"What a summer for the two of us!": A glimpse at the family life of Jules Massenet
Collection of 13 autograph letters signed and 1 autograph document signed.
8vo and oblong 8vo. Together 39 pp. With 10 autograph envelopes. In French.
€ 2,800.00
Rare and highly interesting private correspondence with his son-in-law Léon Bessand (11 letters) and his daughter Juliette (2 letters), bearing witness to their family life during a difficult time for Massenet and his wife Ninon.
Excepting the earliest letter dated 20 May 1902, in which Massenet asks his son-in-law for a favour concerning some purchases, the letters tell a continous story revolving around an accident of Ninon Massenet with a prologue from the day before it occurred. On that day, 21 June, Massenet thanks Léon Bessand for news relating to a performance of his opera "Thaïs" and announces that he will come to Paris the following week to take part in the annual competitions of the Paris Conservatory, including the prestigious Prix de Rome. But everything changes within a day, and Massenet writes to his daughter Juliette, who likewise suffered a minor accident: "We hear from Léon about your accident... and we think of you so much! - Your mother is also quite affected herself; an injection had caused her right hand to swell, and a clumsiness in applying a phenic acid compress that was too strong - it is my fault, alas! - burned the swelling and the hand quite badly. She will not be able to use her hand for a month; she needs rigorous antiseptic care. That is why she cannot write to you and tell you herself of her concern for your dear health! - I do not leave her for a second; I am better... not being able to think of myself.
I will not be going to Paris for the competitions of the institute, but I am informing everyone that it is because I am unwell" (transl.).
Until the end of July, Massenet's life would revolve around the care for his wife, Léon Bessand serving as his confidant in Paris.
On 24 June, Massenet asks Bessand for more information about the consequences of Juliette's fall and provides some details concerning the treatment of Ninon's wound. In a postscript, he asks Léon to thank the director of the Paris Opéra, Pedro Gailhard, personally on his behalf for the favourable "notes de l'opéra" on "Thaïs" that were published by several newspapers. He also laments that he has never missed the Prix de Rome competition in 25 years and hopes for a successful revival of "Manon" with the soprano Sibyl Sanderson. This was indeed to happen, as Massenet thanks Léon on 3 July for an article from "Le Temps" on a performance of "Manon", also informing him about Ninon's progress. However, on 6 July, he is less optimistic: "Since the evening before yesterday I have been less calm, and I do not think the recovery is certain yet". In two letters from 8 July 1902, Massenet asks Léon for the address of the architect Joseph-Antoine Bouvard and to collect an advance from the music publisher Henri Heuglin in order to pay the rent for Massenet's Paris apartment. The document in the collection, a loan note for Heuglin, was originally enclosed with this letter. Apparently, Heuglin did not consider this formality necessary, as it remained in Bessand's possession.
12 July was the "22nd day of suffering and inaction" for Massenet's wife, although he reports that the family doctor assured them "that her wound looks very good". Massenet thanks his son-in-law "for the receipts that arrived in the morning", asserting that "everything is fine thanks to your perfect kindness".
Meanwhile, Juliette Massenet had undertaken a trip to Cologne with their three children, to which her father alludes in this letter, an undated letter, and the second letter to Juliette upon her return, dated 14 July, which is worth quoting in full: "We learned that you were on a trip with all the children... I thought you had left with Olivier alone. We also heard about Olivier's illness, your anguish, the improvement that followed... Here, the condition is still serious... the wound will not heal... and causes your poor mother renewed pain with every cruel bandage. Since June 21st. It will be a month on Monday... As for when your mother will be able to try and use her right hand... we cannot tell yet". In a curious postscript, Massenet tells his daughter to keep all of this private: "Do not tell anyone about our misfortunes".
The final letter in the collection from 30 July appears to indicate Ninon's recovery; at least Massenet does not mention her wound again, but thanks Léon for a long-awaited visit to Égreville that gave "great pleasure" to his wife. In a postscript, he asks Léon for a final favour of forwarding a letter to Marie Waldeck-Rousseau, as he did not know her Paris address.
Minimal tears and browning.
