d of the
C o n s e r v a t o i r e Flute School (1830 to 1930)? B u i l d i n g on the b i o g raphical and his t o r i c a l s t u d i e s by e a r l i e r scholars, this paper will study th r e e m a j o r t r e a t i s e s by P r o f e s s o r s of Flute at the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e to shed f u r t h e r light on the p e r f o r m a n c e p r a ctice of t h e fl u t i s t s p e r f o r m i n g or trained in Paris. T h e t r e a t i s e s w h i c h w i l l be t h e s u b j e c t of this study a r e the M é t h o d e p o u r s e r v i r à 1 'e n s e i g n e m e n t
de la n o u v e l l e fl û t e [1838] by V i c t o r Coche, t h e M é t h o d e p o u r flûte s y s t è m e B o e h m [c. 1880] by J o s e p h H e n r i Altès,
and L'Art de la flûte c o l l e c t e d by C l a u d e Paul Taffanel, c ompleted in two parts by P h i l i p p e G a u b e r t [Méthode
complète, 1923] and Louis F l e u r y ["La Flûte," 1927]. T h e
first two of t h e s e t r e a t i s e s w i l l be t h e s u b j e c t of
s cho l a r l y re s e a r c h for the f i r s t time. A n a l y s i s of Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e flute t r e a t i s e s w i t h an eye to t h e i r
p e r f o r m a n c e pr a c t i c e i m p l i c a t i o n s has never b e f o r e bee n conducted. Based on our k n o w l e d g e of the g r e a t p e d a g o g i c a l treat i s e s from the e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y by Q u a n t z f o r flute, Leo p o l d M o z a r t for violin, and C.P.E. B a c h for keyboard, it may be ass u m e d t hat the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e f l u t e t r e a t i s e s
will c o n t a i n v a l u a b l e information on the techn i q u e of p l a y i n g the flute, as well as on t h e i n t e rpretation and p e r f o r m a n c e of c o n t e m p o r a r y music.
T h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n will be pres e n t e d in two informal sections. The first s e c t i o n will include three c h a p t e r s d e v o t e d to the h i s t o r i c a l information n e c e s s a r y to put fl u t e p e d a g o g y at the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e and flute p e r f o r m a n c e p r a c t i c e in France d u r i n g the period from 1838 to 1927 into perspective. T h e s e c o n d section wil l include five c h a p t e r s w h i c h will p r e s e n t the results of my r e s earch into t h e p e r f o r m a n c e p r a c t i c e i m p l i c a t i o n s of the three treatises.
T h e first c h a p t e r wil l o f f e r a brief h i s t o r y of the Pa r i s C o n s e r v a t o i r e w i t h p a r t i c u l a r emphasis on
p r e v a i l i n g p e d a g o g i c a l t r ends at t h a t institution. A
c o m p o s i t e list of w i n n e r s of the a n n u a l c o m p e t i t i o n in flute and a fami l y t r e e d i s p l a y i n g t h e m a n y g e n e r a t i o n s of pupil- t e a c h e r r e l a t i o n s h i p s w h i c h c a r r y d o w n to this day will be p r e s e n t e d in c o n j u n c t i o n w i t h t h i s cha p t e r in the form of appendices. T h e s e cond c h a p t e r w i l l be dev o t e d to a brief study of t h e e v o l u t i o n of the flute c u l m i n a t i n g in the
i n n o v a t i o n s of T h e o b a l d Boehm, t h e m e r i t s and d i s a d v a n t a g e s of this n e w m o d e l flute, as w e l l as t h e c o n t r o v e r s i e s
s u r r o u n d i n g t h e a d v e n t of B o e h m ' s flute and competitors' m o d e l s d e r i v e d from c o m b i n a t i o n s of the B o e h m - f l u t e and the
traditional eight- k e y e d flute- T h e t h i r d c h a p t e r will invest i g a t e the three major factors b e a r i n g on the
p r o f e s s i o n a l flutist in Paris d u r i n g t h e t i m e of the study: the mu s i c pro f e s s i o n in Paris, F r e n c h t e n d e n c i e s in
composition, and the st a n d a r d r e p e r t o i r e of t h e flutist. Ch a pters four t h r o u g h s e v e n w i l l d e a l p r i m a r i l y with the flute method books w r i t t e n by t h e p r o f e s s o r s at the C o n s e r v a t o i r e 1838 to 1927. C h a p t e r f our w i l l c o m p r i s e a su rvey of the p r o m i n e n t flute t r e a t i s e s w r i t t e n for use at the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e or by t h e Pa r i s C o n s e r v a t o i r e
professors. In the f o l l o w i n g th r e e chapters, e ach of the three m e t h o d t r e a t i s e s by Coche, Altès, and T a f f a n e l (with G a u b e r t and Fleury) w ill be s t u d i e d a n d e v a l u a t e d for
i m p l i c a t i o n s of p e r f o r m a n c e p r a c t i c e b a s e d on t h e t ype of i n s t r u c t i o n and e x e r c i s e s d e v o t e d to t h e v a r i o u s c o m p o n e n t parts of each of six p r o p o s e d e l e m e n t s of m u s i c - pitch, rhythm, timbre, dynamic, form and m u s i c a l s t y l e - as w ell as areas of i n t erest r e c e i v i n g s p e c i a l e m p h a s i s by e ach
c o m p o s e r of a treatise.
