Gounod, Charles (EN)

Gounod Charles François, *17 June 1818 Paris, †18 October 1893 Paris, French composer. Gounod’s father, François-Louis, was a painter, and his mother, Victoire, née Lemachois, was a pianist and pupil of L. Adam. Orphaned by his father at the age of five, Charles remained under the sole care of his mother, who was also his first music teacher. From 1829, A. Reicha took over the boy’s musical education. It was during this period that Gounod had his first encounters with the opera: Rossini’s Otello and Mozart’s Don Giovanni. In 1836, Gounod enrolled at the Paris Conservatoire, where he studied under J. Halévy (counterpoint), J.F. Lesueur and F. Paër (composition), and P. Zimmermann (piano). Between 1837 and 1839, he entered the Prix de Rome three times, finally winning the prize with his cantata Fernand.

His stay in Rome enabled the young composer to become acquainted with 16th-century polyphonic church music (performed in the Sistine Chapel); this type of music became for Gounod the ideal of artistic purity and perfection, and Palestrina’s works – the musical equivalent of Michelangelo’s genius. However, the composer was less enthusiastic about the Italian operas that were fashionable at the time (by G. Donizetti, V. Bellini and G. Mercadante). Instead, he studied with interest the scores of Lully, Gluck, Mozart and Rossini. At that time, Gounod was greatly inspired by the music of J.S. Bach, which he began to study under the influence of his acquaintance with Fanny Mendelssohn-Hensel, the sister of F. Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, a pianist with a solid musical education and refined taste. She also introduced Gounod to the works of Goethe. During his stay in Rome, Gounod’s religious attitude became clearly apparent, greatly influenced by the Dominican Père Lacordaire, known as a preacher who proclaimed the doctrine of rejuvenating the Catholic faith by returning to the fundamental truths of the Bible. During this time, Gounod wrote numerous religious works, including a mass and a Te Deum for a cappella vocal ensemble, which were sharply criticised by Spontini for their reference to Palestrina’s style. In Rome, the composer also met the famous singer P. Viardot. In the autumn of 1842, Gounod left for Vienna, where, thanks to the help of O. Nicolai, he managed to have his Messe de Rome and Messe de Requiem performed. The following year, he met Felix Mendelssohn, which reinforced his love for the music of J. S. Bach, broadened his understanding of German music, and gave him the opportunity to hear the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. After returning to Paris, Gounod took up the position of organist and musical director at the Missions Entrangères church. However, his ambitious plan to introduce his listeners to the works of Palestrina and Bach met with resistance from the faithful, who found them monotonous and expressionless, an opinion shared by Berlioz. Between 1846 and 1848, Gounod’s inclination towards religious life grew stronger. He attended lectures at the Carmelite Seminary, adhered to the strict disciplines of spiritual life, even wore a cassock, and signed his name as “abbé” Gounod. The events of 1848 compelled him to alter both his plans and his way of life. Viardot persuaded him to write an opera and recommended him to N. Roqueplan, director of the Paris Opera. This resulted in Gounod’s first opera, Sapho, which provoked conflicting opinions, ranging from Berlioz’s enthusiasm, through T. Gautier’s cautious praise, to A. Adam’s statement that it was too heavily influenced by Gluck. Both Parisian and London audiences reacted unfavourably to the work, finding it lacking in the stage effects that were fashionable at the time. In 1852, Gounod married Anna Zimmermann, the daughter of a professor at the Paris Conservatoire. Soon afterwards, the composer took over the leadership of the largest male choir in Paris, Orphéon la Ville de Paris, for which he wrote, among others, Messe aux Orphéonistes and Messe solennelle de Sainte Cécile, which brought him considerable success. Another attempt at dramatic composition was the music for F. Ponsard’s play Ulysses. This time, critics were more unanimous and favourable in their assessment of Gounod, but the play itself did not stand the test of time. Gounod’s next stage work, the opera La nonne sanglante, set in medieval Bohemia, was again written for the Paris Opera. The choice of a libretto full of the uncanny, cheap horror, magic and lewdness testifies to a shift, at least temporary, in Gounod’s aesthetic views towards the tastes and expectations of the average viewer; the work was indeed a huge success with the public, but after 11 performances, Roqueplan’s successor as director of the Opera removed it from the repertoire. One of Gounod’s most popular works to this day dates from slightly earlier (1852) – Méditation sur le premier prélude de J. S. Bach, which exists in several different arrangements: for violin or solo voice (with the text of Ave Maria) accompanied by orchestra, piano or organ, as well as for solo piano or organ, and in an arrangement for choir and orchestra.

