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MARIE GABRIELLE KRAUSS (Vienna, 23 March 1842 - January 06, 1906) Soprano She was nicknamed "the Rachel singing". Begins on the night of the inauguration of the Palais Garnier on 05 January 1875 in both first act of LA JUIVE (Rachel). Sings DON JUAN (Anna, 1875), LES HUGUENOTS (Valentine, 1875), ROBERT LE DIABLE (Alice, 1876), du FREISCHÜTZ (Agathe, 1877), the African (Selika, 1877), FAUST (Marguerite, 1882) and SAPPHO (Sappho, 1884). Is the creator of Joan of ARC (Jeanne d'Arc), POLYEUCTE (Pauline), AIDA (Aida), Madonna (the Virgin), the tribute of ZAMORA (Hermosa), HENRY VIII (Catherine of Aragon), RIGOLETTO (Gilda) and Fatherland! (Dolores). retired in 1888.

Frances Alda as Manon FRANCES ALDA (Fanny Jane Davis) (31 May 1879Christchurch NZ– 18 September 1952 Venice ) New Zealand Soprano Was a New Zealand-born, Australian-raised .Her Opera Comique debut in 1904 and which she sang 52 times at La Monnaie in Brussels as well as at La Scala where she was the first Louise under Toscanini and sang opposite Chaliapin in Mefistofole.- (1906-1908). She debuted at the Met in 1908 as Gilda & in 1909 married Gatti-Casazza La Scala's impresario who moved to the Met. A Marchesi pupil and versatile artiste she sang 369 performances at the Met including world premieres of operas by Hadley, Herbert & Damrosch as well standard and unusual roles in the French and Italian repertory often opposite Caruso. She was a prolific recorder and gave extensive concert tours. Very outspoken her autobio Men Women and Tenors is a must.

Frances Alda as Manon FRANCES ALDA (Fanny Jane Davis) (31 May 1879Christchurch NZ– 18 September 1952 Venice ) New Zealand Soprano Was a New Zealand-born, Australian-raised .Her Opera Comique debut in 1904 and which she sang 52 times at La Monnaie in Brussels as well as at La Scala where she was the first Louise under Toscanini and sang opposite Chaliapin in Mefistofole.- (1906-1908). She debuted at the Met in 1908 as Gilda & in 1909 married Gatti-Casazza La Scala's impresario who moved to the Met. A Marchesi pupil and versatile artiste she sang 369 performances at the Met including world premieres of operas by Hadley, Herbert & Damrosch as well standard and unusual roles in the French and Italian repertory often opposite Caruso. She was a prolific recorder and gave extensive concert tours. Very outspoken her autobio Men Women and Tenors is a must.

Frances Alda as Manon FRANCES ALDA (Fanny Jane Davis) (31 May 1879Christchurch NZ– 18 September 1952 Venice ) New Zealand Soprano Was a New Zealand-born, Australian-raised .Her Opera Comique debut in 1904 and which she sang 52 times at La Monnaie in Brussels as well as at La Scala where she was the first Louise under Toscanini and sang opposite Chaliapin in Mefistofole.- (1906-1908). She debuted at the Met in 1908 as Gilda & in 1909 married Gatti-Casazza La Scala's impresario who moved to the Met. A Marchesi pupil and versatile artiste she sang 369 performances at the Met including world premieres of operas by Hadley, Herbert & Damrosch as well standard and unusual roles in the French and Italian repertory often opposite Caruso. She was a prolific recorder and gave extensive concert tours. Very outspoken her autobio Men Women and Tenors is a must.

Frances Alda as Manon FRANCES ALDA (Fanny Jane Davis) (31 May 1879Christchurch NZ– 18 September 1952 Venice ) New Zealand Soprano Was a New Zealand-born, Australian-raised .Her Opera Comique debut in 1904 and which she sang 52 times at La Monnaie in Brussels as well as at La Scala where she was the first Louise under Toscanini and sang opposite Chaliapin in Mefistofole.- (1906-1908). She debuted at the Met in 1908 as Gilda & in 1909 married Gatti-Casazza La Scala's impresario who moved to the Met. A Marchesi pupil and versatile artiste she sang 369 performances at the Met including world premieres of operas by Hadley, Herbert & Damrosch as well standard and unusual roles in the French and Italian repertory often opposite Caruso.