In t h e c o n c l u d i n g chapter, t h e t h r e e flute m e t h o d s wil l then be co m p a r e d and c o n t r a s t e d b a s e d on t h e t ype of
instru c t i o n offered, a s s u m e d s t a r t i n g a n d c o m p l e t i o n level of the student, and t h e v a r i a t i o n s in e a c h p r o f e s s o r ' s e m p h a s i s of v a r i o u s facets of the e d u c a t i o n a l process. C o r r e l a t i o n s bet w e e n d e m a n d s and e x p e c t a t i o n s p r e s e n t e d in
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the t r e a t i s e s and the flute c o m p o s i t i o n s o u t l i n e d in chapter t h r e e w i l l be i n c luded as d e e m e d appropriate. S t a t ements w ill t hen be p r o p o s e d s u g g e s t i n g the state of flute
p e r f o r m a n c e p r a c t i c e in F r a n c e d u r i n g the p e r i o d 1838 to 192? ba s e d on f i n dings from the r e s e a r c h c o n d u c t e d on the m e t h o d treatises.
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Chapter 1
H is t o r y of the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e
R eturning to the G r a n d Boulevards, the n e x t s t reet on the left is the Rue Rougemont, and if w e tak e this we com e in a few m o m e n t s to the C o n s e r v a t o i r e where so m a n y famous m u s i c i a n s have been
t a u g h t . ...4
The Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e was fou n d e d in 1795 in the wake of the F r e n c h R e v o l u t i o n as a r e s p o n s e to the new
d e m a n d for m u s i c i a n s to p e r f o r m for state f e s t i v a l s and occasions. For nearly two h u n d r e d years, the C o n s e r v a t o i r e has been at the c e n t r e of F r ench m u s i c and society. From Paris, the s t a n d a r d s of the C o n s e r v a t o i r e e m a n a t e into the c o u n t r y s i d e t h r o u g h an e l a b o r a t e s y s t e m of m u s i c schools. A
ro ster of Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e P r o f e s s o r s and s t u d e n t s reads like a v e r i t a b l e W h o ' s W h o of French, and in m a n y respects, in ternational musicia n s h i p .
Since its founding, t h e C o n s e r v a t o i r e has been a leader in the p e d a g o g y of composition, voice, and w i n d instruments. A g r e a t c o n d u c t o r of t h e N e w Y o r k Symphony, W a l t e r Damrosch, h i m s e l f d i r e c t l y r e s p o n s i b l e for e n t i c i n g so m a n y Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e t r a i n e d m u s i c i a n s to N o r t h
E. V. Lucas, A W a n d e r e r in Paris, lOth ed. (London: M e t h u e n and Company, Ltd., 1913), 251.
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A m e r i c a n shores, e l o q u e n t l y and s u c c i n c t l y identified the s o u r c e of French d o m i n a n c e in m u s i c w ith these words:
The French h a v e the g ift of instruction: they h a v e c l a r i t y and they h ave enthusiasm; w i t h these two qual i t i e s one p e r f o r m s miracles, and it was indeed a m i r a c l e w h i c h these F r ench m a s t e r s r e a l i z e d . 5
In sup p o r t of this observation, it may be readily noted that m a n y p r o f e s s o r s who hav e s e rved the C o n s e r v a t o i r e in every d i s c i p l i n e have left t r e a t i s e s of instru c t i o n which, through the years, have formed the f o u n d a t i o n of the C o n s e r v a t o i r e ' s c urriculum; a number of t r e a t i s e s have b e c o m e a s t a n d a r d for m u s i c instru c t i o n world-wide. T w o c e n t u r i e s of c o n t i n u o u s p u p i l - t e a c h e r relationships, p a r t i c u l a r l y in the flute class, h a v e left a p e r m a n e n t r e c o r d of the cha n g e s in
p e d a g o g y as they are p r e s e n t e d in the n u m e r o u s t r e a t i s e s and methods. To this day the Pa r i s C o n s e r v a t o i r e c o n t i n u e s to be a v i t a l and a c t i v e i n s t i t u t i o n in i n t e r n a t i o n a l music.
