Plançon's teachers were the famous
tenor Gilbert Duprez and Giovanni Sbriglia, who also numbered among his
students the de Reszke brothers, Jean and Édouward. His debut was in 1877, in Lyon, in Meyerbeer's
Les Huguenots. His rise was quite rapid,
and in short order he was singing in Paris, both at the Théâtre de la Gaîté
Lyrique (1880) and the Paris Opera, where his debut (1883) was Faust, an opera
that was to become one of his most frequently performed, as Mephistopheles quicklybecame a signature role for him. He
would spend 10 years at the Paris Opera, where he participated in several
premieres, including Le Cid, and
Saint-Saëns's Ascanio. He also sang at
Covent Garden, to general acclaim, during the early 1890's. He continued to add new roles to his
repertoire, including Massenet's La Navarraise, Lalo's Le roi d'Ys, and
Massenet's Hérodiade. Plançon did not
neglect the standard repertoire, and during the peak of his career he could be
seen in Aida, Fidelio, Die
Meistersinger, Mefistofele, The Damnation of Faust, and Martha. He only avoided those roles that required
anything approaching roughness
or—especially—buffoonery, as he was, above all else, debonair and elegant—the
ultimate bel canto singer, with extraordinary vocal and aesthetic refinements
at his command, including a perfect trill, and a remarkable ability to sing
fioratura and rapid cadenzas. These
abilities and refinements are almost never seen in basses. Plançon's Metropolitan Opera debut
was 1893, in Gounod's Philémon and Baucis.
He sang at the Met until 1908, in over 600 performances. He retired from the stage in 1908 and
returned to Paris, where he gave lessons.
He died at age 63, in 1914.
The first recording I have chosen is
a truly extraordinary record of bel canto bass singing. It shows the essential Plançon gifts: Absolutely immaculate French, with every
syllable perfectly clearly pronounced; smooth and elegant vocalism, supporting
a musically perfect style, and, from the middle of the recording to the end,
what I believe are unique examples of rapid cadenzas and fioratura executed by
a bass. If you do not know Plançon, and
this is the first example of his singing
you have heard, keep an open mind! Those
among us who have been raised in the verismo era of giant-voiced, roof-shaking
Russian basses are in for a surprise at this example of an elegant French bel
canto artist singing 108 years ago! :
Now isn't that something! You can see, right away, why he is the
darling of bel canto lovers. This is one
of the important examples of 19th century bel canto singing,
recorded in 1904, when Plançon would have been 53 years old. His was not a huge or even large
voice, yet he could be heard perfectly well (as most bel canto artists could
be) even in large theaters such as the Met, which even back then was a large
house. It isn't size that accounts for
carrying power, it is, and always has been, focus. And of that he had enough.
This next recording is a gem, and my
own personal favorite of Plançon's recorded arias. It is not easy to think of this voice as a
Verdi bass, and yet his performance of this aria from Verdi's Don Carlos is so
good, and so sensitively done, that it is absolutely heart-rending. Don Carlos, known in Italian as Don Carlo,
was originally written in French, and Verdi intended it to be a big 5-act
French opera. This aria, which we know
today from the later Italian version as "Ella giammai m'amò," ("She never loved me") has to be
one of the saddest things ever written, and when it is sung by a consummate
artist like Plançon, as opposed to being sung in the many window-shattering
renditions by huge basses, one actually feels the excruciating painfulness of
the lyrics:
Not much I can add to that! Sigh..................
Finally, a non-operatic
selection. The season now being fairly
close to hand, here is his delicate and beautiful rendition of O Holy Night:
Pol Plançon, clearly one of a kind!
as one of the commenters opined on that first youtube page: « Ce genre de chanteur n'existe plus. »
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful it is that you find and bring these excellent artists to our attention. It always makes me wonder why certain artists rose to the top while others remain hidden from our view. If communications in 1910 had been as they are today, which artists would have gained the most fame? Inability or unwillingness to travel might have been one major factor in 1910. What are your thoughts?
ReplyDeleteThank you, Mr. Hobbes, for your comment. Good question! I think that certain artists who have the drive and ability to reach out and communicate with their audience would have benefitted, without doubt. It is evident that those who sought out early recording contracts had a distinct advantage. And Plancon did. He was recording as early as 1902. Had there been TV then, we can assume that gregarious personalities like Pavarotti would have done then what they did now. All that counts. And the contrary. Those who chose to stay close to home (like Georges Thill, who rarely ventured far from the Paris Opera, whould have had a smaller, but probably just as satisfying career.
ReplyDeleteTo Corax: C'est vrai, mon ami, c'est vrai. How I wish it were otherwise!
ReplyDeleteThis is a new discovery for me. He doesn't really sound like a bass until he goes down, and then the low notes are there. In the middle and upper ranges it's a differnt sound. Not sure what I would call it, but one thing is sure...he sings beautifully, and its almos magic how he captures attention. Superb singer! Wow. Thanks. Jim S.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jim. Glad to have been able to show him to you. He's a classic, that's for sure!
