Salvator Issaurel

He was born Guillaume Issaurel. He first studied singing in Marseille, then moved to the Paris conservatory studying with Masson, like O'Sullivan, until 1898.

Issaurel made his debut at the Opéra-Comique on 1 April 1898 in La nuit de la Saint-Jean by Paul Lacôme. (Noël et Stoullig, Soubies and Le Figaro do not list any performance for that day. This does not mean that it did not take place, as Le Figaro did not provide every day information for the performances at the Opéra-Comique. Soubies lists that La nuit de la Saint-Jean was in the repertory.)

On 10 May 1898, Issaurel took part in the first performance at the Opéra-Comique of Fervaal, conducted by Vincent d'Indy as Un berger. The cast included: Imbart de La Tour, Gaston Beyle, Carbonne, Badiali, Bernaert, Bertin, Gresse, Zocchi, Troy, Dantu, Durand, Lesbros, Montégut, Laffitte, Eloi, Jeanne Raunay, Madame Dumont, and Madame Delorn. It was given 13 times during the season.

He was hired as lyric tenor by the Durieu-Nicosias company and arrived in Montréal during October 1899 for the season at the Monument national. Performances at the Académie de musique in Québec followed. Under the name Salvator, he sang Faust, Vincent, Wilhelm Meister, Roméo, Gérald, Lépold. The company toured the USA and Cuba disbanding in 1900 due to bankruptcy.

He sang Faust in New Orleans before returning to Europe and singing in Belgium and Holland.

Holland performances

1902

Manon on 2 October at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Marchand, Béchard, Julia Cholain/Bergès, Édouard Barwolf
Mignon on 4 October at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Béchard, Sarpe, Fobis, Narici, Jules Lecocq
Il barbiere di Siviglia on 11 October at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Duthoit, Jula Cholain/Hélène Clément, Marchand, Béchard, Génin, Jules Lecocq
Carmen on 13 October at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Béchard, Poude, Narici/d'Heilsonn, Jules Lecocq
La dame blanche on 23 October at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Béchard, Narici, Roussel, Fobis, Édourd Barwolf
Le voyage en Chine on 13 November at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Duthoit, Sarpe, Roussel, Narici, Fobis, Génin, Jules Lecocq
Mireille on 2 December at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Henri Grimaud, Hélène Clément/d'Heilsonn, Poude, Béchard, Jules Lecocq
La bohème on 27 December at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Marchand, Launay, Béchard, Hélène Clément.d'Heilsonn, Narici, Jule Lecocq

1903

Pagliacci on 17 January at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Narici, Béchard, Sarpe, Launay, Jules Lecocq
Sapho on 7 February at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with d'Heilsonn, Henri Grimaud, Jules Lecocq
La bohème (Leoncavallo) on 16 February at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with Henri Grimaud, Marchand, Duthoit, Béchard, Fobis, Narici, Édouard Barwolf
Zazà on 4 April at 's-Gravenhage, Koninklijke Schouwburg, with d'Heilsonn, Henri Grimaud, Édouard Barwolf

He returned to France in 1903, where he sang in Marseille for the 1903/04 season and in Royan with the Canadian singer Béatrice La Palme (1904), whom he would marry in 1908. During the Marseille season the tenors' roster included Escalaïs, Cossira (who was booed), Régis, Baroche; Issaurel (again as Salvator) was labelled first light Opéra-Comique tenor.

Soon after, he stopped singing to study with Jean-Baptiste Faure and Jean de Reszke and consult Dr Marage, a throat specialist.

He returned to the stage in 1907 at the Gaîté in La vivandière with Béatrice La Palme (click on picture to enlarge). (While La vivandière was given a the Gaîté starting on 1 October, however the tenor was Devriès. Possibly Issaurel was part of an alternate cast.)

Due to stage fright, he decided to give up singing. In 1909, he went with his wife to London where they open a singing school. Both moved to Montréal during July 1911.

Issaurel first taught singing at the Columbian Conservatory (1911–14), then for a short time at the Canadian Academy of Music. Béatrice La Palme (1878–1921) having also quit the stage, she opened with her husband a singing school that remained opened until the death of Issaurel.

Among his students were: Pierrette Alarie, Camille Bernard, Germaine Bruyère, Louis Chartier, Paul-Émile Corbeil, Albert Cornellier, Jeanne Desjardins, Graziella Dumaine, Roger Filiatrault, Marie-José Forgues, Jacques Gérard, Blanche Gonthier, Charles Goulet, Émile et Romain Gour, Jules Jacob, Jean-Paul Jeannotte, Joseph-Victor Ladéroute, Marthe Létourneau, Anna Malenfant, Ulysse Paquin, Gérard Paradis, Jacqueline Plouffe, Léopold Simoneau, Honoré Vaillancourt, Édouard Woolley, ...

Issaurel wrote several articles on voice in La Lyre between 1923 and 1929. In 1923, he recorded 4 sides for Victor. The quality of Issaurel's teaching over 33 years had a marked influence on the evolution of the art of singing in Québec. He was a member of the Union professionnelle des maîtres du chant français.
Reference: The Canadian Encyclopedia
Noël et Stoullig: Les annales du théâtre et la musique, 1898, 1907
Albert Soubies: Almanach des spectacles, 1898, 1907
Le Figaro, April 1898

I wish to thank Christian Torrent for the discography, recording, pictures, labels and references.

Discography

Victor 1923
?           Au rossignol (Gédalge)                   263163
?           Noël d'enfant (Croze)                    263165
?           Pastourelle (Auguin)                     263163
?           Les souliers de Noël (Loret)             263165