L i t e r a t u r e d e a l i n g w i t h the Pa r i s C o n s e r v a t o i r e m a y be d i v i d e d into three v e r y d i s t i n c t groups. One group c o n s i s t s of i n f o r m a t i o n found in a n e c d o t a l form; such
t i d b i t s of information, s o m e t i m e s serious, s o m e t i m e s
^ R ené Dumesnil, Le M o n d e des M u s i c i e n s (Paris: G. Crcs, 1923), 190. The original q u o t a t i o n a p p e a r e d in an inter v i e w w i t h W a l t e r D a m r o s c h p u b l i s h e d in the New York Herald, 3 May
1920. D u m e s n i l has t r a n s l a t e d this p a s s a g e into French: "Les Fr a n ç a i s ont le don de l ' e nseignement: ils ont la
c l a r t é et ils ont 1'enthusiasms; a vec ces d e u x q u a l i t i e s on f ait des miracles, et c'en fut u n v r a i m e n t que r é a l i s è r e n t c es m a î t r e s français."
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humorous, may be readily found in memoirs, p e r s o n a l letters, and b i o g r a p h i c a l sources. T h e Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e is also the sub j e c t of a number of m o n o g r a p h s d e v o t e d to hu m o r o u s and even s a r c a s t i c parody of t h e e v e n t s and p e r s o n a l i t i e s a s s o c i a t e d wit h the institution. W o r k i n g w i t h these
ma t e r i a l s can be s o mewhat like l o o k i n g at a f a m i l y a r c h i v e of s n a p s h o t s and vi d e o r e c o r d i n g s - en t e r t a i n i n g ,
fascinating, but a l t o g e t h e r s k e t c h y in t h e i r p r e s e n t a t i o n of only s e l e c t e d highlights.
The s e c o n d g r o u p of s o u r c e s c o n s i s t s of the
several s u b s t a n t i a l m o n o g r a p h s a n d e n c y c l o p a e d i a s w h i c h hav e been c o m p i l e d w i t h great c are and co m p l e t e n e s s , s e e m i n g l y a result of the French p e n c h a n t for r e c o r d i n g a l l - e n c o m p a s s i n g histories. I n v e s t i g a t i o n of t h e s e m a t e r i a l s c a n p r o d u c e a
feeling t h a t one is w i t n e s s i n g a long d o c u m e n t a r y history, and yet, at the same time, can be f a s c i n a t i n g in the m i n u t e d e t a i l s w h i c h t h e y record.
The t h i r d group of s o u r c e s is t h e v a s t n u m b e r of t r e a t i s e s and m e t h o d s p r e p a r e d by p r o f e s s o r s a n d s t u d e n t s of the C o n s e r v a t o i r e . These texts are i n v a l u a b l e for
information, and begin to tell t h e s t o r y of w h a t m e m b e r s of the C o n s e r v a t o i r e c o n s i d e r e d f u n d a m e n t a l to t h e e d u c a t i o n of young musicians. More t han r e c o r d s of the curric u l u m , t h e s e t r e a t i s e s of f e r a g l i m p s e of the C o n s e r v a t o i r e ' s aesthetics.
14
D r a w i n g from the sources in the first two
c a t e g o r i e s n o t e d above, this cha p t e r w ill pre s e n t a brief h i s t o r y of the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e from its e a r liest
p r e d e c e s s o r s t h r o u g h the clos i n g d a t e of this study with an em p h a s i s on g e n e r a l p e d a g o g i c a l d e v e l o p m e n t s as they arc r e p r e s e n t e d in n o n - p e d a g o g i c a l sources. It will also
p r e s e n t a s y n o p s i s of student life and C o n s e r v a t o i r e student r e q u i r e m e n t s d u r i n g the t i m e - f r a m e of this study. While it
is at ti m e s c u m b e r s o m e to wad e t h r o u g h both the facts and hu m o r o u s d e t a i l s of this great institution, it is neces s a r y to h i g h l i g h t t h e t r a d i t i o n s of the C o n s e r v a t o i r e in order to p r o v i d e an h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e of the p e d a g o g i c a l impetus b e h i n d the c o m p o s e r s of the t r e a t i s e s w h i c h are the subjects of t his study. A l o n g w i t h c h a p t e r s 2 and 3, c h a p t e r I will s erve to p l a c e t h e p e r f o r m a n c e and t e a c h i n g p r a c t i c e s of the Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e flutists in h i s t o r i c a l perspective.
T h e E s t a b l i s h m e n t of the Pa r i s C o n s e r v a t o i r e
T h e m o v e m e n t to form a n a t i o n a l m u s i c school in France b e g a n o v e r a cen t u r y b e f o r e t h e f o u n d i n g of the Paris C o n s e rvatoire. T h e E n c y c l o p é d i e de la m u s i q u e s i mply states that:
...before 1789, musical i n s t r u c t i o n w a s a s s u r e d by 400 masters. T h e i r mission was to form the
15
e nsembles n e c e s s a r y for r e l i g i o u s f u n c t i o n s and d e m o n s t r a t i o n s .®
However, under the lea d e r s h i p of royalty, or in s ome cases, p r o m i n e n t musicians, mus i c a l i n s t r u c t i o n p r i o r to 1789 was a g r e a t deal more d i r e c t e d and o r g a n i z e d t h a n t h i s pas s a g e mi g h t suggest. V a r i o u s inst i t u t i o n s w e r e e s t a b l i s h e d during the s e venteenth and e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r i e s w i t h a g r e a t e r or lesser degree of success.
