Jeanne Angèle Desirée Yvonne Joulain (22 July 1920 – 1 February 2010) was a French

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational ...

, concertist and music educator.

Biography

Born in

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

, Joulain's first contact with music was made thanks to her musician parents. Her father, a teacher in Paris, played the violin and her mother was a piano teacher. So it's only natural that she should start playing the piano with her mother. In 1934, after a decisive meeting with the great pianist

Raoul Koczalski Raoul Armand Jerzy (von) Koczalski (3 January 1884 – 24 November 1948) was a Polish pianist and composer. He also used the pseudonym Georg Armand(o) Koczalski. Career Born in Warsaw, Koczalski was taught first by his mother, then by Julian Gad ...

, Jeanne Joulain entered the conservatory of Amiens. During her studies, she followed the classes of solfeggio, piano (class of Maurice Coze), cello (class of Mario Camerini, pupil of Paul Bazelaire),

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small nu ...

, orchestra,

harmony In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. Howeve ...

counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tra ...

musical composition Musical composition can refer to an original piece or work of music, either vocal or instrumental, the structure of a musical piece or to the process of creating or writing a new piece of music. People who create new compositions are called ...

(classes of Pierre Camus, the director, himself a pupil of composition of

Charles-Marie Widor Charles-Marie-Jean-Albert Widor (21 February 1844 – 12 March 1937) was a French organist, composer and teacher of the mid-Romantic era, most notable for his ten organ symphonies. His Toccata from the fifth organ symphony has become one of th ...

, and organ when the class was created in 1936 (class of Colette Ponchel, one of the last pupils of

Louis Vierne Louis Victor Jules Vierne (8 October 1870 – 2 June 1937) was a French organist and composer. As the organist of Notre-Dame de Paris from 1900 until his death, he focused on organ music, including six organ symphonies and a '' Messe solennelle ...

) where she won the first prizes. It was during this period that her pedagogical activity began, as she had to make several replacements for teachers of music theory, piano, cello, harmony and organ. In 1938, the grand organ of

Amiens Cathedral , image = 0 Amiens - Cathédrale Notre-Dame (1).JPG , imagesize = 200px , img capt = Amiens Cathedral , pushpin map = France , pushpin label position = below , coordinates = , country ...

was restored. After the inauguration concert given by

Marcel Dupré Marcel Jean-Jules Dupré () (3 May 1886 – 30 May 1971) was a French organist, composer, and pedagogue. Biography Born in Rouen into a wealthy musical family, Marcel Dupré was a child prodigy. His father Aimable Albert Dupré was titular o ...

, a small orchestra was formed to accompany Salvation. Jeanne Joulain was a member of this orchestra as a cellist and it was on this occasion that she was introduced to Marcel Dupré by Pierre Camus, the director of the conservatory. In 1943, after her first training at the Conservatoire d'Amiens, her desire to go further prompted her to enrol at the

École César Franck The École César-Franck (César Franck School, named after César Franck) was a music school founded in Paris in January 1935 by Guy de Lioncourt, Louis de Serres, Pierre de Bréville and Marcel Labey. It was produced by a split from the Schola Ca ...

, where she perfected in the same disciplines and obtained diplomas of piano (class of Jean Batalla), cello (class of Edwige Bergeron-Brachet), organ (class of

Édouard Souberbielle Jacques Auguste Édouard Souberbielle (17 June 1899 – 29 January 1986) was a 20th-century French organist, Kapellmeister and music educator. Biography Souberbielle first studied with his mother, a former pupil of Émile Delaborde, son of Cha ...

and

Abel Decaux Abel-Marie Alexis Decaux (11 February 1869 – 19 March 1943) was a French organist, composer, and pedagogue, best known for his piano suite ''Clairs de lune'', some of the earliest pieces of dodecaphonic, yet impressionist music. A student of ...