Lucienne Breval as Griseldis "Griseldis" Massenet CREATOR LUCIENNE BREVAL (Bertha Agnès Lisette Schilling) (4 November 1869, Zürich- 15 August 1935, Neuilly-sur-Seine) Swiss Soprano She studied voice with Victor Warot at the Paris Conservatoire before making her debut at the Opéra National de Paris in 1892 as Selika in l'Africaine by Giacomo Meyerbeer .Bréval became a principal soprano at the Paris Opéra and remained there until 1919.[3] Her roles with the company included several world premières including Augusta Holmès's La Montagne Noire (1895), Camille Erlanger's Le fils de l' étoile' (1904), Dukas’ Ariane et Barbe-bleue (1907), Massenet's Bacchus (1909), and the title roles in Massenet's Ariane (1906) and Henry Février’s Monna Vanna (1909). She also was Kundry in France's first performance of Wagner's Parsifal (1914). Her other notable roles at the Paris Opera included Brünnhilde in Richard Wagner's Die Walküre (1893), Venus in Wagner's Tannhäuser (1895), Marguerite in Hector Berlioz's La damnation de Faust (1897), and the title role in Rameau's Hippolyte et Aricie (1908). Bréval also occasionally appeared in productions at the Opéra-Comique in Paris. Most notably she portrayed the title role in the world premiere of Massenet’s Grisélidis in 1901, and in 1910 she sang Lady Macbeth in the première of Ernst Bloch’s Macbeth, which he dedicated to her. In 1899, Bréval made her first appearance at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden as Valentine in Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots. Two years later she made her American début at the Metropolitan Opera as Chimène in Le Cid, singing also in Die Walküre and the American première of Ernest Reyer’s Salammbô. Five years later she returned to Covent Garden for the second and last time in the title role of Gluck’s Armide. In 1913 she created the title role in Fauré’s Pénélope at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo; her other title roles there had been in Isidore De Lara's Amy Robsart and in Bizet's Carmen

Lucienne Breval as Griseldis "Griseldis" Massenet CREATOR LUCIENNE BREVAL (Bertha Agnès Lisette Schilling) (4 November 1869, Zürich- 15 August 1935, Neuilly-sur-Seine) Swiss Soprano She studied voice with Victor Warot at the Paris Conservatoire before making her debut at the Opéra National de Paris in 1892 as Selika in l'Africaine by Giacomo Meyerbeer .Bréval became a principal soprano at the Paris Opéra and remained there until 1919.[3] Her roles with the company included several world premières including Augusta Holmès's La Montagne Noire (1895), Camille Erlanger's Le fils de l' étoile' (1904), Dukas’ Ariane et Barbe-bleue (1907), Massenet's Bacchus (1909), and the title roles in Massenet's Ariane (1906) and Henry Février’s Monna Vanna (1909). She also was Kundry in France's first performance of Wagner's Parsifal (1914). Her other notable roles at the Paris Opera included Brünnhilde in Richard Wagner's Die Walküre (1893), Venus in Wagner's Tannhäuser (1895), Marguerite in Hector Berlioz's La damnation de Faust (1897), and the title role in Rameau's Hippolyte et Aricie (1908). Bréval also occasionally appeared in productions at the Opéra-Comique in Paris. Most notably she portrayed the title role in the world premiere of Massenet’s Grisélidis in 1901, and in 1910 she sang Lady Macbeth in the première of Ernst Bloch’s Macbeth, which he dedicated to her. In 1899, Bréval made her first appearance at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden as Valentine in Meyerbeer's Les Huguenots. Two years later she made her American début at the Metropolitan Opera as Chimène in Le Cid, singing also in Die Walküre and the American première of Ernest Reyer’s Salammbô. Five years later she returned to Covent Garden for the second and last time in the title role of Gluck’s Armide. In 1913 she created the title role in Fauré’s Pénélope at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo; her other title roles there had been in Isidore De Lara's Amy Robsart and in Bizet's Carmen

