Raymond Rôze

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Raymond Rôze

Raymond Rôze (* 1875 in London ; † March 30, 1920 ) was a British conductor and composer.

As the son of the French soprano Marie Roze , he studied under Arthur De Greef in Brussels before becoming music director at the Lyceum Theater in London. In 1889 he founded a singing school in London and worked as music director for various theaters. He is mainly known for his theatrical works, including plays at His Majesty's Theater under Sir Herbert Tree . His compositions were performed in two London promenade concerts (1901 and 1911).

Rôze was also music director of the Royal Opera House , where his opera Joan of Arc premiered on November 1, 1913 . A negative review from The Times newspaper primarily criticized the fragmentary nature of the opera and stated that "a drama in which the actors are accompanied by an orchestra is by no means an opera". In the same month Rôze engaged Frank Bridge as conductor for Richard Wagner's opera Tannhäuser . Joan of Arc was performed again in Paris in 1917 at a benefit concert for the Red Cross , but also without success. Rôze had written his opera in English at a time when very few English operas were part of the repertoire. Rôze himself wanted "to give the English language once and for all the position in the world of opera" that he believed it deserved.

In 1913 he conducted Georges Bizet's opera Carmen in English. Another gala performance of his opera Joan of Arc in the presence of the British royal couple King George and Queen Mary in December 1913 was interrupted by protesters for women's suffrage. In 1919 Rôze became the founding conductor of the British Symphony Orchestra , a professional ensemble of former soldiers from the First World War.

Rôze was married to a soprano from New York.

Selected Works

  • Overture and incidental music to Julius Caesar , op.16 (1899)
  • Incidental music for Sweet Nell of Old Drury (1900)
  • Extase d'Amour op.28 (1904, Schott, London)
  • The Love Birds (1904)
  • Incidental music for The Scarlet Pimpernel , (1913)
  • Joan of Arc (1911) (score is in the British Library)
  • Antony and Cleopatra (performed at the London Proms 1911)
  • Poem of Victory for Violin and Orchestra (1919)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Obituary. The Times, April 1, 1920: 19.
  2. ^ Joan of Arc at Covent Garden. The Times, Nov. 4, 1913: 11
  3. ^ "Royal Opera House." The Times, October 31, 1913: 6.
  4. ^ The British Symphony Orchestra. The Times, August 26, 1919: 8.
personal data
SURNAME Rôze, Raymond
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British conductor and composer
DATE OF BIRTH 1875
PLACE OF BIRTH London
DATE OF DEATH March 30, 1920