(1842 - 1912)
Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet was a French composer and best known for his operas, which were popular in the late 19th and early 20th century. Massenet was born in Montaud, St Étienne and when eleven his family moved to Paris. In 1862 he won a Grand Prix de Rome with his first opera a one-act production at the at Opéra-Comique in 1867. However it was his oratorio-drama Marie-Madeleine that won his the praise of the likes of Tchaikovsky and Gounod. Massenet took a break from his composing to serve as a soldier in the Franco-Prussian War, but returned to composition in 1871. From 1878 he was professor of composition at the Paris Conservatory where his pupils included Gustave Charpentier, Reynaldo Hahn and Charles Koechlin. His greatest successes were with Manon in 1884, Werther in 1892, and Thaïs in 1894. A notable later opera was Don Quichotte, produced in Monte Carlo 1910, with the legendary Russian bass Feodor Chaliapin in the title-role.
Composition Timpani and Percussion Requirements
Thaïs
Timpani + 3 percussion
1) triangle, snare drum, tambourine, 2) clash cymbals, 3) orchestral bass drum
Stage Band) Arabian drum, finger cymbals, keyboard glockenspiel
Ballet music) 4 x tambourines, glockenspiel, crotales ( hi D natural)
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Manon - Ballet
Timpani + 4 percussion
1) glockenspiel, snare drum, whip, tam tam, triangle, 2) tambourine, wood block, triangle, suspended cymbal, 3) clash cymbals, suspended cymbal, 4) orchestral bass drum
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Manon - Complete Opera
Timpani + 4 percussion
1) deep snare drum, whip, offstage Eb tubular bell, offstage sleighbells, 2) triangle, glockenspiel, tam tam, 3) clash cymbals, suspended cymbal, sizzle cymbal, 4) orchestral bass drum
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