Janine Reiss (23 November 1921 – 2 June 2020) was a French singing teacher and

harpsichord A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a musical keyboard, keyboard. Depressing a key raises its back end within the instrument, which in turn raises a mechanism with a small plectrum made from quill or plastic that plucks one ...

ist.

Biography

A harpsichordist by training, Reiss specialised in the 1960s in preparing international opera singers for the French repertoire. For ten years, she worked alongside

Maria Callas Maria Callas (born Maria Anna Cecilia Sophia Kalogeropoulos; December 2, 1923 – September 16, 1977) was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Many critics praised ...

but also with

Teresa Berganza Teresa Berganza Vargas OAXS (16 March 1933 – 13 May 2022) was a Spanish mezzo-soprano. She is most closely associated with roles such as Rossini's Rosina and La Cenerentola, and later Bizet's Carmen, admired for her technical virtuosity, mu ...

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Placido Domingo Placido may refer to: People Surname *José Plácido de Castro (1873–1908), Brazilian soldier and politician *Michele Placido, (born 1946) Italian actor and director * Plácido Vega y Daza, (1830-1878) 19th century Mexican general and politician ...

and

Luciano Pavarotti Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...

. Director of musical studies at the

Paris Opera The Paris Opera ( ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be kn ...

from 1973-80, she then collaborated with opera houses and conductors around the world. Every summer, she directed the musical studies of the

Chorégies d'Orange The ''Chorégies d'Orange'' is a summer opera festival held each August in Orange located about 21 kilometres north of Avignon in southern France. Performances are presented in the ancient Roman theatre, the Théâtre Antique d'Orange, the orig ...

. In 1978, she participated in the preparation of the film ''

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'' by

Joseph Losey Joseph Walton Losey III (; January 14, 1909 – June 22, 1984) was an American film and theatre director, producer, and screenwriter. Born in Wisconsin, he studied in Germany with Bertolt Brecht and then returned to the United States. Hollywood ...

, as musical advisor to the director and onscreen as a harpsichordist, accompanying all the recitatives. She made some incursions in the field of

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

by making work, for example

Mireille Mathieu Mireille Mathieu (; born July 22, 1946) is a French singer. She has recorded over 1,200 songs in eleven languages, with more than 122 million records sold worldwide. Biography and career Early years Mireille Mathieu was born on July 22, 1946, ...

, who she met in 1983 on the TV program ', by

Jacques Chancel Jacques Chancel, (Joseph André Jacques Régis Crampes; 2 July 1928 – 23 December 2014) was a French journalist and writer. He was known for being the radio host of '' Radioscopie'' and '' Le Grand Échiquier'' for 22 years. Chancel was bor ...

. In 2003, Thierry Thomas and Pierre Bouteiller dedicated to her a documentary: ''Janine Reiss: L'Esprit de l'Opéra''. In January 2013, Dominique Fournier dedicated a book to her: ''La passion prédominante de Janine Reiss'' (preface by Alain Duault). Reiss died on 2 June 2020, aged 99.

References

External links

*
Entretien avec Janine Reiss
video dating 22 June 1982 extracted fro
archives de la Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS)

bruceduffie.com, 21 July 1982

France Culture France Culture () is a French public radio channel and part of Radio France Radio France () is the French national public radio broadcaster. Stations Radio France offers seven national networks: *France Inter — Radio France's "generalist ...

; accessed 23 July 2020.
Interview with Janine Reiss
on

Radio Classique Radio Classique is a French commercial radio station created in 1983 that broadcasts mainly classical music. Its programmes also contain segments of economic and political news. As of 2015, it had 1.1 million listeners per day. Radio Classique w ...

(2nd part on YouTube) French music educators French women music educators Women harpsichordists French harpsichordists Vocal coaches 1920s births 2020 deaths Place of birth missing Place of death missing {{france-musician-stub