Albani

Composer: Max Bachmann

Very little is known about Max Bachmann. The National Library of Canada holds five of his compositions which were published in Montreal in 1886 and 1887. His works include pieces dedicated to Queen Victoria, Sir Wilfred Laurier, Sir J.A. Chapleau and the Canadian soprano Emma Albani. There is a portrait of the composer on the back of The Queen's Diamond Jubilee: a galop (c.1897).

Marie-Louise-Emma-Cecile Lajeunesse

(stage name: Albani)
(born: Montreal, 1847 - died: London, England, 1930)
Composer, Harpist, Opera Singer, Pianist, Teacher.

Although her autobiographies give her birth date as either 1850 or 1852, church records state that Emma Lajeunesse was born in Chambly Quebec in 1847. From 1852 to 1856, the family lived in Plattsburgh, New York. However, after her mother's death they returned to Montreal.

Both of Emma's parents were musical. Her father, Joseph, played violin, harp, piano and organ. Emma began musical studies in piano with her mother and Joseph carried on her lessons also teaching her harp and voice. In 1858 their father took a position as a music teacher at the Sacre-Coeur Convent in Sault-au-Recollet, where Emma and her sister enrolled as students. At age 13, she performed for the visiting Prince of Wales. In 1862, a fundraising concert was held at the Mechanic's Hall in Montreal to send the sisters to study music in Paris. Emma was listed on the program as harpist, singer, pianist and composer. However, the funds were insufficient, so in 1865, the family moved to Albany, New York, where Joseph worked as an organist and his daughters gave concerts.

In 1868, at the age of 21, Emma did go to Paris. From there she went to Italy to study voice and made her opera debut in 1869, as Oscar in Verdi's "The Masked Ball." It was at this time that Emma Lajeunesse took the stage name Albani, an old Italian family name. This was the beginning of a celebrated international career, spanning four decades and over 43 operatic roles. She toured the world including Europe, North America, Scandinavia, Australia, and New Zealand. In Canada, thousands of people gathered to welcome her on tours in 1883, 1889, 1890, 1892, 1896 (trans-continental), 1901, 1903, and 1906.

Albani performed for several composers including Ambroise Thomas, Franz Liszt, and Pablo Sarasate. She was awarded many honors such as the gold medal of the Royal Philharmonic Society which had also been bestowed upon Brahms. In 1925, King George V of England gave Albani the title of Dame Commander of the British Empire. In 1930, Montreal named a street after her; unfortunately it disappeared through development, but in 1969 another replaced it. A plaque has also been installed at the place of her birth home. Albani also composed some works when she was in New York but only one of these has been found.

Sources:
MacDonald, Cheryl Emily. 1984. Emma Albani: Victorian Diva. Toronto: Dundurn Press Limited.
Potvin, Gilles. 1992. "Albani." In Encyclopedia of Music in Canada. ed. Kallmann, Helmut et al. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/4/17/m17-118-e.php?uid=34&uidc=ID Access Date: 12/02/2003
Vachon, Pierre. 2000. Emma Albani. In Celebrities/Collections biographique. Montreal: LIDEC Inc.