[Opera] Giraud, Sébastien-Charles. (1819 - 1892) [Verdi, Giuseppe. (1813–1901)]. Charges De L’Opéra - ALBUM OF HANDCOLORED ORIGINAL OPERA PORTRAITS & A PENCIL DRAWING OF VERDI. [Paris]: [Ca. 1890]. Bound 8vo album (18 x 25 cm), consisting of 48 mounted plates, all but one (Gailhard) handcolored, and including a loosely inserted sensitive unsigned original portrait in pencil of Verdi conducting the premiere of Aida. The portraits are of figures of note in the world of the Opéra de Paris at the end of the 19th century, including the architect Garnier, conductors (Lamoureux, Taffanel, Vidal, Colonne), costumers, dance masters etc. and of course, composers (Massenet, Reyer, Wagner, Saint-Saens etc.) and singers (Delmas, Tamagno, Lasalle, Vignot etc.). Half blue leather over marbled boards with five raised bands and gilt title 'Charges De L’Opéra' to spine. Binding rubbed, internally generally fine with a few minor stains, browning to the mount edges and inside gutters, apparently lacking two of the works originally bound in (numbered 1-50, those 22 and 24 missing).



The present collection of musical portraits was likely printed and handcolored in a very small edition for the subjects themselves and others closely associated with the Opéra de Paris. No copies are recorded in OCLC and we have been unable to trace any other copies of this work which lacks any printed title or publication pages. The BnF holds a similar collection of caricatures by Giraud depicting figures of the Louvre ("Les Soirées du Louvre").