An Affair of the Heart
Donald Macleod recounts how and why Mel Bonis came to find her musical training at an abrupt end. It was a circumstance that irrevocably changed the course of her life
Donald Macleod recounts how and why Mel Bonis came to find her musical training at an abrupt end. It was a circumstance that irrevocably changed the course of her life.
Mel Bonis's name may not be a familiar one these days, but she produced somewhere in the region of three hundred compositions. There's no doubt that she was sensitive to gender discrimination. It's why she chose to publish her music under the name of Mel rather than her birth name Mélanie.
She was born in 1858 to parents of modest means. Her father worked for the watch company Breguet, still in business today, and her mother worked in the haberdashery trade. Neither of them held any particular interest in music, so it was down to young Mélanie to teach herself the play the family's piano. Her talent was recognised by a visiting friend who facilitated a meeting with one of the leading lights of the day, César Franck, an esteemed professor of organ at Paris's prestigious Conservatoire. Mélanie enrolled and showed great promise as a student, winning several end of year prizes. Her studies came to an abrupt end when her parents refused to give their consent to her marriage to a fellow student there, a poet, critic and singer, Amédée Hettich. Her life took a sharp turn two years later when, at the instigation of her parents, she married a twice widowed man of comfortable means. Thereafter her life as a composer had to take a back seat to the demands of raising five step-children and three of her own children with her husband, Albert Domange. Even so, she managed to continue to compose, producing music for her own instrument, the piano, and in almost every other genre as well.
One of the most important relationships of Mel Bonis's life was with Amédée Hettich. Originally a fellow student, the pair of them collaborated on song writing projects.
Valses-caprice, Op 87
Laurent Martin and Claudine Simon, piano four hands
Elève toi mon âme
Laetitia Grimaldi, soprano
Ammiel Bushakevitz, piano
L’Oiseau Bleu, Op 74
BBC Singers
Elizabeth Burgess, piano
Grace Rossiter, conductor
Cello sonata in F major, Op 67 – I. Moderato quasi andante
Thomas Blees, cello
Maria Bergmann, piano
Suite en forme de valses, Op 35 to 39
The Bucharest Symphony Orchestra
Benôit Fromanger, conductor
La chanson de Rouet, Op 24
Carillon mystique, Op 31
Maria Stembolskaya, piano
Les Gitanos, Op 15 No 2
Laurent Martin, piano
Suite en Trio, Op 59
Trio Empreinte
Clara Abou, violin
Émilie Heurtevent, soprano saxophone
Anne de Fornel, piano
Salomé, Op 100
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Rumon Gamba, conductor
Produced by Johannah Smith for BBC Audio Cardiff
Last on
Music Played
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Mel Bonis
Eleve-toi mon ame, Op 22
Performer: Ammiel Bushakevitz. Singer: Laetitia Grimaldi.- BIS : 2546.
- BIS.
- 2.
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Mel Bonis
L'oiseau bleu Op.74
Choir: BBC Singers. Performer: Elizabeth Burgess. Conductor: Grace Rossiter. -
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Mel Bonis
Cello Sonata in F major, Op 67 (1st Mvt)
Performer: Thomas Blees. Performer: Maria Bergmann.- SWR : 10313.
- SWR Digital.
- 6.
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Mel Bonis
Suite en forme de valses
Orchestra: Bucharest Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Benoît Fromanger.- CL 1287.
- Le Chant de Linos.
- 1.
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Mel Bonis
La chanson de Rouet, Op 24
Performer: Maria Stembolskaya.- Ligia : 107324.
- Ligia.
- 14.
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Mel Bonis
Carillon mystique, Op 31
Performer: Maria Stembolskaya.- Ligia : 107324.
- Ligia.
- 10.
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Mel Bonis
Les gitanos, Op 15, No 2
Performer: Laurent Martin.- Ligia : 106918.
- Ligia.
- 17.
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Mel Bonis
Suite en trio, Op 59
Ensemble: Trio Empreinte.- KLA : 019D.
- Klarthe.
- 4.
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Mel Bonis
Salomé Op.100
Orchestra: BBC Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Rumon Gamba.
Broadcasts
- Wed 25 Jan 2023 12:00BBC Radio 3
- Wed 2 Apr 2025 16:00BBC Radio 3
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