Hector first studied singing at the Tourcoing conservatory with M. Wibaut. He moved to Paris in 1945, where he studied at the
National Conservatory with Mme Monsy-Franz and Gabriel Dubois.
In 1949, he made his debut at La Monnaie, where he stayed until 1954. There in 1952 he created Tom Rakewell in the French premiere of
The rake's progress.
He had a guest contract with the Opéra-Comique since 1952. He sang at the Paris Opéra during 1954/55: debut
in Faust (26 April 1954),
Les Indes galantes (Valère, 1954), Die
Zauberflöte (Priest), Lohengrin (1955), Bolivar by Milhaud (Le Visitador, Dominguez), Numance by Henry Barraud (world premiere on 15 April 1955 as Morandre with Sarocca,
Gorr, Couderc, Blanc, Bianco, Giraudeau, Depraz, Massard, Vanzo, Charles-Paul, Serkoyan, Soix, Finel, Max-Conti, with Fourestier conducting).
Then he decided to concentrate on the German repertory. He studied again for this repertory.
His career evolved as follows:
1959–60 Opernhaus Essen
1960–63 Stadttheater Bern
1963–68 Opernhaus Graz
In Graz, he took part in the Austrian premieres of Il prigioniero (1963), Ognennyj angel (1963), Doktor Faust (1965). He left Graz in 1968
after singing Siegmund.
His repertory included: Radames, Otello, Turiddu, Canio, Pinkerton, José, Samson, Oreste (Iphigénie en Tauride), Florestan,
Erik, Stolzing, Lohengrin, Tristan, Loge, Siegmund, Parsifal, Bacchus, Kaiser, Herodes, Ägisth,
Alwa, Alfred, Shujskij, Kobus (in La route d'émeraude by de Boeck)...
He moved to Dortmund where his wife, the well known soprano Elisabeth Lachmann (born 1940), sang at the local opera house since 1968.
Reference: Kutsch & Riemens