) after two years. In addition, she won the diploma of

(class of Guy de Lioncourt) after five years. In 1945, Jeanne Joulain decided to write to Marcel Dupré with the intention of taking private lessons. The latter, after having assessed her level, offered to prepare her to enter the conservatory. For two years, she attended the "petit cours" in Meudon and in 1947 she passed the entrance exam for 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 she obtained the First prize of organ and

musical improvisation Musical improvisation (also known as musical extemporization) is the creative activity of immediate ("in the moment") musical composition, which combines performance with communication of emotions and instrumental technique as well as spontaneous ...

in 1952 (class of Marcel Dupré). In 1950, she won the competitions to be able to teach and began teaching in February 1951 at the

Conservatoire de Lille The Conservatoire de Lille is a music school in Lille, France. Founded in 1803, it was originally set out as a music conservatory, later branching out into theatre and dance in the second half of the 20th century. The conservatory took the place ...

. In October 1952 at that of Roubaix, which she left for the conservatory of

Douai Douai (, , ,; pcd, Doï; nl, Dowaai; formerly spelled Douay or Doway in English) is a city in the Nord département in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. Located on the river Scarpe some from Lille and from Arras, Dou ...

from 1960 to 1970. Her teaching activities ceased in 1982. In the long list of people who have attended her courses were Michel Alabau (organist in charge of the Saint-Séverin church in Paris), René Courdent (organist in charge of churches and Notre-Dame des Anges of Tourcoing), Patrick Delabre (titular organist of the Cathedral Notre-Dame de Chartres),

Yves Devernay Yves Marie-Édouard Devernay ( Tourcoing 9 May 1937 – Tourcoing 10 December 1990) was a 20th-century French organist, improviser and composer. Biography First a pupil of Jeanne Joulain at the Roubaix conservatory, in 1958 he joined Rol ...

(titular organist of Notre-Dame de Paris), Jérôme Faucheur (titular organist of the churches of Bondues and Wambrechies and organ teacher in Comines and Hazebrouck), Marie-Agnès Grall-Menet (titular organist of the grand organ of Saint-Nicolas-du-Chardonnet church in Paris), Philippe Lefèbvre (titular organist of Notre-Dame de Paris), Jean-Philippe Mesnier (successor of Jeanne Joulain as organ teacher at the Douai Conservatory (1970-2000), titular organist of the Saint-Pierre de Douai collegiate church), Marguerite Spillaert (honorary organist of the Saint-Pierre-Saint-Paul church in Lille) etc. She was titular organist of the Sainte Jeanne d'Arc church in Amiens, of the Mutin- Cavaillé-Coll of the Collégiate church Saint-Pierre of

and finally of the Delmotte of the Saint-Maurice church in Lille. She has given numerous recitals in France (including in

Chartres Cathedral Chartres Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of Our Lady of Chartres (french: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres), is a Roman Catholic church in Chartres, France, about southwest of Paris, and is the seat of the Bishop of Chartres. Mostly con ...

, Saint-Sulpice,

Notre-Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris (; meaning "Our Lady of Paris"), referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a Middle Ages#Art and architecture, medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris ...

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectu ...

Béziers Béziers (; oc, Besièrs) is a subprefecture of the Hérault department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. Every August Béziers hosts the famous ''Feria de Béziers'', which is centred on bullfighting. A million visitors are attra ...

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

Belley Belley () is a commune in the Ain department in eastern France. History Belley is of Roman origin, and in the 5th century became an episcopal see. It was the capital of the province of Bugey, which was a dependency of Savoy till 1601, whe ...

, and abroad ( Altenberg,

Mons Mons (; German and nl, Bergen, ; Walloon and pcd, Mont) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the province of Hainaut, Belgium. Mons was made into a fortified city by Count Baldwin IV of Hainaut in the 12th century. T ...

, Brussels,

Tournai Tournai or Tournay ( ; ; nl, Doornik ; pcd, Tornai; wa, Tornè ; la, Tornacum) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. It lies southwest of Brussels on the river Scheldt. Tournai is part of Eurome ...

