Raoul Jobin and Jeunesses Musicales


Raoul Jobin was a wonderful tenor. And his French accent is certainly authentic — perhaps too authentic, for he often (perhaps always) uses the uvular (gargle) “R” that almost everyone in France uses in speaking, rather than the apical (tip-of-the tongue) Italian “R” that is virtually universal in operatic singing. He rolls his throat Rs so well that one sometimes cannot tell, but when evident it inadvertently calls to mind French cabaret singing (Piaff, Montand, Patachou) where the rolled uvular R is the norm, indeed a must, and gives the French chançon populaire its distinctive character. (This doesn’t detract from the beauty of Jobin’s voice or his musicianship, but it does give a bit of an intrusive jolt now and then.) It’s all the more surprising since in Quebec the use of the apical R has persisted in some regions (e.g., Montreal) even to the present day, whereas it’s largely obsolete in France.

When I was a student in the ’50’s at the Camp Musical in Mount Orford (the creation of Gilles Lefebvre of Jeunesses Musicales) Raoul Jobin was a voice professor there, although he had, I believe, already given up his public performing career. (I remember that in a satirical student skit in which the professors were given nicknames, he was called “Çaroule Pa’b’en” but I believe that was just an affectionate play on his rotundity, not the rolling of his Rs!)

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