Bidspirit auction | GOUNOD CHARLES: (1818-1893)

GOUNOD CHARLES: (1818-1893) - GOUNOD CHARLES: (1818-1893) French composer. Autograph Musical Manuscript, unsigned, ten pages (manuscript paper; separate leaves, penned to the rectos only), folio, n.p., n.d. The manuscript is titled Débuts d’airs et cantiques dédiés à la Reine ( ´ Opening bars of arias and hymns dedicated to the Queen´ ) and each of the ten pages are individually titled and feature the melody lines of the specific compositions, with the organ accompaniment indicated only by opening annotations. At the foot of each page, Gounod has noted the date and the index number of the hymn he selected from a broader corpus of spiritual canticles dedicated to the Queen. Some light age wear and minor age toning to the edges, generally about VG Whilst globally celebrated for his secular masterpieces like Faust (1859) and Roméo et Juliette (1867), Gounod maintained a deep, lifelong devotion to sacred music. He spent years studying theology and composition at the Paris Conservatoire, heavily embedding religious themes into his repertoire (most famously evidenced by his Ave Maria ).