The first a t t e m p t at f o r m i n g a c e n t r a l i z e d
a s s o c i a t i o n of m u s i c i a n s and i n s t i t u t i o n for m u s i c came as early as 1671 when P i e r r e P e r r i n and R o b e r t C a m b e r t founded the Ac a d é m i e royale de musique. The n e w i n s t i t u t i o n brought t o g e t h e r some of the best " graduates" f rom t h e c h u r c h
sch o o l s of France. W h e n t h e m o s t r e s p e c t e d s i n g e r s left the c h u r c h schools, t h e y w e r e r e c r u i t e d or e v e n o r d e r e d to
p e r f o r m w i t h the G e n t i l s h o m m e s de la c h a m b r e d u Roi. Inc o r p o r a t i n g these s i n g e r s into its ranks, t h e A c a d é m i e became a d o m i n a n t force on the P a r i s i a n m u s i c s c e n e
th r o u g h o u t the late s e v e n t e e n t h and e i g h t e e n t h centuries.^ In S e p t e m b e r of the n e x t y e a r (1672), a school of sin g i n g to be a s s o c i a t e d w i t h the O p é r a was p r o p o s e d . As a ^ François Michel, et al., eds., E n c y c l o p é d i e de la musique, vol. 1 (Paris: Fasquelle, 1958), 154: " A v a n t 1789,
l ' e n s e i g n e m e n t m u s i c a l était a s s u r é p a r 400 maî t r i s e s . Leur m i s s i o n était de former e n s e m b l e s n é c e s s a i r e s a u x services et aux m a n i f e s t a t i o n s r e l i g i e u s e s . "
^ Lassabathie, H i s t o i r e du C o n s e r v a t o i r e i m p e r i a l de mus i q u e
et de d é c l a m a t i o n s u i v e de d o c u m e n t s r e c u e i l l i s et mis en
1 6
result, Lully e s t a b l i s h e d and assumed the d i r e c t o r s h i p oL' the École de chant et de d é c l a m a t i o n under the a u s p i c e s ol: the Paris Opéra.®
M a r t h e Le Rochois, a retired actress,
e s t a b l i s h e d a s u p p l e m e n t a r y École de chant et d é c l amation. Th i s school, o pen until 1726, p r o d u c e d m any s u c c e s s f u l
p e r f o r m e r s for the stage, and must, therefore, have had the s u p p o r t of fine instructors. However, neither of these s c h o o l s nor the A c a d é m i e r o y a l e acco m p l i s h e d the d e s i r e d go a l of c r e a t i n g a n a t i o n a l c e n t r e for music educa t i o n . ^
D u r i n g the d e c a d e s of the e i g h t e e n t h c e n t u r y p r e c e d i n g the Revolution, s e v e r a l other schools of
i n s t r u c t i o n in the p e r f o r m i n g arts w ere founded. In 1713, Lo u i s XIV, r e c o g n i z i n g t h e d i s g r a c e f u l state of s i n g i n g in Paris, issued a d e c r e e f o r m i n g a new school of m u s i c which w o u l d p r e p a r e students to p e r f o r m as dan c e r s and m u s i c i a n s in the A c a d é m i e r o yale de musique. Thi s s c hool c a m e to be k n o w n as t h e Magasin, na m e d a f t e r the b u i lding in w h i c h it w a s housed. The D i r e c t o r and a s s o c i a t e s of the M a g a s i n were p e r s o n s a t t a c h e d to the A c a d é m i e r o y a l e . G i r l s w ere
® Ibid.
® Ibid. T h e date on w h i c h this École de c h a n t o p e n e d is u n c l e a r fro m the literature.
T h é o d o r e Dubois, " L ' E n s e i g n e m e n t m u s i c a l , " E n c y c i o p e d l e
de la m u s i q u e et de d i c t i o n n a i r e du C onser v a t o i r e , p art 2, vol. 6, A l b e r t L a v i g n a c and L i onel de la Laurencie, eds.
admitted to the Magasin to study v o i c e and dance. S t a n d a r d s for the fill e s du Magasin, as the f e m a l e s t u dents wer e
known, w e r e rigid. To be a c c e p t e d to the Magasin, a w o m a n had to poss e s s the manner, carriage, and c h a r a c t e r n e c e s s a r y to per f o r m well at the Opéra. U p o n h e r m a t r i c u l a t i o n at the school, a w o m a n ' s family and h u s b a n d h a d to r e l i n q u i s h all rights of g u a r d i a n s h i p to the Magasin. T h e M a g a s i n was open to students t h r o u g h the 1770s.