, St Brice and

Tournai Cathedral The Tournai Cathedral, or Cathedral of Our Lady (french: Notre-Dame de Tournai, nl, Onze-Lieve-Vrouw van Doornik), is a Roman Catholic church, see of the Diocese of Tournai in Tournai, Belgium. It has been classified both as a Wallonia's majo ...

, St. Patrick's Cathedral in New-York city, and

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglicanism, Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London ...

in London. In addition to her teaching and concert work, she was a correspondent for the Musique-Sacrée magazine ''L'Organiste''. She also participated in numerous juries of competitions for organ classes. Jeanne Joulain died 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 No ...

on 1 February 2010 at the age of 89. Many fellow organists were present at her funeral in Lille, during which the organ was played by

Jean Guillou Jean Victor Arthur Guillou (18 April 1930 – 26 January 2019) was a French composer, organist, pianist, and pedagogue. Titular Organist at Saint Eustache in Paris, from 1963 to 2015, he was widely known as a composer of instrumental and vocal m ...

Works

Jeanne Joulain is the author of pieces for solo organ, voice and piano, voice and orchestra and various instrumental ensembles. In addition, she has made several reconstructions of improvisations on the organ by

Pierre Cochereau Pierre Eugène Charles Cochereau (9 July 1924 – 6 March 1984) was a French organist, improviser, composer, and pedagogue. Cochereau was titular organist of the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris from 1955 to his death in 1984 and was responsibl ...

. *1936–1943: ''9 mélodies pour chant et piano'': ''Mon âme a son secret'' (

Félix Arvers Félix Arvers (July 23, 1806 – November 7, 1850) was a French poet and dramatist, most famous for his poem ''Un secret''. Born in Paris, Arvers abandoned his law career aged 30 to concentrate on theatre. His plays gained moderate success in th ...

), ''Soir d'été'' ( Albert Samain), ''Le jardin mouillé'' (

Henri de Régnier Henri-François-Joseph de Régnier (28 December 1864 – 23 May 1936) was a French symbolist poet, considered one of the most important of France during the early 20th century. Life and works He was born in Honfleur ( Calvados) on 28 December 1 ...

), ''La mer'' (Henri de Régnier), ''La lune blanche'' (

Paul Verlaine Paul-Marie Verlaine (; ; 30 March 1844 – 8 January 1896) was a French poet associated with the Symbolist movement and the Decadent movement. He is considered one of the greatest representatives of the '' fin de siècle'' in international and ...

), ''La légende des Perce-neige'' (Jeanne Paruit), ''Vierge sainte'' (Abbé Perreyve), ''Promenade sur l'eau'' ( André Theuriet) and ''Le page d'automne'' (Janette de Neaux); unpublished * ''O, la splendeur de notre joie'': mélodie for voice and piano (

Émile Verhaeren Émile Adolphe Gustave Verhaeren (; 21 May 1855 – 27 November 1916) was a Belgian poet and art critic who wrote in the French language. He was one of the founders of the school of Symbolism and was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Lit ...

); unpublished *1937: ''Les peupliers'': mélodie for voice and piano (

Rosemonde Gérard Louise-Rose-Étiennette Gérard, known as Rosemonde Gérard (April 5, 1871, Paris – July 8, 1953, Paris) was a French poet and playwright. She was the wife of Edmond Rostand (1868–1918, author of ''Cyrano de Bergerac''), and was a granddaugh ...

); unpublished *1938: ''Cantabile'': piece for organ; unpublished *1938-1943 ''La source'': mélodie for voice and piano or orchestra (anonymous); unpublished *1939: ''Thème et variation'' (on the name of Pierre Camus): piece for organ; unpublished *1940-1943 ''Chanson bengalie'': mélodie for voice and piano or orchestra (

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...

