Jeanne Dusseau

Dusseau, Jeanne

Jeanne (b Ruth Cleveland) Dusseau (b Thom). Soprano, b Glasgow 2 Feb 1893, d ?. Taken to Toronto as a child she began voice study with M.M. Stevenson and at 16 was contralto soloist at Bloor St Baptist Church. After study with Atherton Furlong, she made a formal debut 12 Nov 1912 as a soprano in a recital at Foresters' Hall. She continued her studies with Giuseppe Carboni, then sang 1921-2 with the Chicago Opera, her roles including the Shepherd in Tannhäuser and Ninette in the world premiere in 1921 of The Love of Three Oranges. For several years thereafter the soprano (who had married the French-Canadian baritone Lambert Victor Dusseau in 1919) confined her activities to recitals and concerts with symphony orchestras in Toronto, New York, Boston, Cincinnati, and abroad. Her contributions to the Canadian music scene were considerable at this time. During a coast-to-coast tour in 1928, presented by the Association of Canadian Clubs in co-operation with the National Museum of Canada (Canadian Museum of Civilization) and the TCM, she introduced a large number of Canadian folksongs in new arrangements by Alfred La Liberté, Ernest MacMillan, and Healey Willan. In the late 1920s and early 1930s she was a participant in the CPR Festivals. Mme Dusseau made a highly successful London debut 15 Oct 1929 at Wigmore Hall and sang 1936-40 at the Sadler's Wells Opera, her roles including Tosca, Aida, Cio-Cio San in Madama Butterfly, Leonore in Fidelio, and Rosalinda in Die Fledermaus. After her retirement from performance in 1942 she taught for many years in New York, then moved to Washington, DC. Her only commercial recording, for HMV in 1939, couples the Easter Hymn from Cavalleria Rusticana and the Barcarolle from The Tales of Hoffmann (with Nancy Evans and the Sadler's Wells Chorus).