M ore d e t e r m i n e d steps t o w a r d the f o r m a t i o n of a national m u s i c school were i n i t i a t e d in De c e m b e r of 1783. On behalf of Louis XVI and the Queen, t h e Baron de Breteuil, Ministre de la M a i s o n du Roi, s e n t a l e tter to the
C o n t r ô l e u r G é n é r a l des Finances e x p r e s s i n g t h e r o y a l d e s i r e to form a n a t i o n a l school of m u s i c b a s e d on t h e I t a l i a n conservatories.^^ A c t i o n was q u i c k l y taken, and on 3 January 1784, an order of the C o n s e i l d ' É t a t de Roi e s t a b l i s h e d the École royale de c h a n t et de décl a m a t i o n .
T h e King, having r e c o g n i z e d t h a t t h a t w h i c h can c o n t r i b u t e m o s t e f f e c t i v e l y in g i v i n g a new d e g r e e of pe r f e c t i o n to a s p e c t a c l e so i n t e r e s t i n g
[Théodore] Lassabathie, 1-2. T h i s s o u r c e shows a list of Directors of t h e M a g a s i n da t e d u n t i l 1775.
Donald L. Hefner, "The T r a d i t i o n of t h e Paris
C o n s e r v a t o r y Scho o l of Oboe P l a y i n g w i t h Spe c i a l A t t e n t i o n to the I n f l u e n c e of Marcel T a b u t e a u " (Ph. D. Di s s e r t a t i o n , The C a t h o l i c U n i v e r s i t y of America, 1984), 1. L a s s a b a t h i e
(p. 3) s u p p o r t s H e f n e r ' s s u g g e s t i o n t h a t the I t a l i a n
Conservatories, and in p a r t i c u l a r t h e Pi e t a at Naples, w e r e the i n s p i r a t i o n for founding t h e E c o l e r o y a l e de c h a n t et de d é c l a m a t i o n .
to the p u b l i c (such as the Opéra) m i g h t be to es t a b l i s h a school where one w o u l d be able to develop, at the same time, the s k i l l s useful to the A c a d é m i e r o y a l e de m u s i q u e and t h e p r oper bea r i n g for s e r v i c e of the C h a p e l of His Majesty, ordains:
A R T I C L E 1.--- On the 1st of A u g u s t next, u school w i l l be e s t a b l i s h e d s t a f f e d by skillful masters of music, of the clavecin, of d e c l a m a t i o n
[spoken theatre], of F r ench and of other languages, w h o w ill be char g e d w i t h the
i n s t r u c t i o n of music, composition, and in general, all t hat w h i c h is able to a s s i s t in per f e c t i n g d i v e r s e t a l e n t s . ^
The École r o y a l e o p e n e d 1 April 1784 and r e m a i n e d open until
1789.14
T he p e r i o d following the F r ench R e v o l u t i o n w i t n e s s e d m a n y c h a n g e s in the m u s i c a l o r g a n i z a t i o n s of Paris;!^ th e s e c h a n g e s p r e pared the w a y for the
e s t a b l i s h m e n t of the Paris C o n s e rvatoire. Patricia Ahmad notes t h i s deve l o p m e n t , stating tha t " [t]he r e v o lution may
1^ Lassabathie, 2: "Le Roi, ayant r e c o n n u que ce qui p ou r r i t c o n t r i b u e r le plus e f f i c a c e m e n t à d o n n e r à un
s p e c t a c l e aussi i n t é r e s s a n t pour le p u b l i c (que l'Opéra) un n o u v e a u d e g r é de perfection, ce s e r a i t d ' é t a b l i r une école où l'on pût f o r m e r t o u t à la fois d e s s u j e t s utiles à
l'Académie R o y a l e de M u s i q u e et des é l è v e s propres au serv i c e de la c h a p e l l e de Sa Majesté, ordonne:
A r t i c l e P r e m i e r . A c o m p t e r au août prochain. Il sera p o u r v u à l ' é t a b l i s s e m e n t d ' u n e é c o l e tenue par
d ' h a b i l e s m a î t r e s de musique, de clavecin, de déclamation, de langue f r a n ç a i s e et autres, c h a r g é s d ' y e n s e i g n e r la musique, la c o m p o s i t i o n et en g é n é r a l t o u t ce qui peut s e rvir à p e r f e c t i o n n e r les d i f f é r e n t s talents."
^4 Ibid., 3.
Ed ward Bellasis, Cherubini: M e m o r i a l s I l l u s t r a t i v e of
1 9
h ave brought 'irretrievable disaster' to n o n - m u s i c a l
institutions, but it gave birth to a m u s i c a l institution."^® Following the July 1789 Revolution, B e r n a r d
Sarrette, Staff C a p t a i n of the Na t i o n a l Guard, a s s e m b l e d forty-five musi c i a n s to r e - e s t a b l i s h the n u c l e u s of the M u s i q u e de la garde nationale. In M a y of 1790, the
m u n i c i p a l i t y of Paris seized control of t h e M u s i q u e de la garde nationale and increased its ranks to s e v e n t y members. On 9 Jun e 1792, a d e c r e e was issued fro m t h e C o m m u n e of Paris forming the École g r a t u i t é de m u s i q u e de la g a r d e n ationale p a r i s i e n n e to train boys and y o u n g m e n for
e n t r a n c e into the M u s i q u e de la g a r d e nat i o n a l e . S t u dents were ac c e p t e d to the École g r a t u i t é o n l y b e t w e e n t h e ages of ten and t w enty years. Each student was i s s u e d a uniform, an instrument, and the m u s i c pa p e r n e c e s s a r y to c o m p l e t e the lessons w h i c h he re c e i v e d for one h o u r e v e r y day. Eac h week the students r e c e i v e d two solfège lessons and three
instrumental lessons in a d d i t i o n to the g e n e r a l m u s i c lessons alr e a d y noted.
