VOUS ETES ICI :LES DOSSIERS MALIBRAN | Jean Note
Born in Tournai in 1859, the Belgian Jean Noté possessed an ample, naturally well-placed baritone voice of extended range. His vast repertoire is proof of his vocal potential. Supplied with diplomas from the conservatoire of Ghent, he made his debut in that town in 1884 and then sang in Lille, Lyon, Marseille and at the Monnaie in Brussels (1887). He joined the company of the Paris Opera in 1893 where he stayed until his death in 1922. French works - Faust, Salammbô, Gwendoline, Roméo et Juliette, Samson et Dalila - Italian operas - Rigoletto, Aïda, Il Trovatore - but also some German operas, Lohengrin, Tannhäuser - were the basis of his repertoire. It is also necessary to mention creations of new works amongst which were “Messidor” by Alfred Bruneau and Massenet’s Roma, the first performance of which took place in Monte-Carlo. Noté was received in America for the season of 1908/9. The Metropolitan in New York heard him principally in french works. He partnered Caruso in Carmen, Faust and Manon. In parallell with his career in the opera house, Noté was exceptionally prolific as a recording artist. His voice was well-suited to the technical possibilities of the recording process of the time. Almost all the firms invited him to record. From 1902, Pathé recorded cylinders, following which Columbia made use of him. The Gramophome Company renriched its catalogue with numerous sides recorded by Noté, at first accompanied by piano and later with an orchestra. Other firms such as Dutreih, Duval, Odéon, Favorite, Homophone, Eden and above all APGA of which he was a founder member, were proud to display his name on their labels. In 1911 and 1912, Noté participated in three complete recordings for Pathé; Faust, Rigoletto and Il Trovatore. Having preserved all the qualities of his voice, He was able as late as 1918 to put on wax a series of duets with Yvonne Gall and the tenor Charles Fontaine. All the contemporary observers praised the vocal qualities of Noté and also his humanity. He was even decorated for bravery. Several weeks before he died, Massenet who had just composed Roma, dedicated the score of the work to Noté with words “to J. Noté of the Opera, to the friend, the man, and the artist with enthusiastic sentiments.” Massenet. May 1912Texte et documents de Daniel MARTY, traduction de Patrick BADE