LILLIAN BLAUVELT (1873 - 1947) American Soprano She was a graduate of the National Conservatory of Music. Blauvelt sang in concerts in New York City and Brooklyn prior to becoming the soprano of the West Presbyterian Church, 42nd Street between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue, in 1893. In January 1893 she sang the air (music) for Aida, from Act I and the duet for Aida and Amneria from Act II, with Mrs. Luckstone-Myers, a contralto. The Sunday concert was held at Music Hall She performed with the New York Symphony at Carnegie Hall. In the ninth season of Symphony Concerts for Young People, 1904, the program was devoted to works by Bizet, Gounod, Verdi, and Richard Wagner. Blauvelt and Edward P. Johnson were soloists with the orchestra conducted by Frank Damrosch .She sang before an audience numbering 3,000 at the Asbury Park, New Jersey Casino in July 1904 The following month Alice Roosevelt Longworth attended a concert given by the Bar Harbor, Maine Choral Society, during which Blauvelt sang. She replaced Ella Russell in a solo quartet at a Christmas 1904 performance of The Messiah. It was presented by the Oratorio Society at Carnegie Hall. In 1905 Blauvelt signed a six year contract with Fred Whitney to appear in comic opera.. She was a soloist for a February 1905 New York Symphony Concert given at Alexander Hall on the campus of Princeton University. She sang Una Voce Poco Fa by Rossini. Five first violins were added to the orchestra to restrain the brass effect. The same year she sang in a production of Stabat Mater. The music was written by Antonín Dvořák in 1876. Her solo was part of a tribute to Dvořák held at Carnegie Hall on March 14. The composer died in 1904. Stabat Mater is the most popular of his choral works outside of his native Czechoslovakia. Blauvelt was chosen to sing the soprano portion of a Verdi composition at a memorial concert to the composer held in Rome, Italy, in 1905. She appeared at the Lyceum Theatre in Rochester, New York, in November 1905, for the first production of The Rose of the Alhambra. The comic opera was written by Charles Emerson Cook and directed by F. C. Whitney. It was her first work in light opera after working for years in grand opera. Blauvelt received encores until she was compelled to refuse further acknowledgements. In 1906, she starred in Victor Herbert's The Magic Knight. In December 1912 she returned from Europe and performed in a solo quartet in The Messiah at the Aeolian Hall.

LOUISE LABLACHE 1858-1926 French Mezzo Soprano Louise Lablache was the granddaughter of the famous bass Luigi Lablache and was married to the Rumanian Tenor Giovanni Dimitrescu.She had a notable international career. Perhaps the highlight was her debut at the New York Met, in the role of Marthe in Faust. The date was 22 October 1883, which was the opening night of the new opera house.She toured Australia in 1888 with Martin Simonsen's New Royal English & Italian Opera Company , Roles included , (Marthe ),Faust ,Donna Juana (Giovanna de la Cueva), Ruy Blas , (Azucena ) Trovatore , (Carmen) Carmen ,

PEDRO GAILHARDT (Pierre Samson Gailhard) (b Toulouse 1st August 1848 ,,d.Paris on 12 October 1918) French Bass Debut at the Opéra-Comique, then sang at the Opéra de Paris, beginning in the role of Mephistopheles of Faust by Charles Gounod in 1871. His interpretation of Leporello in Don Giovanni by Mozart remained particularly famous. He was Director of the Opéra de Paris from 1884 to 1891 and from 1893 to 1907. It is mentioned as such in the novel by Gaston Leroux, The Phantom of the Opera . He then became Director of the Conservatory of New York.

FEODOR IVANOVICH CHALIAPIN (February 13 ,1873 – April 12, 1938) Russian Bass Largely self-taught, he began his career at Tbilisi and the Imperial Opera, St. Petersburg in 1894. He was then invited to sing at the Mamontov Private Opera (1896–1899); his first role there was as Mephistopheles in Gounod's Faust, At Mamontov he also met Sergei Rachmaninoff, who was serving as an assistant conductor there and with whom he remained friends for life. Rachmaninoff taught him much about musicianship, including how to analyze a music score, and insisted that Chaliapin learn not only his own roles but also all the other roles in the operas in which he was slated to appear. With Rachmaninoff he learned the title role of Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov, which became his signature character , On the strength of his Mamontov appearances, the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow engaged Chaliapin, where he appeared regularly from 1899 until 1914. During the First World War, Chaliapin also appeared regularly at the Zimin Private Opera in Moscow. In addition, from 1901, Chaliapin began touring in the West, making a sensational debut at La Scala that year as the devil in a production of Boito's Mefistofele, under the baton of one of the 20th century's most dynamic opera conductors, Arturo Toscanini Chaliapin's last stage performance took place at the Monte Carlo Opera in 1937, as Boris. He died the following year of leukemia, aged 65, in Paris, where he was interred

