Henri Medus

Biography

Henri Médus (21 October 1904 – 11 November 1985) was a French operatic bass.
A member of the troupe of the Opéra Garnier from 1933, he distinguished himself particularly in the roles of : The Magic Flute (Sarastro), Samson et Dalila (the old Hebrew man), Aida (Ramfis), Rigoletto (Sparafucile), La Juive (Cardinal de Brogni), Les Huguenots (Marcel), Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Osmin), Boris Godunov (Pimen, Varlaam), Die Walküre (Hunding), and Der Rosenkavalier (Baron Ochs).

Biography

Medus was born in Guelma (Algeria) where he spent his childhood before his family settled in Algiers. He took singing lessons from Rose Elsie (soprano of the Opéra-Comique) After an audition for conductor Désiré-Émile Inghelbrecht (1880–1965), then musical director of the Algiers Opera, he was hired for the role of Colline in La Bohème. He made his stage debut on 16 October 1929 in Puccini's opera in French. After two seasons of experience in a multitude of roles, he moved to Paris and was hired as a chorister at the Théâtre du Châtelet. He studied further with Pierre-Ernest Dupré.
In 1933 he joined the Opéra Garnier and made his debut there on 25 November 1933 as Ramfis in Aida. He made his debut at the Théâtre de l'Opéra-Comique on 20 April 1941 as Arkel in Pelléas et Mélisande. He performed extensively in French and other European opera houses.
In 1939, he appeared in the film The End of the Day directed by Julien Duvivier. He appeared in world premieres in works by Reynaldo Hahn, Max d'Ollone, Henri Rabaud, and Gilbert Bécaud.
In 1959, he left the Opéra Garnier troupe while continuing his career other French theatres. He taught at the Conservatoire de Paris
In 1974, he gave his farewell performance in the role of Sarastro in The Magic Flute, which he had performed frequently throughout his long operatic career. He continued to be a member of juries for singing competitions.
He died in Toulon and is buried in Lagoubran Cemetery.

Bibliography and sources

Stéphane Wolff, Un demi-siècle d'Opéra-Comique (1900–1950), éd. André Bonne, Paris, 1953
Revue Le Guide du concert et du disque, years 1959–1960
Revue L'Entracte, years 1960–1963
Stéphane Wolff, L'Opéra au Palais Garnier (1875–1962), L'Entracte, Paris, 1962 – Reprint series Ressources, Champion-Slatkine, Geneva, 1983 ISBN 2-05-000214-9
Étienne Ducarme et Jean Gabriel, Vingt deux années d'art lyrique à Saint-Étienne (1964–1986), Imprilux, Saint-Étienne, 1987
Jean-Philippe Mousnier, Albert Wolff – Eugène Bigot, series Univers musical, L'Harmattan, Paris, 2001 ISBN 978-2747513678
Georges Farret, Alain Vanzo, le Werther du palais Garnier, series Temps Mémoire, éditions Autres Temps, Paris, 2007 ISBN 978-2845213067
Erik Baeck, André Cluytens, itinéraire d'un chef d'orchestre, Mardaga, Wavre, 2009 ISBN 978-2804700119
Musée de l'Opéra de Vichy