Victor Massé

Research Status: Moderate Last Updated: 2025-01-23 Diary Coverage: Up to 1881-02-17

Victor Massé (1822-1884), French composer known for his operas and operettas. He composed the opera "Paul et Virginie" (1876) based on Bernardin de Saint-Pierre's famous novel.

Historical Context

Massé was a successful opera composer in Second Empire and early Third Republic France, with works performed at major Parisian theaters including the Opéra-Comique.

His Opera "Paul et Virginie"

Premiered at the Théâtre Lyrique in 1876, this opera adapted the beloved 1788 novel by Bernardin de Saint-Pierre about two young people raised together on Mauritius Island whose innocent love ends tragically.

Diary References

• February 17, 1881: Marie says the music of "Paul et Virginie" makes her want to cry, praising how "Massé a magnifiquement compris le poème" (Massé magnificently understood the poem). The music moves her deeply, especially when she reflects on her lost youth and isolation.

Marie's Response

The opera's themes of innocent love and lost paradise resonate powerfully with Marie's sense of her wasted youth and social isolation.

Sources

• French opera history
• Composer biographical references