In 1857 – immediately following a severe physical and psychological crisis – the composer began a long-term collaboration with the Théâtre Lyrique and its director, Léon Carvalho, as well as with the librettists Jules Barbier and Michel Carré. The first result of their collaboration was an opéra comique based on Molière’s play Le médecin malgré lui, which was enthusiastically received by critics. For some time, Gounod had been drawn to the idea of an opera inspired by Goethe’s Faust. In 1850, he became acquainted with Michel Carré’s dramatic adaptation of the Faust legend, Faust et Marguerite, from which the text of the Chanson du Roi de Thulé was later drawn. Carré also wrote the text for Chanson du veau d’or with Gounod’s future opera in mind. However, the author of the libretto, which refers to Goethe’s Faust in addition to the aforementioned fragments, is J. Barbier. Halfway through Gounod’s work on the new opera, Carvalho suspended his commission for the work for a time due to the premiere of the melodrama Faust, which was being prepared on a grand scale at the Théâtre Porte-Saint-Martin. However, this work survived on stage for only a few months and did not have a decisive influence on the fate of Gounod’s Faust. The world premiere of the first version of the opera with spoken dialogue took place at the Théâtre Lyrique on 19 March 1859, with C. Carvalho in the role of Marguerite. The reception of the work was initially rather cold. A year later, in a production of Faust in Strasbourg, Gounod replaced the spoken dialogue with recitatives, and at the request of the Paris Opera (premiere in 1869), added the ballet scene Nuit de Walpurgis (often omitted later). From the early 1860s onwards, the fame of Faust continued to grow, and the work enjoyed a triumphant run, first on all opera stages in France, and then also beyond its borders (Brussels, Stockholm, Milan, London, Hamburg, St Petersburg, Barcelona, Warsaw 1865).

Gounod’s next four operas did not repeat the success of Faust. Philemon et Baucis based on La Fontaine, had only 13 performances. That same year, Gounod wrote a short opéra comique, La Colombe, for the theatre in Baden-Baden.  However, the enthusiasm of the residents of Baden-Baden was not shared by Parisian audiences. La reine de Saba, whose libretto was based on Histoire de la reine du matin, an Arab legend published by G. de Nerval, was a complete fiasco. The social overtones in the libretto provoked the disapproval of Emperor Napoleon III, who was present at the premiere, and this was echoed by the critics. Mireille fared slightly better, surviving 41 performances. However, it was the opera Roméo et Juliette that brought him worldwide fame. The premiere coincided with the World’s Fair in Paris (1867), which contributed to the opera’s undisputed and immediate triumph, unmatched by any of Gounod’s other operas before or since. A year before the world premiere of Roméo et Juliette, the composer was honoured with election to the Académie des Beaux Arts, and a few months later with the Order of the Legion of Honour. In 1868, due to health problems, Gounod went to Morainville for treatment and then left for Rome. Here he socialised with F. Liszt, with whom he shared a certain spiritual and artistic affinity. At that time, he had the opportunity to familiarise himself with Liszt’s oratorios, The Legend of St Elizabeth and Christus, and perhaps under their influence he began to write the oratorio Sainte-Cécile, which he did not complete, and Rédemption, which was only finished 12 years later. 

