A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Hervé
HERVÉ, whose real name is Florimond Ronger, was born June 30, 1825, at Houdain, near Arras. He received his musical education at the School of Saint Roch, and became an organist at various Parisian churches. In '48 he produced at the Opéra National, 'Don Quixote and Sancho Pança,' appearing in it himself with Joseph Kelm the chansonette singer. In '51 he became conductor at the Palais Royal; in '54 or '55 he was manager of the Folies-Concertantes, Boulevard du Temple, a small theatre converted by him from a music hall, in which he was composer, librettist, conductor, singer, machinist, and scene painter, as occasion required. Of his then compositions we must name 'Vade au Cabaret,' and 'Le Compositeur toqué' (played by him at the Lyceum and Globe Theatres in 1870 and '71). In '56 he retired from the management, but continued to write for his theatre, afterwards the 'Folies Nouvelles.' He played successively at the Débareau, '58, at the Délassements Comiques at Marseilles with Kelm 'in his own repertory,' at Montpellier in small tenor parts such as Cantarelli ('Pré aux Clercs'), Arthur ('Lucia') etc., and at Cairo. He reappeared at the Délassements, and in '62 produced two new operettas 'Le Hussard Persecut{{e'}' and 'Le Fanfare de Saint Cloud'; was for two or three years composer and conductor at the Eldorado Music Hall, and afterwards conductor at the Porte Saint Martin; he wrote new music in 1865 for the celebrated revival of the 'Biche aux Bois,' and composed an opera in 3 acts, 'Les Chevaliers de la Table Ronde,' Bouffes, Nov. 17, '66. During the next three years he composed some of his most popular three-act operas, produced at the Folies Dramatiques, viz. 'L'Œil crevé' Oct. 12, '67 (Globe Theatre, by the Dramatiques Company, June 15, '72; in English as 'Hit or Miss,' in one act and five scenes, freely adapted by Burnand, Olympic, April 13, '68; and another version, three acts, Opéra Comique, Oct. 21, '72); 'Chilpéric,' libretto by himself, and at first a failure, Oct. 24, '68, of which he himself wrote a parody 'Chilméric' for the Eldorado (in French at the Globe by the above company, June 3, '72; in English at the Lyceum for the début of Hervé, Jan. 22,'70; frequently revived at other theatres, and last performed on the opening of the Empire Theatre); 'Le Petit Faust,' his most successful work, April 23, '69 (in English at Lyceum, April 18, '70, and revived at Holborn, Alhambra, etc.); 'Les Turcs,' a parody of 'Bajazet.' Dec. 23, '69. None of his subsequent operas attained the same success; many of them, on the contrary, were disastrous failures, viz. 'Le Trône d'Écosse,' 'La Veuve de Malabar,' 'Alice de Nevers,' 'La Belle Poule,' Folies Dramatiques Dec. 30, '76 (in English at the Gaiety, March 29, '79), 'La Marquise des Rues' Bouffes, Feb. 22, '79, 'Panurge,' Sept. 10, '79, etc. But he has been recently very successful in his new songs, etc. written for Mme Judic, Dupuis, and others, such as the 'Pi … Quit,' the 'Chanson du Colonel,' the Provençal song, 'Quès aco?' 'Babet et Cadet,' the 'sneezing duet,' the 'Légende de Marfa,' and other music, introduced into the musical comedies performed at the Variétés, viz. the 'Femme à Papa,' Dec. 3, '79, 'La Roussotte,' with Lecocq and Boulard, Jan. 28, '81, 'Lili,' Jan. 10, '82, Gaiety, with Judic, June '83, 'Maam'zelle Nitouche,' Jan. 26, '83 (Gaiety June '84), 'La Cosaque,' Feb. 1, '84 (Gaiety June '84), in English at Royalty, April 12 of the same year. M. Hervé has in addition composed for the English stage 'Aladdin the Second,' played with great success at the Gaiety, Dec. 24, '70, but without success, as 'Le Nouvel Aladin,' at the Déjazet, Dec. '71. He wrote some of the music of 'Babil and Bijou,' Aug. 29, '72, and in '74 was conductor at the Promenade Concerts, when he introduced a so-called Heroic Symphony or Cantata, 'The Ashantee War,' for solo voices and orchestra. On June 29, '86, his 'Frivoli' was brought out at Drury Lane, and on Dec. 22, '87, the ballets 'Dilara' and 'Sport,' were produced at the Empire Theatre, of which he is conductor.
According to M. Pougin, M. Hervé claims to be the founder of that particular class of music which Offenbach first rendered famous.