Alfred Blau

Alfred Blau (born Blois, 29 May 1827, died Brussels, 23 February 1896) was a French dramatist and opera librettist. He was a cousin of Édouard Blau, another French librettist of the same period.[1]

Although born in Blois, he became "one of the most Parisians of the Parisians of Paris", although this only extended to the right bank of the city.[2] He had trained in law and taken on a few cases but went to Paris aged 22 and soon became a part of the group of Murger, Schanne and Champfleury.[2]

In the literary world he was known by the anagrammatic pen-name Baül.[3] In addition to the libretti listed below, in late 1887 he was in discussions with Emmanuel Chabrier for a libretto on the subject of The Tempest by Shakespeare, but the project came to nothing.[4]

Blau was a member of the Académie of Blois (despite believing such institutions to be redundant), and was nominated chevalier de la Légion d'honneur in 1894, two years before his death in Brussels.[2]

Operas to librettos by Alfred Blau

Le Chanteur florentin with Édouard Blau, (1866)[1]

Sigurd with Camille du Locle (1884)[1]

Esclarmonde with Louis de Gramont (1889)[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Smith, Christopher. Édouard Blau. In: The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. Macmillan, London and New York, 1997, p499.
  2. ^ a b c Théodore Massiac. Mort d'Alfred Blau - Souvenirs d'un vieux librettiste. Gil Blas, Mercredi 26 Février 1896, No.5944, p2.
  3. ^ Lacombe, Hervé. Autour de Louis Gallet : Profil d'une carrière de librettiste. In: Le livret d'opéra au temps de Massenet. Actes du colloque des 9-10 novembre 2001. Université de Saint-Étienne, 2002, p66.
  4. ^ Delage, R. Emmanuel Chabrier. Fayard, Paris, 1999, p470-471.

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