T he s p i r i t of the R e v o l u t i o n and a g r o w i n g d e s i r e on the part of the French to emu l a t e the s o c i e t i e s of
a n c i e n t G r e e c e and Rome, in p a r t i c u l a r to c o n f o r m to the Patricia Ahmad, "The Flute P r o f e s s o r s of t h e Paris C o n s e r v a t o i r e from D e v i e n n e to Taffanel, 1 7 9 5 - 1 9 0 8 , " MA Thesis, North Te x a s State University, 1980, 5.
ideals laid out by Plato in his R e p u b l i c , led to the use oL' m u s i c in all p u blic s p e c t a c l e s and u l t i m a t e l y to a deep b e l i e f in g o v e r n m e n t s u p p o r t of m u s i c education.^® To this end, a d e c r e e of the Na t i o n a l Convention, 18 b r u m a i r e an II
(8 N o v e m b e r 1793), formed t h e I n s t i t u t na t i o n a l de musique c o m p o s e d of 115 m u s i c i a n s for t h e p u r p o s e of p r o v i d i n g music for na t i o n a l festivals and p r o v i d i n g m u s i c i n s t r u c t i o n for six h u n d r e d s t u d e n t s . L a s s a b a t h i e writes:
F rom the School of M u s i c c a m e t h e n u m e r o u s
s t u d e n t s who, s p read t h r o u g h o u t the French camps, e n l i v e n e d the i n t repid c o u r a g e of our a r m i e s w ith w a r l i k e strains: It is f rom there that our civic songs, d i s s e m i n a t e d f r o m one c o rner of Fran c e to the other, moved abroad, eve n into the te n t s of t h e en e m y to t r o u b l e the r e p o s e of the d e s p o t s a l l i e d a g a i n s t t h e Repub l i c ; it is t h e r e t hat the b r i l l i a n t and s o lemn hy m n s w e r e inspired w h i c h our w a r r i o r s sang upo n t h e m o u n t a i n s of Argonne, in t h e p l ains of J e m m a p e s and Fleurus, and in taking the p a s s a g e s of t h e A l p s and the P y r e n e e s by
storm.
Dubois, 3446. Lassabathie, 20.
Ibid., 21. F rom t h e 3 A u g u s t 1795 r e p o r t to t h e N a tional C o n v e n t i o n by M a r i e - J o s e p h Chenier: " . . . c ' é t a i t de i 'École d e m u s i q u e q u ' é t a i e n t p a r t i s de n o m b r e u x E l èves qui,
r é p a n d u s d a n s les c a m p s français, animaient, p a r d e s acc o r d s belliqueux, l ' i n t r é p i d e c o u r a g e de nos armées: C ' e s t de
là... q u e nos c h ants civiques, d i s s é m i n é s d ' u n b out de la F r a n c e à l'autre, a l l a i e n t j u s q u e chez l'étranger, jusque sous les t e ntes de l'ennemi, t r o u b l e r le re p o s des d e s p o t e s ligués c o n t r e s la R é p u b l i q u e ; c ' e s t là q u ' o n t été inspirés ces h y m n e s b r i l l i a n t et s o l e n n e l s q u e nos g u e r r i e r s
c h a n t a i e n t sur les m o n t s de 1'Argonne, dans les p l a i n e s de J e m m a p e s et de Fleurus, et en for ç a n t les p a s s a g e s des Alpes et des P y r é n é e s ."
2 1
Two y e ars later, on 19 t h e r m i d o r an III (3 A u g u s t 1795), the N ational Convention, in one bold stroke,
s u p p r e s s e d both the M u s ique de la g a r d e n a t i o n a l and the École royale, and put forward p l a n s by M a r i e - J o s e p h C h e n i e r for the e s t a b l i s h m e n t of a n a t i o n a l c o n s e r v a t o r y of m u s i c under the name of the same I n s t i t u t n a t i o n a l w h i c h had been e s t a b l i s h e d on 8 November 1793. O n the same day, t h e
C o n v e n t i o n e s t a b l i s h e d that five Inspecteurs, c h o s e n by the Institut from a mong its composers, w o u l d be r e s p o n s i b l e for the o v e r s e e i n g of student instruction. T h e s e five
Inspectors a l ong w i t h four p r o f e s s o r s w o u l d f o r m the a dministration. Furthermore, t h e s a m e day w i t n e s s e d the
founding of the B i b l i o t h è q u e at t h e Institut, e s t a b l i s h e d salaries and scholarships, set t h e n u m b e r of p r o f e s s o r s for each discipline, and a p p r o v e d 2 4 0 , 0 0 0 francs to u n d e r w r i t e the exp e n s e s of e s t a b l i s h i n g t h e Institut, w h i c h w o u l d be located at the M e n u s - P l a i s i r s .