ReplyDeleteTo put it quite simply, Pol Plancon is the greatest bass singer ever to have recorded. By this I mean he has completely mastered the art of singing: superb legato, elegant phrasing, crystal-clear diction, florid agility, evenness of register. His tone is also beautiful. However, there are other basses whose voices are, in their own way, just as beautiful: I think of Adamo Didur, Alexander Kipnis, and Lev Sibyriakov, to name a few. But none is a finer singer than Plancon, who is as close to perfection as humanly possible. Thank you, Edmund, for presenting this wonderful selection from the master.
ReplyDeleteI was first introduced to Pol Plancon through one of those marvellous 'collection' CDs that the BBC, Nimbus and others occasionally put out. What a treasure trove of lesser known singers they can be.
ReplyDeleteBel canto is an interesting term; perhaps smoothness or beauty of tone encapsulates it. If so Plancon's singing, with no hint of vibrato, is the definition of bel canto.
What I find surprising in his singing is the emotion it engenders. Without deviating at all from the musical line, with no aspirations or any false emotion, somehow through singing alone, he creates a feeling that others with all their grace notes and declamation cannot hope to achieve.
Only one bass I feel can come close to him, and that is Ezio Pinza, at least in terms of beauty of tone.
But Pinza did not have the vocal extensions and in this perhaps Plancon is closest to Ramey.
In looks and in his singing one word comes to mind, and that is aristocratic. One of the truly great singers, without doubt.
Thank you so much, Nate and Dan; two of my favorite correspondents, whose opinions I greatly respect. You sum up Plancon's extraordinary abilities so well that there is nothing I can add; I just wish I had concocted some of the sentences you wrote! Thanks again, gentlemen!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the article. It’s hard to believe that we can hear the singer, who “ retired from the stage in 1908”. Amazing. His recordings are excellent, true masterpieces. And the quality of sound is very high. He was great. It seems to me that there was a cult of effortlessness in those years, and singers took more care of their voices. His voice sounds young and fresh , and it seems strange that he retired 1-2 years later.
ReplyDeleten.a.
Thank you Natalie; as always, I particularly appreciate your comments and your great loyalty as a reader. You are right, of course, his dates seem a little strange by today's standards, but he did sing until he was 57 years old, and I think that back in those days, that was somewhat older than it would be today. Health in general was not nearly as robust in those days as it now is. The fact that he died a mere 6 years later is an indication that he worked until pretty late in what was going to be his life. Also, back in the days before income taxes, I suspect that he was quite wealthy by that point. But he certainly was a fine singer, of that there is no doubt, and his voice did remain fresh and seemed young, even when he was not. I suspect that owes to bel canto technique, which is very easy on the voice.
ReplyDeleteI love the big "whiteness of his sound.
ReplyDeleteYes, the old school of singing--open and largely uncovered. A different world from the dark, heavily covered, larynx-in-the-boots style so common in verismo opera. Interesting observation! Thanks
ReplyDeleteGreat article on Plancon, Edmund. I've loved him for years; one of my all time favorite singers! But actually I'm writing to applaud you for putting up a short piece on the girl Elena. BRILLIANT idea to bring some attention to talented kid! She's beautiful and so is her voice! This could be a wonderful feature of your blog. I'm sure there are kids out there who are really talented who would love the exposure. Bravo!
ReplyDeleteMartha
Thank you, Martha. I always appreciate your comments. I'll give it some thought. It's a nice idea. We'll see what people say. I would have to be careful, and honest about the fact that I would not accept any but well-considered encouraging comments. No child shoud be too exposed, too young. Thanks for your lovely comment!
ReplyDeleteYes, good comments on Elena. It is nice to see you encourage and support her. You are also right about some young people being ruined by their coaches or by trying too much too soon. I think Jackie Evancho has been wise in choosing a lower register and saving her young voice, but I do wish someone would help her with diction and clarity. She really needs to focus on that.
ReplyDeleteWell said, Edmund. Many thanks for the Pol Plancon article.
ReplyDeleteYou're correct. Plancon is the classic example of a singer with a smooth and elegant vocalism. After all, he's one of the best representatives of the old French school of singing, a school characterized by charm and elegance. No matter what operas these old masters sing, they never over-act like some Italians are notoriously prone to do. The portrayals they give are always those of elegant noble gentlemen, no matter how violent the plot may be. It's a shame that this school has more or less died out. Only 1 person is left today.
Yes, he is the darling of bel canto lovers. After all, he was one of the last practitioners of the 19th century bel canto singing technique and one of the best of those who've left records.
Vallons d'Helvetie is good but there's something better which Plancon recorded.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LZL9jYB36Y
I think the bel canto trills and leaps are more apparent here. Plancon doesn't exactly have 2 voices here but his singing here shows the art at its best. Charming, smoothly elegant, flexible voice with good technique at a rather advanced age. Imagine what would he be like when he's young. If you like Plancon, you may want to try listening to his successor, Marcel Journet, who left significantly more recordings.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVK28jNaG8c
(Here's the Church Scene from Journet's Faust. He actually did record the complete opera. If you like it, I can send some highlights to you. I have the recording)
Thank you, Darren, for a most interesting and informative comment!
ReplyDelete