Désiré Dihau (2 August 1833 – 20 August 1909) was a French bassoonist and composer. He was the bassoonist painted by Edgar Degas in ' with the cellist Louis-Marie Pilet seated behind him.

Biography

Désiré Hippolyte Dihau was born 2 August 1833 in

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the N ...

. Hélène Couturier, « ''About Degas' L'Orchestre de l'Opera'' »,

International Double Reed Society The International Double Reed Society (IDRS), is an organization that promotes the interests of double reed players, instrument manufacturers and enthusiasts. Services provided by the IDRS include an international oboe and bassoon competition, ...

, volume 8, n° 1, translation Philip Gottling, Association Les Amis du basson français, bulletin n° 9, March 198
(read online)
He studied music at the Conservatory of his hometown and then at the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

where he obtained a First prize of bassoon in 1857 and a second one in 1865. He was at the pulpits of the orchestras of the Théâtre-Lyrique and of the

Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens The Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens () is a Parisian theatre founded in 1855 by the composer Jacques Offenbach for the performance of opéra bouffe and operetta. The current theatre is located in the 2nd arrondissement at 4 rue Monsigny with a ...

. He was also a solo bassoon at the

Eldorado El Dorado (, ; Spanish for "the golden"), originally ''El Hombre Dorado'' ("The Golden Man") or ''El Rey Dorado'' ("The Golden King"), was the term used by the Spanish in the 16th century to describe a mythical tribal chief (''zipa'') or king o ...

, the Cirque d'hiver of Paris for the

Pasdeloup Orchestra The Pasdeloup Orchestra (also referred to as Orchestre des Concerts Pasdeloup) is the oldest symphony orchestra in France. History Founded in 1861 by Jules Pasdeloup with the name Concerts Populaires, it is the oldest orchestra still in existe ...

and at the

Théâtre du Châtelet The Théâtre du Châtelet () is a theatre and opera house, located in the place du Châtelet in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. One of two theatres (the other being the Théâtre de la Ville) built on the site of a ''châtelet'', a ...

for the

Concerts Colonne The Colonne Orchestra is a French symphony orchestra, founded in 1873 by the violinist and conductor Édouard Colonne. History While leader of the Opéra de Paris orchestra, Édouard Colonne was engaged by the publisher Georges Hartmann to lead ...

. Mindy Keyes, « ''Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec and Désiré Dihau: Portraits of a Bassoonist and his Bassoon'' »,

, volume 13, n° 2, spring 199
(read online)
He is best known for being the bassoonist of the Paris Opera, where he played from July 1, 1862 to December 31, 1889, immortalized by Edgar Degas in the 1870 painting, ', preceded by a sketch kept at the

Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF), comprising the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park and the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park, is the largest public arts institution in the city of San Francisco. The permanent collection of the ...

. Edgar Degas, « ''Musicians in the Orchestra (Portrait of Desire Dihau)'' » (1870,

)
(read online)
Degas also depicted him in other paintings in which were present the musicians of the

Salle Le Peletier The Salle Le Peletier or Lepeletier (sometimes referred to as the Salle de la rue Le Peletier or the Opéra Le Peletier) was the home of the Paris Opera from 1821 until the building was destroyed by fire in 1873. The theatre was designed and con ...

, ' in 1872 and both versions, of 1871 and 1876, of the ballet of ''

Robert le Diable ''Robert le diable'' (''Robert the Devil'') is an opera in five acts composed by Giacomo Meyerbeer between 1827 and 1831, to a libretto written by Eugène Scribe and Germain Delavigne. ''Robert le diable'' is regarded as one of the first grand o ...

''. Degas probably met Dihau at the Mère Lefebvre, in

Montmartre Montmartre ( , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Right Bank. The historic district established by the City of Paris in 1995 is bordered by Rue Ca ...

where artists and musicians gathered. It is Dihau who introduced Degas to the opera where the painter found his strongest inspiration in the spectacle of the dancers he so often painted.