The Franco-Prussian War was a pivotal moment in Gounod’s life; the composer immediately joined in the patriotic life of the capital with his cantata À la frontière. However, shortly after the defeat at Sedan and the capitulation of Napoleon III, in November 1870, Gounod and his family moved to England, where he remained until June 1874.  He initially found refuge in Blackheart, then settled in London, where he was able to take up professional activities. He also found a publisher for his new works – H. Littleton, then the owner of the Novello publishing house. On 1 May 1871, on the occasion of the opening of the newly built Royal Albert Hall, the cantata Gallia was presented to the public. Its libretto, based on the prophecies of Jeremiah and biblical lamentations, also referred to the current political situation in France. During this period, Gounod’s private life was closely linked to Georgina Weldon, an amateur singer who was fashionable and admired in high society. This acquaintance became the reason for the temporary breakdown of Gounod’s marriage. The composer moved into Weldon’s house, called Tavistock House, formerly owned by Charles Dickens. Weldon ran a singing school there, whose most talented student was the Polish singer, Jan Reszke. Although Gounod rejected an offer to become director of the Paris Conservatoire at that time, he did not completely sever ties with his homeland. On 29 October 1871, at a concert inaugurating the conservatoire’s activities after a year and a half break, his cantata Gallia was performed, which was also staged at the Opéra Comique later that year.  In the spring of 1872, Gounod gave a series of concerts at the Albert Hall. The programme, which consisted mainly of Gounod’s works or his arrangements of traditional English anthems, provoked fierce protests from defenders of native English music and a dispute between the composer and the Royal Albert Hall Company, which ultimately entrusted the conducting of these concerts to another conductor. At the same time, Gounod fought a battle with publishers for recognition and appropriate copyright protection. It was also a period of intense compositional work – the composer wrote, among other things, the five-act opera Polyeucte (after Corneille), a Requiem and numerous psalms, anthems, choruses and songs. Gounod, however, failed to secure Queen Victoria’s support for his artistic ambitions, namely the performance of La Rédemption at the Albert Hall. This circumstance, which was partly due to G. Weldon’s reputation, seriously undermined the composer’s psychological stability.  The atmosphere at Tavistock House was also a source of numerous misunderstandings. This ultimately led to the breakdown of Gounod’s relationship with Weldon and his return to France.

The composer now turned his attention back to writing operas, albeit without much success (Cinq-Mars in 1877 and Le tribut de Zamora in 1881). The premiere of Polyeucte did not take place until four years after Gounod’s return to France, owing to a protracted legal dispute between the composer and Weldon over the recovery of numerous scores left behind in the home of the possessive Englishwoman. Gounod devoted the last years of his life to sacred music, mainly masses, oratorios (Mors et vita) and songs (e.g. Ave Maria No. 2).  The 1880s and 1890s also saw the publication of several of his most renowned essays and articles, including “Le Don Juan” de Mozart, Mémoires d’un artiste, and De l’artiste dans la société moderne.

It is difficult to clearly define the role that Gounod played in the history of music. In his later years, he enjoyed great popularity and was one of the most respected musical authorities in France. Before attaining such a position, however, his aesthetic views underwent a rather distinctive transformation. Gounod’s artistic personality was shaped by his respect and even reverence for the music of the greatest geniuses of the past: Palestrina, J. S. Bach and Mozart. In Gounod’s youth, such an attitude was not yet popular, especially in France. Hence, his early works, bearing the clear mark of those models, provoked criticism and indifference, even hostility, from listeners, who considered them contrary to the spirit of the times. In the 1850s and 1860s, during the period of Gounod’s greatest creative achievements, he synthesised French traditions with some of the accomplishments of German music (Weber, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Wagner) without losing sight of his former ideals, Nevertheless, regardless of the enthusiasm of the audience, critics often accused him of excessive deference to German music. Finally, from the 1970s onwards, the composer’s creative inventiveness and artistic ambitions began to wane. Nevertheless, Gounod’s extensive output, thanks to its accessibility and sentimental expression, met the expectations of a broad middle-class audience, and its popularity brought him earnings that were remarkable for the time.

From the outset, Gounod’s operatic work followed a path distinct from the grand opera of the Meyerbeer style, which at the time was enjoying its greatest triumphs in France. Already in Sapho, the composer consciously abandoned spectacular elements in favour of a lyrical and natural, unpretentious expression. This process was further developed in the opéra comique Le médecin malgré lui, which, thanks to its libretto, was enriched with elements of musical humour, perfectly suited to the mood of Molière’s comedy. The sextet from Act II is particularly charming and dramatically inventive, during which Sganarelle, disguised as a doctor, delivers a diagnosis at the bedside of the supposedly ill Lucinda (the patient’s pulse is mimicked by the horn part), and then delivers a completely nonsensical tirade in Latin, parodying a scientific lecture. This is one of many scenes that reference the finest achievements of opera buffa, such as those of Mozart and Rossini.