DELPHINE UGALDE, née Beaucé, (3 December 1829 – 19 July 1910) was a French soprano. She was the mother of Marguerite Ugalde. Delphine Ugalde was born in Paris. After studies with her mother and the tenor Théodore-François Moreau-Sainti in Paris, she made her debut at the Opéra Comique in 1848 as Angèle in Auber’s Le domino noir, followed by L'ambassadrice. She went on to create roles in several popular operas of the time including the title role in Galathée by Massé on 14 April 1852, Virginie in Le caïd by Thomas on 3 January 1849 and Coraline in Le Toréador on 18 May 1849. After a break, she returned for Psyché (Eros) by Thomas on 26 January 1857.She sang in Auber’s L’enfant prodigue in London in 1851. At the Paris Opéra she sang Alice in Robert le diable in 1851 and Leonora in Il Trovatore (1858). In 1858, she made her debut at the Théâtre Lyrique, where she sang Suzanne in Les Noces de Figaro, Carabosse Mélodine in La fée Carabosse by Massé (28 February 1859), Blondine in L’Enlèvement au Sérail (1859), Martine in Ma tante dort (21 Jan 1860), and the title role in Gil Blas (24 March 1860). Her final benefit performance on 14 May 1860 was a lavish affair with, as well as many popular singers, contributions from Massé, Sarasate and Gounod. She returned briefly in 1865 to sing Papagena. In February 1861, From 1863, she sang at the Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens (Orphée, Les bavards), including her own operetta Halte au Moulin (1867), but retired from the stage in 1871.

CHARLOTTE HELEN SAINTON-DOLBY (17 May 1821 – 18 February 1885), English Contralto & Composer Born in London, and studied at the Royal Academy of Music from 1832 to 1837, Domenico Crivelli being her principal singing-master. In 1837 she was elected to a King's scholarship, and first appeared at a Royal Philharmonic Society concert in 1841. In October 1845 she sang at the Gewandhaus, Leipzig, through the influence of Mendelssohn, who had been delighted by her singing in his oratorio St. Paul. The contralto music in his Elijah was written for her voice, but she did not appear in that work until the performance at Exeter Hall on 16 April 1847. She was a principal soloist in the first English performance of Bach's St Matthew Passion, directed by William Sterndale Bennett at the Hanover Square Rooms London on 6 April 1854. She married the violinist Prosper Sainton in 1860, and in 1870 she retired from the career of a public singer, but two years afterwards started a vocal academy in London. She made various successful attempts as a composer, and the cantatas The Legend of St Dorothea (1876), The Story of the Faithful Soul (1879), and Florimel (1885), enjoyed considerable success. Her last public appearance was at her husband's farewell concert in June 1883, and she died in 1885

JANE HADING ( Jeanne-Alfrédine Tréfouret) (November 25, 1859 - February 18, 1941) French Soprano/Actress OPERETTA She was born at Marseille, where her father was an actor at the Gymnase. She has said that her first appearance on the stage came when she was three years old. She was trained at the local Conservatoire and was engaged in 1873 for the theatre at Algiers, and afterwards for the Khedivial theatre at Cairo, where she played, in turn, coquette, soubrette and ingenue parts. Expectations had been raised by her voice, and when she returned to Marseille she sang in operetta, besides acting in Ruy Blas. She first appeared in Paris in 1879 in La chaste Suzanne at the Palais Royal, and she was again heard in operetta at the Renaissance. She sang in La petite mariée and La belle Lurette. In 1883 she had a great success at the Gymnase in Le maître de forges. In 1884 she married Victor Koning (1842-1894), the manager of that theatre, but divorced him in 1887.