Jean Sutherland Boggs Jean Sutherland Boggs (June 11, 1922 – August 22, 2014) was a Canadian academic, art historian and civil servant. She was the first female Director of both the National Gallery of Canada and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.Salisbury, Stephan"J ...

, ''Degas'', New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1988, 633 p.
(read online)
/ref> In the early 1890s, Dihau composed melodies for his poet friends like

Jean Richepin Jean Richepin (; 4 February 1849 – 12 December 1926) was a French poet, novelist and dramatist. Biography Son of an army doctor, Jean Richepin was born 4 February 1849 at Médéa, French Algeria. At school and at the École Normale Supé ...

, sometimes interpreted by his sister Marie Dihau. His scores for the artists of

Le Chat noir Le Chat Noir (; French for "The Black Cat") was a nineteenth-century entertainment establishment, in the bohemian Montmartre district of Paris. It was opened on 18 November 1881 at 84 Boulevard de Rochechouart by the impresario Rodolphe Salis, ...

were illustrated by his cousin

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec Comte Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec-Monfa (24 November 1864 – 9 September 1901) was a French painter, printmaker, draughtsman, caricaturist and illustrator whose immersion in the colourful and theatrical life of Paris in th ...

Théodore Duret Théodore Duret (20 January 1838, Saintes – 16 January 1927, Paris) was a French journalist, author and art critic. He was one of the first advocates of Courbet, Manet, and the Impressionists. One of his best known works is ''Critique d'Ava ...

, ''Toulouse-Lautrec'', Paris, 1920, VisiMuZ Editions, 2016
(read online)
/ref> LesViellesHistoires

For the cover of the ''Vieilles Histoires'', subtitled "répertoire mondain", a collection of poems by set in music by Désiré Dihau and published by Ondet in 1893, Lautrec drew a lithograph representing the musician, his bassoon under his arm, pulling the bear Goudezki by the leash to lead him to the

Institut de France The (; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the Académie Française. It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute ...

via the

pont des Arts The Pont des Arts or Passerelle des Arts is a pedestrian bridge in Paris which crosses the River Seine. It links the Institut de France and the central square (''cour carrée'') of the Palais du Louvre, (which had been termed the "Palais des Ar ...

Jean Adhémar Jean Adhémar (18 March 1908 – 30 June 1987) was a French librarian, academic, and art historian. He was born in Paris, France. Adhémar was Curator of the "Cabinet Des Estampes (prints)" at the Bibliothèque Nationale de France from 1932 to ...

, ''Œuvre graphique de Toulouse-Lautrec'', Paris, Presses artistiques, 1951
(read online)
on Gallica The plate titled ''Pour toi!'', in the same collection, is a portrait of Désiré Dihau inspired by ''L'Orchestre de l'Opéra'' by Edgar Degas which Lautrec much admired., ''Toulouse-Lautrec : catalogue complet des estampes'', Paris, ACR éd., 1985, 831 p
(Read online)
/ref> Another lithograph by Lautrec depicts Dihau in

Anna Judic Anne Marie-Louise Damiens, stage name Anna Judic (18 July 1849, Semur-en-Auxois – 15 April 1911, Golfe-Juan) was a French comic actress. Life Niece of Montigny (the director of the Gymnase), in 1866 she entered the Conservatoire de Paris in ...

's lodge in 1894 while her corset is being laced. The lithograph is kept at the

Albright–Knox Art Gallery The Buffalo AKG Art Museum, formerly known as the Albright–Knox Art Gallery, is an art museum at 1285 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, New York, in Delaware Park. the museum's Elmwood Avenue campus is temporarily closed for construction. It hosted e ...

in Buffalo. A drawing of 1896 depicts him in a bust of profile. Toulouse-Lautrec also painted two portraits of Désiré Dihau in 1890 and 1891: the first, simply titled ''Désire Dihau'', shows Dihau sitting three-quarter back, reading a newspaper; The second, entitled ''Monsieur Désiré Dihau, basson de l'Opéra'', represents the musician standing, in front bust, in suit and top hat. The two portraits were drawn in the garden of Père Forest (), as was a portrait of Henri Dihau, brother of Désiré and Marie ''Jardin Père Forest'', toulouselautrec.over-blog.co
(read online)
and kept at the

musée Toulouse-Lautrec The Musée Toulouse-Lautrec is an art museum in Albi, southern France, dedicated mainly to the work of the painter Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec who was born in Albi. The 13th century building was originally the Bishop's Palace of Albi Cathedral, nex ...