Gounod’s most famous opera, Faust, is less stylistically uniform.  In it, the composer combines elements of numerous traditions in such felicitous proportions that the work is usually considered the beginning of a new type of opera – the lyric opera. Gounod draws on Meyerbeer’s style in the brilliant Ronde du veau d’or, sung by Mephistopheles in Act II, and in the ensemble scene in the church in Act IV, featuring solo voices, two choirs, organ and orchestra. Traces of J. S. Bach’s influence can be seen in the counterpoint of the introduction and in the chorus at the fair. The lyrical element is most fully developed in Act III, notably in Faust’s cavatina Salut! démure, which features a characteristic Gounodian singing melody with short, balanced phrases, perfectly shaped, with gentle and simple cadences, and a subtle, though not overly elaborate, instrumentation (the solo voice is contrapuntally accompanied by a solo violin). It is also evident in Marguerite’s song Chanson du Roi de Thule, in which the individual stanzas of the ballad, with their slightly archaic, modal colouring (onstage music), are interspersed with the heroine’s recitative reflections. More conventional in style and designed to showcase a brilliant vocal display is Air des bijoux, which was partly adapted to suit the demands of the original performer of the role of Marguerite, Carolina Carvalho, the wife of the director of the Théâtre Lyrique. The superficial brilliance of this aria, in waltz rhythm, is nevertheless not inconsistent with the dramatic idea of the libretto; it highlights Marguerite’s fleeting vanity and thus serves as an attempt at musical characterization of the character. This compositional aim is realised even more effectively in the Quatuor du jardin, where the two pairs of characters, Martha and Mephistopheles, and Marguerite and Faust, are given musically contrasting treatments. The love duet O nuit d’amour, which concludes Act III, is distinguished by a naturalness and intimacy of expression previously unseen in French operas. The demonic element, by contrast, is expressed far less convincingly. Musically, it is reduced to conventional devices, such as tremolo or pizzicato in the lower strings, ostinato of simple figures, repetitions or octave leaps in the vocal line, and dotted rhythms (cf. Mephisto’s serenade, the church scene). Faust, like Gounod’s other operas, is a number opera, in which individual numbers take the form of musically and dramatically self-contained units. Gounod achieved musical cohesion between the numbers by recalling the main or most characteristic phrases and motifs from the solo parts in later stages of the work.

In Romeo and Juliet, Gounod once again proved himself a master of crafting lyrical dialogues. The four love duets between the title characters form the core of the work, placing the dramatic action somewhat in the background. In these duets, the composer employed a wide range of vocal techniques, from parlando passages based on a single pitch to cantilenas that unfold across a broad range, often breaking the symmetry of periodic phrasing. The uniqueness and variability of moods are paired with frequent changes in tempo, metre, texture, and orchestration, as well as varied modulatory progressions. In this respect, Gounod moved decisively toward a style anicipating the declamatory idiom of C. Debussy.