Marie Heilbronn as Manon 'Manon" Massenet CREATOR MARIE HEILBRONN ( 1851- 31 March 1886). Belgian soprano. She studied in Paris and made her début in 1867 at the Opéra-Comique, as Alice in the first performance of Jules Massenet's "La grand’tante". In 1870 she appeared at La Monnaie as Violetta, the role of her début at Covent Garden in 1874, and in 1878 at the Théâtre Ventadour as Juliet in Victor Capoul's "Les amants". She returned in 1879 as Ophelia (Hamlet). The same year she appeared at the Paris Opéra as Marguerite and in 1880 she sang Zerlina and Ophelia there. At Monte Carlo in 1883 she sang Susanna, Philine (Mignon), Marguerite, Victor Massé's Galatea and Rose in Aimé Maillart's Dragons de Villars. In 1884 she created the title role of Massenet's "Manon" at the Opéra-Comique.

Mademoiselle MONROSE (Eugénie Chollet ) 1819-1893 French Soprano She studied voice with Gilbert Duprez Her debut at the Opéra-Comique was on 24 September 1859 in Ambroise Thomas's Le songe d'une nuit d'été (with Giacomo Meyerbeer in the audience), and she created the role of La Marquise de Villa-Bianca in Thomas's Le roman d'Elvire, premiered on 4 February 1860 by the Opéra-Comique at the second Salle Favart in Paris. She also sang Dinorah in a revival of Giacomo Meyerbeer's Le pardon de Ploërmel, Another creation was Olga in Daniel Auber's La circassienne, premiered on 2 February 1861 by the Opéra-Comique at the second Salle Favart, Another role was La Marquise de Richmond in the Opéra-Comique's revival of Albert Grisar's Le joaillier de Saint-James on 17 February 1862. She also created the role of Héro in Hector Berlioz's Béatrice et Bénédict on 9 August 1862 at the Theater der Stadt, Baden-Baden . She was later associated with the Théâtre du Parc in Brussels and the Théâtre des Galeries, Brussels. She retired from singing c. 1880, receiving a pension of 500 francs in 1883 (at age 65).

GUSTAVE HIPPOLYTE ROGER -Tenor (.La chapel-Saint-Denis, December 17, 1815 - September 12, 1879). Debut February 16, 1838, at the Opéra-Comique in lightning (George), and he played GUITARERO, LES MOUSQUETAIRES DE LA REINE, HAYDEE, Debut 16 April 1849 Opera by creating the LE PROPHET (Jean de Leyde) of Meyerbeer. In the premier of L'ENFANT PRODIGUE by Auber (Azael); LE JUIF ERRANT by Halévy; LA ROSE DE FLORENCE;by Biletta HERCULANEUM by Félicien David. He sang Lucia of LAMMERMOOR, Donizetti (Edgar); LA REINE DE by Halevy (Gerard); LA FAVORITE by Donizetti (Fernand); LES HUGUENOTS by Meyerbeer (Raoul).

PAULINE LAUTERS GUEYMARD Mezzo-soprano (Brussels, 01 December 1834)-. She sang at the Théâtre-Lyrique under the name of Ms. DELIGNE-LAUTERS. She debuted at the Opera on 12 January 1857 in IL TROVATORE (Azucena). She sang the sorceress in 1858. She created in 1859 HERCULANEUM (rie) of Félicien David; in 1859 ROMEO and Juliet (Juliet) by Bellini; in 1860 PIERRE DE MEDICI (Laura) of Prince Poniatowski. She then sang salle Le Peletier, where she sang for the first time on April 08, 1861 in LES HUGUENOTS (Valentine). She created in 1862 the Queen of Sheba (Balkis) of Gounod; in 1863 the MULE of PEDRO (Gilda) by Victor Massé; in 1864 ROLAND has RONCESVALLES (Alde) of Mermet; on March 11, 1867 DON CARLOS (Eboli) by Verdi; May 09, 1868 HAMLET (Queen) of Ambroise Thomas. January 10, 1873 the cup of the King of THULE (Myrrha) of Eugène Diaz of the Peña. It was the interpreter of IL TROVATORE (Leonora), ERCOLANO (Olympus) and ALCESTE (Alceste). At the Palais Garnier, it was displayed in LES HUGUENOTS (Valentine), LA FAVORITE (Leonor), DON JUAN (Elvire) and the Prophet (Fides).