T h e P aris C o n s e r v a t o i r e w a s fo r m a l l y e s t a b l i s h e d on the 25th of O c t o b e r 1795 as t h e C o n s e r v a t o i r e n a t i o n a l de m u s i q u e .22 B e r n a r d Sarrette was a p p o i n t e d as t h e n e w
C o n s e r v a t o i r e ' s director, and M e s s i e u r s Lesueur, Grétry, Gossec, Méhul, and C h e r u b i n i w e r e a p p o i n t e d as Inspectors. The last t h ree men were also h i r e d to t e a c h c o u n t e r p o i n t . 2^ I b i d . , 21-22.
O 3
A c o m m i s s i o n charged w i t h the task of o r g anizing the new C o n s e r v a t o i r e submitted t h e i r final pla n on 15 m e s s i d o r an IV (3 J u l y 1796) u n d e r t h e s i g n a t u r e of M. Benezech. T h e p lan p r o vided for a d m i n i s t r a t i o n of the
C o n s e rvatoire, n o m i n a t i o n of t e m p o r a r y officers, inspection of the curriculum, e s t a b l i s h m e n t of t h e Bibliothèque, public p e r f o r m a n c e s and inspection [exercices], d u t i e s for the
n a t ional festivals, d u ties of the l e g i s l a t i v e board,
r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s for lessons, a d m i s s i o n of students, order of study, r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s of the students, h o l i d a y s and
leave, o f f e n s e s and p u n i s h m e n t . P r o v i s i o n s wer e made to e s t a b l i s h a m i n i m u m of twenty classes: solfège, clarinet, flute, oboe, bassoon, horn, trumpet, trombone, serpent, buccina, tuhae corvae, timpani, strings, clavecin, organ, v o calization, v o i c e (simple and o p e r atic), accompaniment, and c o m p o s i t i o n . 24 The C o n s e r v a t o i r e o p e n e d to s t u d e n t s on 30 O c t o b e r of the n ext year.^^
T h e issue of public f u n c t i o n s [exercices publier:] had fin a l l y b e e n settled in the B e n e z e c h repo r t of 3 July 1796. Fr e s h in the me m o r i e s of t h e C o n s e r v a t o i r e
a d m i n i s t r a t o r s w a s t h e École r o y a l e du ch a n t p r o d u c t i o n of P i c c i n i ' s R o l a n d in 1786, wh i c h was the first f u n ction for 2^ Lassabathie, 219-237.
24 Dubois, 3446. 2^ Lassabathie, 23.
23
t hat institution. T h e p r o d u c t i o n of an p u b l i c f u n ction was not a new event in the life of i n s t i t u t i o n s of m u s i c
instruction, but t hat of the École r o y a l e w a s t h e first one held for Paris in t w e n t y years. T h e École de m u s i q u e de la ga r d e natio n a l e had p r o v i s i o n s for a f u n c t i o n w r i t t e n into
its by-laws, but none was ever performed. It was finally d e c i d e d that the C o n s e r v a t o i r e w o u l d i n s t i t u t e six functions annually, and an a n n u a l c o m p e t i t i o n at w h i c h p r i z e s w o u l d be a w a r d e d to C o n s e r v a t o i r e s t u d e n t s for d e m o n s t r a t e d
accomplishment. The p u b l i c funct i o n s w o u l d be h eld in the G r e a t Hall of the C o n s e r v a t o i r e in t h e p r e s e n c e of the Director, the Ministers, and the I n s t i t u t [ n a t i o n a l e de
s c i e n c e s et a r t s ] . T h e first f u n c t i o n was h e l d in t h e Salle de l'Odéon on 24 O c t o b e r 1797 w i t h g r e a t s u c c e s s . T h e p u b l i c func t i o n s h ave c o n t i n u e d to this d a y in one form or another.
One p r o f o u n d m a n i f e s t a t i o n of t h e p u b l i c functions was the f o u nding of a s e r i e s of t w e l v e o r c h e s t r a l co n c e r t s a n n u a l l y in 1803 w h i c h was the e m b r y o n of t h e S o c i é t é des c o n c e r t s du C o n s e r v a t o i r e (that g r o u p w a s f o r m a l l y
e s t a b l i s h e d in 1828). T his m a g n i f i c e n t o r c h estra, m a d e up of p r o f e s s o r s and students, has f u n c t i o n e d as a forum for c o n t e m p o r a r y F r ench p e r f o r m i n g t a l e n t s i n c e its founding.
Dubois, 3448.