); unpublished *1941: ''Variation sur un thème breton'': piece for organ; unpublished *1941: ''Prélude'': piece for organ; unpublished *1942: ''Communion'': piece for organ; unpublished *1942: ''O vent fou!'': mélodie for voice and piano (Rabindranath Tagore); unpublished *1942: ''Domine non sum dignus'':

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the pre-eminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to Ma ...

with 4 mixed voices, unpublished *1942: ''Factus es repente'': motet with 4 mixed voices; unpublished *1943–1944 ''Lamento'': piece for organ or orchestra; unpublished *1944: ''Berceuse'': mélodie for voice and piano (Maurice de Noisay); unpublished *1942-1945: ''Cantantibus organis'': motet with 3 mixed voices, organ and accompaniment for strings; unpublished *1943-1945 ''Ave verum corpus'': motet with 3 mixed voices and accompaniment for strings; unpublished *1943: ''Sarabande et gigue'': piece for piano; unpublished *1943: ''Trois heures chez Lafleur'': Patoisante musical fantasy for soloists, choir and orchestra (lyrics by Camille Dupetit); unpublished *1944: ''Le chant du coq'':

musical comedy Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

in 1 act for soloist and orchestra (lyrics by André Schneider); unpublished *1944: ''Le rêve d'une mère'': choreographic poem for chamber orchestra (lyrics by Jean Dubillet); unpublished *1945: ''Air de Ruth'': excerpt from the 2nd song of "Booz" for soprano and piano (lyrics by André Schneider); unpublished *1946: ''Booz'': biblical cantata in 5 songs for 4 soloists, choir and orchestra (lyrics by André Schneider); unpublished *1945: ''Antigone'': orchestral suite, stage music for a performance of ''

Antigone In Greek mythology, Antigone ( ; Ancient Greek: Ἀντιγόνη) is the daughter of Oedipus and either his mother Jocasta or, in another variation of the myth, Euryganeia. She is a sister of Polynices, Eteocles, and Ismene.Roman, L., ...

'' by Jean Anouilh: ''Prologue, Le crime d'Antigone, La justice des hommes, La colère de Créon, La plainte des vieillards thébains, La justice des dieux''; unpublished *1946: ''Booz'': biblical cantata in 5 songs for 4 soloists, choir and orchestra (lyrics by André Schneider); unpublished *1947: ''Symphonie concertante'' for organ and orchestra in 3 mouvements; unpublished *1951: ''Trois préludes'': for piano in G major, B flat major and D minor, unpublished *1953: ''Variation sur "Jesu dulcis memoria"'': piece for organ; "L'organiste", magazine ''Musique Sacrée'' *1954-1956: ''Trois pièces pour une Messe en l'honneur de la Sainte Vierge: Entrée - Offertoire - Communion'': pieces for organ; "L'organiste", magazine ''Musique Sacrée'' *1958: ''Communion pour une Messe en l'honneur de la Sainte Vierge'': piece for organ; "L'organiste", magazine ''Musique Sacrée'' *1958: ''Noël Flamand'': piece for organ 1) series ''Orgue et Liturgie'' issue 40 2) Édition Chantraine, Tournai in 1994 *1959: ''Final on "Ave Maris Stella" pour une Messe en l'honneur de la Sainte Vierge'': piece for organ; "L'organiste", magazine ''Musique Sacrée'' *1959: ''Prélude à l'Introït pour la fête des Rameaux Hosanna Filio David''; series ''Orgue et Liturgie'' issue 47 *1961: ''Paraphrase pour la fête de la Toussaint "Justorum animae in manu Dei sunt"'': piece for organ; series ''Orgue et Liturgie'' issue 52 *1962: ''In memoriam Louis Vierne'': piece for organ; 1)''L'organiste'', magazine ''Musique Sacrée'' 2) Édition Chantraine, Tournai en 1995 *1963: ''Communion pour tous les temps "Adoro Te"'': piece for organ; series ''Orgue et Liturgie'' issue 62 *1972: ''Introduction and Dance (for the inauguration of an 18th century Tannenberg piano found in Lititz, Pennsylvania.)'': for piano, unpublished *1988: ''Canzona a 12 by

Giovanni Gabrieli Giovanni Gabrieli (c. 1554/1557 – 12 August 1612) was an Italian composer and organist. He was one of the most influential musicians of his time, and represents the culmination of the style of the Venetian School, at the time of the shift f ...