Gounod composed sacred music in two periods: 1840–55 and 1870–92. The first masses he composed in Rome, Vienna, and later in Paris, written for orpheonists, were influenced by his fascination with the works of Palestrina and Bach. For Gounod, the ideal of sacred music at that time was music of austere sonority, entirely free of purely decorative elements, performed a cappella or with optional organ accompaniment, and written in the texture of Renaissance polyphony, revealing its nineteenth-century origin only in the cadences. A breakthrough in Gounod’s aesthetic views on this genre of music came with the Messe solennelle de Ste Cécile from 1855, one of Gounod’s most frequently performed works today. Compared with his earlier masses, the performing forces in this work were expanded (full choir, three soloists, orchestra, and organ), as was the range of musical means. The composer became more sensitive to the beauty of the human voice, his melodies became more flexible, and some passages, such as the Credo, are more reminiscent of an ensemble opera scene than the austere simplicity of liturgical prayer.  During his second period, Gounod wrote 14 masses and numerous settings of other liturgical texts. In these works, his musical language undergoes further evolution. The composer moved away from the Palestrinian ideal of sonic austerity and contemplative restraint; instead, his music increasingly incorporatesd banal and formulaic melodic gestures, coloured by chromatic, though not especially sophisticated, harmonic language. The musical continuum is frequently interrupted by cadential breaks. Purely instrumental passages also appear, aimed at more conventional tastes, for example, the fanfare for eight trumpets and three trombones that opens the Messe à la mémoire de Jeanne d’Arc. Commissioned by the organising committee of the Birmingham Festival, Gounod composed two oratorio works: the religious trilogy La rédemption, begun several years earlier, and Mors et vita, both of which were later performed on stages throughout nearly all of Europe. Their popularity, however, was inversely proportional to their artistic value. Even critics contemporary with the composer (including E. Hanslick) accused these works of excessive eclecticism, an irritating ease of reception, and mannerism in melodic style. 

Among the countless smaller vocal works: motets, cantatas, and songs in Latin, French, English, and Italian, Gounod’s Méditation sur le premier prélude de J. S. Bach, better known as the famous Ave Maria, which uses Bach’s Prelude in C major from The Well-Tempered Clavier (Book I) as its accompaniment, has enjoyed lasting popularity. Méditation exemplifies Gounod’s ambiguous attitude toward the work of the Leipzig cantor, an attitude far from historical piety and humility, and rather similar to that of Mendelssohn and Schumann, reflecting their Romantic vision of Bach. With his arrangements, Gounod popularised Bach’s preludes in France and also caused a veritable avalanche of such arrangements in Germany, in various arrangements and of varying artistic quality.

Gounod composed solo songs throughout his life. He wrote both cycles (Biondina, La prière et l’étude) and individual songs, often published in collections entitled Mélodies. They occupy an important place in the development of French Romantic song, or more precisely, the French romance, thanks to their varied, usually lyrical themes, elegant melodies, and subtle, emotional atmosphere, imbued with a characteristically French lightness. However, they fall far short of the depth and artistic perfection of similar works by Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, or Wolf. Gounod’s songs were intended for amateur performers, which explains their straightforward texture, both vocal and instrumental, and simple musical forms, either strophic or arch-shaped, based on periodic phrasing.

Gounod’s work had a significant influence on the next generation of French composers: G. Bizet, J. Massenet, L. Delibes, E. Chausson and G. Fauré. This influence is most evident in the field of melody, which was Gounod’s greatest talent. The creator of Faust was also highly regarded by such luminaries of musical art as C. Debussy, M. Ravel and even I. Stravinsky (cf. Poétique de la musique).

Literature: 

Correspondence — G. Weldon Mon orphelinat et Gounod en Angleterre, vol. 3: Lettres de M. Gounod et autres lettres et documents originaux, London 1875; Lettres de 1870–71, “Revue de Paris” 1 February 1896 (reprint of Mémoires… Gounoda); Lettres à G. Bizet, “Revue de Paris” 15 October 1899; Lettres à Richomme, “Revue Hebdomadaire” 26 October 1908 and 2 January 1909; Lettres de la jeunesse de Charles Gounod. Rome et Vienne 1840–1843, “Revue bleue” 31 December 1910 and 5 January 1911; A. Pougin Gounod écrivain, parts 3 and 4: Gounod épistolaire, “Rivista Musicale Italiana” no. 19, 1912, no. 20, 1913; J. G. Prod’homme Miscellaneous Letters by Charles Gounod, “The Musical Quarterly” April, 1918; J. Tiersot Gounod’s Letters, “The Musical Quarterly” vol. 5, 1919; M. Pincherle Musiciens peints par eux-mêmes. Lettres de compositeurs écrits en français, Paris 1939; Lettres de Charles Gounod à Pauline Viardot, ed. M. von Goldbeck, Arles 2015; D. Vincent «de l’âme à la Plume». Les Lettres de Charles Gounod à la duchesse Colonna, dite Marcello, New York 2017; W. H. Hutchison Charles Gounod: Autobiographical Reminiscences, with Family Letters and Notes on Music, Sacramento (California) 2021.

