
A goguette () was a singing society in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
and
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
, and its members were called ''goguettiers''.
As well as providing venues for informal solo and ensemble singing, goguettes also served as places for drinking, socialising, and recreation.
Goguettes can trace their history back to 1729 and the "''
Société du Caveau''" in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, founded by poet and
chansonnier
A chansonnier (, , Galician and , or ''canzoniéro'', ) is a manuscript or printed book which contains a collection of chansons, or polyphonic and monophonic settings of songs, hence literally " song-books"; however, some manuscripts are call ...
Pierre Gallet
Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...
(1698–1757), but their heyday was in the years 1818 to 1900. They can still be found today.
In the early 19th century, goguettes met in the premises of cafés and restaurants, and provided a space for their members (for a small fee) to sing in public or to have their own compositions sung. Songs would explore well-worn
epicurean
Epicureanism is a system of philosophy founded 307 BCE based upon the teachings of Epicurus, an ancient Greek philosopher. Epicurus was an atomist and materialist, following in the steps of Democritus. His materialism led him to religious s ...
themes such as drinking and eating, though political and social songs also played an important part.
Open to all social ranks, in practice they tended to attract literate men from the
artisan
An artisan (from , ) is a skilled craft worker who makes or creates material objects partly or entirely by hand. These objects may be functional or strictly decorative, for example furniture, decorative art, sculpture, clothing, food ite ...
class; they were also associated with revolutionary politics and were carefully monitored by the authorities.
A goguette tended to draw its members from the locality, and would have a formal structure of committee meetings, officials, minutes, etc., as well as social events. Membership was usually open to all – men, women and children, of any social class. Some tended to attract certain types like artists or intellectuals, such as the "''Gnoufs-Gnoufs''", "''Poulet sauté''" or "''Frileux''" in Paris.
Apart from Paris, goguettes could be found in many French provincial towns and cities (
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...
,
Marseille
Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...
,
Rouen
Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...
,
Toulouse
Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...
, etc.) as well as in rural areas.
The writer
Gérard de Nerval
Gérard de Nerval (; 22 May 1808 – 26 January 1855), the pen name of the French writer, poet, and translator Gérard Labrunie, was a French essayist, poet, translator, and travel writer. He was a major figure during the era of French romantici ...
describes a visit to a goguette in his 1852 short-story ''Les nuits d'Octobre''. The narrator is moved by a young woman who sings with a purity and naivety which, he predicts, will be lost when she goes to the conservatoire to be classically trained.
See also
*
Café-chantant
(; French: lit. 'singing café'), , or is a type of musical establishment associated with the Belle Époque in France. The music was generally lighthearted and sometimes risqué or even bawdy but, as opposed to the cabaret tradition, not par ...
*
Eugène Imbert
Eugène Alphonse Monet de Maubois, called Imbert, known in the world of the song in his time under the pseudonym Eugène Imbert (), was a 19th-century French poet, chansonnier, goguettier and historiographer
Historiography is the study of ...
*
Guinguette
The guinguette (), originating in the 17th century, was a type of popular tavern in the suburb, suburbs of Paris and of other cities in France. The term comes from ''guinguet'', a type of cheap green wine served there.
A ''goguette'' was a simi ...
References
*This article is based on translated text from the French Wikipedia article
goguette.
1729 establishments in Europe
Clubs and societies in Belgium
Clubs and societies in France
French music history
Organizations established in 1729
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