Ibid. Dubois c o n t i n u e s his a r t i c l e w i t h a lengthy d i s c u s s i o n of t h e e v o l u t i o n of the p u b l i c e x e rcises. The
2 A
T h e C o n s e r v a t o i r e u n d e r w e n t a se c o n d p e r i o d of o r g a n i z a t i o n in 1800. T h e c o m m i t t e e report w a s issued under t h e s i g n a t u r e of the M i n i s t r e de l'Intérieur, M. Cretet.-^ M o s t a d m i n i s t r a t i v e a s p e c t s of the C o n s e r v a t o i r e r e mained
intact w i t h only s l i g h t a l teration. However, by o r d e r of the report, s e v eral i m p o r t a n t a s p e c t s of the c u r r i c u l u m were e i t h e r d e f i n e d or redefined.
C h a p t e r 1, a r t i c l e 3 of this re p o r t e s t a b l i s h e d th e o r d e r of study t h r o u g h four levels. The first level
i n c l u d e d s u c c e s s f u l c o m p l e t i o n of the rudiments of music, solfège, a n d p r e p a r a t o r y v o c a l classes. T h e s e c o n d level c o m p r i s e d c l a s s e s in v o cal d e c l a m a t i o n or i n d ividual
instruments. The t h ird level i n c l u d e d the s tudy of the v o i c e w i t h i n s t r umental a c c o m p a n i m e n t , e n s e m b l e study
i n c l u d i n g both p r i v a t e and p u b l i c performances, as well as h a r m o n y a n d composition. Finally, the fourth level included the c o m p l e t e s t udy of m u s i c a l o n g w i t h physics, mathematics, a n d p h ilosophy.
F u r t h e r r e q u i s i t e s of s t udy are s h o w n in a r t i c l e A of the s a m e chapter. In this article, the C o n s e r v a t o i r e m a n d a t e s that: 1) a s t u d e n t s t u d y i n g s o l f è g e m u s t a l s o
s t u d y an i n s t r u m e n t c o n c u r r e n t l y ; 2) a s t u d e n t may not study
S o c i é t é des c o n c e r t s du C o n s e r v a t o i r e is d i s c u s s e d at g r e a t e r le n g t h in c h a p t e r 3 of th i s paper.
2 5
two instr u m e n t s simultaneously; and 3) on c o m p l e t i o n of the s o l f è g e class, a student m u s t s t u d y h a r m o n y if he or she still wishes to study an i n s t r u m e n t
M e t h o d s and T r e a t i s e s
The new C o n s e r v a t o i r e s o o n found itself in the p o s i t i o n of of f e r i n g i n s t r u c t i o n w i t h o u t the b e n e f i t of a p p r o v e d texts. The Mag a s i n de m u s i q u e (not to be c o n f u s e d w i t h the m u s i c school c a l l e d t h e Magasin) had bee n
e s t a b l i s h e d in 1793 under B e r n a r d S a r r e t t e a n d the M u s i q u e de la ga r d e n a t i o n a l e for t h e p u r p o s e of p r o p a g a t i n g t h e s p i r i t of the Re p u b l i c and a u g m e n t i n g the r e s o u r c e s of m u s i c t h r o u g h publication. The M a g a s i n w a s t r a n s f e r r e d to the C o n s e r v a t o i r e w i t h the new m a n d a t e of p u b l i s h i n g t h e a t r i c a l works, c l a s s i c a l works for the v o i c e and instruments, as well as t e a c h i n g materials, m e t hods, and s t u d i e s . T h e
Formal r e v i s i o n s in the C o n s e r v a t o i r e a d m i n i s t r a t i o n have been m ade at irregular inter v a l s s i n c e the R e p o r t of 1800 by var i o u s commissions, not a b l y in 1808, 1822, 1841, 1850,
1855, 1878, 1894 and 1905. A f t e r t h i s point, i n f o r m a t i o n c e a s e s to be a v a i l a b l e t h r o u g h N o r t h A m e r i c a n library circulation. T h e s e r e v i s i o n s h a v e a l t e r e d o n l y t h e finer p o i n t s of the a d m i n i s t r a t i v e p l a n of t h e C o n s e r v a t o i r e . No m a j o r p e d a g o g i c a l shifts h a v e b e e n laid out by the a u t h o r i t y of th e s e m o r e r e c e n t commissions. T h e first f ive d a t e s a r e d e a l t w i t h in Lassabathie, 263-334. T h e last four are
c o n s i d e r e d in G ail H i lson Woldu, " G a b r i e l Fauré, d i r e c t e u r du C o n s e r v a t o i r e les réformé de 1905," Re v u e de M u s i c o l o g i e , vol. 70 (1984): 199.
C o n s t a n t Pierre, Le M a g a s i n de m u s i q u e à l ' u s a g e d e s
F ê t e s n a t i o n a l e s et du C o n s e r v a t o i r e (Paris: L i b r a i r i e Fischbacher, 1895; Geneva: M i n k o f f Reprint, 1974), v i i - x