Memoirs and accounts of contemporaries, reviews — P. Scudo La musique ancienne et moderne. Chroniques et souvenirs, Paris 1854; G. Bizet Lettres. Impressions de Rome. 1857–1860, “La Commune” 1871, reprint Paris 1908; C. Dancla Les compositeurs chefs d’orchestre. Réponse à Charles Gounod, Paris 1873; G. Weldon The Quarrel of the Albert Hall Company with Charles Gounod, London 1873; E. Hanslick Charles Gounod, in: Die moderne Oper, Berlin 1875; G. Weldon Gounod’s Concerts and Other Articles of the Musical Trade, London 1875; G. Weldon La destruction du “Polyeucte” de Charles Gounod. Mémoire justicatif, Paris 1875, English edition London 1875; G. Weldon Mon orphelinat et Gounod en Angleterre, vol. 1: L’amitié, London 1882, vol. 2: Les affaires, London 1875, English language edition, 2 vols., London 1882; A. Mortier Les soirées parisiennes de 1876 par un monsieur de l’orchestre, Paris 1877; L. Ehlert Aus der Tonwelt. Essays – Gounod contra Wagner, Berlin 1877, 2nd edition. 1882; A. Lasalle Mémoires du Théâtre Lyrique, Paris 1877; G. Weldon The History of my Orphanage or the Outpourings of an Alleged Lunatic, London 1878; H. Blaze de Bury Musiciens du passé, du présent et de l’avenir, Paris 1880; A. Jullien A propos de la mort de Charles Gounod, “Rivista Musicale Italiana” vol. 1, 1894, reprint in: A. Jullien Musique. Mélanges d’histoire et de critique musicales et dramatiques, Paris 1896; C. Saint-Saëns Charles Gounod et le “Don Juan” de Mozart, Paris 1894; T. Dubois Notice sur Charles Gounod, Paris 1895; H. Imbert Charles Gounod, les mémoires d’un artiste et l’Autobiographie, Paris 1897; reprint 2010, 2018; C. Saint-Saëns Portraits et souvenirs, Paris 1899, 3rd edition 1909; C. Debussy A propos de Charles Gounod, “Musica” July 1906, reprint in: Monsieur Croche, antidilettante, Paris 1922, reprint 1987, Polish translation A. Porębowiczowa, Kraków 1961; H. Berlioz Les musiciens et la musique, Paris 1908 (contains reviews of Sapho from 22 April 1851 and 7 January 1852 and Faust from 26 March 1859); E. Reyer Quarante ans de musique, Paris 1909 (contains reviews of Faust from 29 March 1859); P. Dukas Gounod, in: Ecrits sur la musique, Paris 1948; H. Busser Mon maître Charles Gounod, “Revue des deux mondes” September 1955; K. Murphy  Charles Gounod, “La nonne sanglanteˮ dossier de presse parisienne (1854), Paris 1999.

Biographies and monographs — M. A. de Bovet Charles Gounod, Paris 1890, English edition London 1897, reprint 2001; L. Pagnerre Charles Gounod. Sa vie et ses oeuvres, Paris 1890; P. Voss Charles Gounod. Ein Lebensbild, Leipzig 1895; H. Tolhurst Gounod, in: «Bell’s Miniature Series of Musicians», London 1904; P. L. Hillemacher Charles Gounod, Paris 1906, 2nd edition 1914; reprint 2010, 2018; C. Bellaigue Gounod, Paris 1910; J. G. Prod’homme and A. Dandelot Gounod (1818–1893). Sa vie et ses oeuvres d’après des documents inédits, 2 vol. Paris 1911, reprint 1973; P. Landormy Gounod, Paris 1942; H. A. Parys Charles Gounod, Brussels 1946; H. Busser Charles Gounod, Lyon 1961; J. Harding Gounod, London 1973; A. Segond Charles Gounod, biographie, Paris 2003; G. Condé Charles Gounod, Paris 2009; Y. Bruley Charles Gounod, Paris 2015.