Albi Albi (; oc, Albi ) is a commune in southern France. It is the prefecture of the Tarn department, on the river Tarn, 85 km northeast of Toulouse. Its inhabitants are called ''Albigensians'' (french: Albigeois, Albigeoise(s), oc, albig ...

. As for the Degas, they were hung in the living room of the Dihau and then, after Désiré's death in 1909, in the modest apartment that his sister occupied For lack of money, she sold her first portrait painted by Degas at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in 1922. Not wanting to part with the other two Degas paintings she owned, ''The Opera Orchestra'' and her portrait on the piano, she gave them to the

Musée du Luxembourg The Musée du Luxembourg () is a museum at 19 rue de Vaugirard in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. Established in 1750, it was initially an art museum located in the east wing of the Luxembourg Palace (the matching west wing housed the Marie de' ...

in 1923, subject to usufruct and the payment of an annual rent of 12,000

francs The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' (King of the Franks) used on early French coins and until the 18th centu ...

, financed by

David David-Weill David David-Weill (1871–1952) was a French-American banker, chairman of Lazard Frères in Paris, who built an important collection of art. His collection was plundered by the Nazis during the Second World War and over 2000 items seized. He was ...

for ''L'Orchestre'' and Marcel Guérin (art critic) for the portrait. Faced with the enthusiasm raised during an exhibition in 1924 at the Galerie Petit, by the two works, which had never before been shown to the public, apart from a few artists and some relatives of the Dihau like Toulouse-Lautrec, the contract was bought by the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

where they were exhibited after the death of Marie Dihau in 1935. They were transferred to the Musée d'Orsay in 1986. Désiré Dihau died in Paris 20 August 1909.

References

Gallery

(Albi) Mr. Désiré Dihau, basson de l'Opéra - Toulouse-Lautrec 1891 MTL.135.jpg, ''Mr. Désiré Dihau, basson de l'Opéra'' -

Toulouse-Lautrec Comte Henri Marie Raymond de Toulouse-Lautrec-Monfa (24 November 1864 – 9 September 1901) was a French painter, printmaker, draughtsman, caricaturist and illustrator whose immersion in the colourful and theatrical life of Paris in the l ...

1891 1872 Degas Die Ochestermusiker anagoria.JPG, Degas, '' Musiciens à l'orchestre'' (the Städel, 1872) Edgar Degas, The Ballet from Robert le Diable, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.jpg, Degas, ''Le Ballet de "Robert le Diable"'' (

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

, 1871) Degas l'orchestre.jpg, Edgar Degas, '' L'Orchestre de l'Opéra'' ( musée d'Orsay, circa 1870) Degas Ballet from Robert le Diable.jpg, Degas, ''Le Ballet de « Robert le Diable »'' (

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

, 1876) Mademoiselle Marie Dihau (1843–1935) MET DT267444.jpg, '' Mademoiselle Marie Dihau'' (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1967–1968) (Albi) Mademoiselle Dihau au Piano - Edgar Degas - Musée d'Orsay, Paris.jpg, '' Mademoiselle Dihau au piano (Degas)'' (musée d'Orsay, 1869) (Albi) Mademoiselle Dihau au piano - Toulouse-Lautrec - 1890 MTL.132.jpg , ''Mademoiselle Dihau au piano (Toulouse-Lautrec)'' (

, 1890)

External links

Désiré Dihau biography and portraits

Désiré Dihau
in Musée Toulouse Lautrec
Désiré Dihau's discography
on Discogs *

Portraits of a bassoonist and his bassoon {{DEFAULTSORT:Dihau Desire 1833 births Musicians from Lille 1909 deaths Conservatoire de Paris alumni French classical bassoonists French composers