Gustave-Hippolyte Roger

Gustave-Hippolyte Roger (17 December 1815 – 12 September 1879) was a French tenor. He is best known for creating the leading tenor roles in La damnation de Faust by Berlioz in 1846 and Meyerbeer's Le prophète in 1849.

Early years and education Born in Paris and orphaned at an early age, Roger was brought up in Paris by his uncle. He entered the Paris Conservatoire and studied with Blès Martin. At the completion of his training, he won first prize in singing and declamation.

Career In 1838, Roger made his professional debut at the Opéra-Comique, Paris, in L’éclair by Fromental Halévy. He went on to create numerous leading roles in new operas with that company, including works by Daniel Auber (Raphaël in La Part du Diable, 1843 and Lorédan in Haydée, 1847, and others), Halévy (Edgard in Le shérif, 1839, Olivier in Les Mousquetaires de la Reine, 1846, and others). Roger was the first Marquis in Perruquier de la Régence by Ambroise Thomas in 1838 and at the same theatre in 1846, the first Faust in La damnation de Faust by Hector Berlioz.

Critical assessment In the opinion of some contemporary critics, Gustave-Hippolyte Roger was perfectly suited, both as singer and actor, for the kind of roles with which he began his career at the Opéra-Comique, but some of the music he had to sing in roles at the larger Paris Opera, such as his most famous part, Jean in Le prophète, was too heavy for his voice and caused vocal decline.