'': adaptation for 2 organs; unpublished *1988: ''Canzona noni toni by Giovanni Gabrieli'' (''Sacrae symphoniae'' Venice 1597): adaptation for 2 organs; unpublished *1988: ''Trois versets de Vêpres (4th - 6th - 7th) improvised by

'': reconstitution for organ; Éditions Chantraine, Tournai in 1997 *1988: ''Fugue du "Triptyque symphonique" improvised by Pierre Cochereau'' after the disc FY 059/60 recorded in

in 1977: reconstitution for organ; unpublished *1988: ''Pièce d'orgue''; unpublished, (1st part) of the Prelude and Fugue on Antoine Drizenko's name) *1988: ''Treize improvisations sur les versets de Vêpres by Pierre Cochereau'': reconstitution for organ, Éditions Chantraine, Tournai in 1997; Éditions Butz, St Augustin in 2008 * 1988–1991 ''Prélude et fugue'' (on the name of Antoine Drizenko):JOULAIN Jeanne, Prélude et fugue sur le nom d'Antoine Drizenko
on Allegro partitions piece for orgue, Édition Chantraine, Tournai in 1997 * ''Elevation on "Victimae Pascali"'' : piece for organ; series "Orgue et Liturgie" issue 57 * ''Postlude'' (on the name of Allan Remsen): piece for organ; series ''Orgue et Liturgie'', issue 70 *1990: ''Neuf pièces improvisées en forme de Suite française de Pierre Cochereau'': reconstitution d'après le disque FY 059 enregistré aux grandes orgues de

Notre Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris (; meaning "Our Lady of Paris"), referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. The cathedral, dedicated to the ...

in March–June 1977, Édition Chantraine, Tournai in 1994 *1991: ''Patchwork'': piece for 2 organs; unpublished *1992: ''Cortège'': piece for trumpet and organ; unpublished *1993: ''La Lucchesina (1601) by G. Guami (1540-1611)'': adaptation for 2 organs, unpublished *1993: ''Prélude en la mineur'': for piano; unpublished *1995: ''Boite à musique'': piece for piano, unpublished *1996: ''Messe en Mi "à la mémoire de Maurice Duruflé"'': for

countertenor A countertenor (also contra tenor) is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of the female contralto or mezzo-soprano voice types, generally extending from around G3 to D5 or E5, although a sopranist ...

and organ; unpublished *1997: ''Trio'': for piano, horn and flute; unpublished

Awards

*1952 - First prize of organ of 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 ...

Bibliography

*''Entretien avec Jeanne Joulain'';

Norbert Dufourcq Norbert Stéphane Jean-Marie Dufourcq (21 September 1904 – 19 December 1990) was a French organist, music educator, musicologist and musicographer. Biography Norbert Dufourcq was born in 1904 in Saint-Jean-de-Braye in the Loiret department ...

; ''L’Orgue'', issue 206 (1988/II) *''Pour l’amour de la Musique. Jeanne Joulain. Repères biographiques'' Étienne Delahaye; ''L'Orgue'', issue 290 (2010/II)

References

External links

Jeanne Joulain's obituary
on '' La Voix du Nord'' (4 February 2010)
Jeanne Joulain
on Symétrie

on Éditions Chantraine
Jeanne Joulain
on France Orgue {{DEFAULTSORT:Joulain, Jeanne 1920 births 2010 deaths People from Amiens Conservatoire de Paris alumni French classical organists Women organists French music educators Women music educators 20th-century classical musicians