Studies and articles — H. Delaborde Notice sur la vie et les oeuvres de Charles Gounod, Paris 1895; “MUSICA” special edition dedicated to Gounod, Paris 1906; I. Pizzetti Il Faust della leggenda dell poemo e del dramma musicale, “Rivista Musicale Italiana” v. 13, 1906; J. Simon Faust in der Musik, Leipzig 1906; J. G. Prod’homme Spontini et Charles Gounod, “Zeitschrift der Internationalen Musikgesellschaft” no. 11, 1909/10; C. R. Höchst Faust in Musik, Gettysburg 1910; A. Soubies, H. de Curzon Documents inédits sur le “Faust” de Gounod, Paris 1912; R. Northcott Gounod’s Operas in London, London 1918; J. Tiersot Charles Gounod. A Centennial Tribute, “The Musical Quarterly” IV, 1918; P. Landormy “Faust” de Gounod. Étude et analyse, Paris 1922, 2nd edition 1944; G. Lecomte Une heure de musique avec Gounod, Paris 1930; M. d’Ollone Gounod et l’opéra-comique, “La Revue Musicale” no. 4, 1933; A. Gastoué Un manuscript inconnu. Un cours de composition de Gounod, “Revue de Musicologie” no. 23, 1939; H. Hartleb Einführung zur Oper “Margarete”, Berlin 1939; M. Cooper Charles Gounod and His Influence on French Music, “Music and Letters” no. 21, 1940; G. Ferrant La vraie Mireille de Gounod, Avignon 1942; F. Lawrence Gounod’s Faust, New York 1943; T. Marix-Spire Gounod and His First Interpreter P. Viardot, “The Musical Quarterly” XXXI, 1945; R. Brancour Gounod, “Rivista Musicale Italiana” no. 43, 1946; Ch. Lalo Bach et Gounod, “La Revue Musicale” 1946 no. 201; G. Samazeuilh Charles Gounod. A propos du cinquantenaire de sa mort, w: Musiciens de mon temps. Chroniques et souvenirs, Paris 1947; N. Demuth Introduction to the Music of Gounod, London 1950; E. M. Butler The Fortunes of “Faust”, Cambridge 1952; M. Curtiss Gounod before “Faust”, “The Musical Quarterly” XXXVIII, 1952; F. Zagiba Chopin und T. Haslinger. Ein unbekanntes Empfehlungsschreiben Chopins für Gounod an seinen Wiener Verleger, “Chopin-Jahrbuch” 1956; D. Milhaud L’éternelle jeunesse de “Faust”, in: “L’Opéra de Paris” no. 13, 1956; R. de Pitrou De Gounod a Debussy Paris 1957; E. Grierson Storm Bird. The Strange Life of G. Weldon, London 1959; R. Hannas Gounod and A. W. Phillips, “The Musical Quarterly” XLV, 1959; G. Sobe Liszt et Gounod, in: Franz Liszt, “Sonderheft des Weimarer Kulturspiegels im Lisztjahr” 1961; C. Hopkinson Notes on the Earliest Edition of Gounod’s “Faust”, in: commemorative book for O. E. Deutsch, Kassel 1963; F. Kaufmann Gedanken zu Gounod Cäcilienmesse, “Musica Sacra” no. 83, 1963; P. Fortassier Musique et livret dans les opéras de Berlioz, Gounod et Bizet, in: Opéra et littérature française, «Cahiers de l’Association internationale des études françaises» no. 17, 1965; F. Noske French Song from Berlioz to Duparc, New York 1970, 2nd edition 2012; K.W. Langevin Au silence des belles nuits: The earlier songs of Charles Gounod, doctoral dissertation, microfilm in the collections of the University of Michigan 1978; S. Hübner The operas of Charles Gounod, Oxford, New York 1990; French translation by A. and M.-S. Paris titled Les Grands Opéras de Charles Gounod, Arles 1993; 2016 ; A. Margoni En entendant Gounod, Paris 1995; H. Lacombe The Keys to French Opera in the Nineteenth Century, Paris 2001; H. Baeck-Schilders Charles Gounod in Antwerpen, “Revue belge de Musicologieˮ no. 61 (2007), pp. 89-126; T. S. Flynn Charles François Gounod, a Guide to Research, Oxford, New York 2009, reprint 2016.