Massé, Victor.

the full orchestral score for the substantially complete opera in two acts, unsigned, lacking the ending, but containing two apparently unpublished numbers, notated in dark brown and blue ink on eighteen staves per page, the composer's working manuscript, with copious heavy deletions, alterations and revisions, and with revised passages written by Massé on paper pasted into the score, one short number and a few pastedowns written by another hand, partly a Stichvorlage, marked for the printer in pencil



294 pages, oblong folio (c.27 x 35cms), including autograph titles, each number of the opera paginated by the composer separately, Lard-Esnault paper, modern folder, the numbers stitched separately, [c.1852], apparently lacking 3 leaves in No.1 ('Introduction'), tears to the opening leaves of the Ouverture, affecting the first page of music, with minor paper-loss



 

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This is a spectacular composing manuscript, replete with extensive revisions, heavy deletions and additional passages written on separate paper pasted into the score. 

There are ten sections present in this manuscript, including the unnumbered 'Ouverture' and 'Entr'acte':  'ouverture' (41 pages), No.1 'introduction' (11 pp.), No.2 'Couplets' (10 pp.), No.3 'trio' (43 pp.), No.4 'Air, scène et Duo' (68 pp.), No.5 'Air de la lyre' (31 pp.), No.6 'Duo' (34 pp.), [No.7] 'Air de la Paresse' (9 pages, in a scribal hand), 'Entr'acte' (20 pp.), and No.8 'trio bouffe' (27 pp).  Lacking are Nos.9 "Quatuor" and 10 "Duettino", present in the contemporary editions.  There are, however, two sections not found in the published score: No.6 is a Duo at the end of  Act 1 ("Oui ma chère, vous êtes belle"), which is here marked "passé".  There is also an additional Entr'acte, which, like the Duo, does not appear to have been used by the printer.

Galathée, performed at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on 14 April 1852,  was one of Massé's first major works. Parts of this manuscript would appear to have served as the printer's copy for the full score, published by Léon Grus of Paris in about 1870.