Gustave-Hippolyte Roger

He is best known for creating the leading tenor roles in La damnation de Faust by Berlioz in 1846 and Meyerbeer's Le prophète in 1849.

He went on to create numerous leading roles in new operas with that company, including works by Daniel Auber (Raphaël in La Part du Diable, 1843 and Lorédan in Haydée, 1847, and others), Halévy (Edgard in Le shérif, 1839, Olivier in Les Mousquetaires de la Reine, 1846, and others).

In 1848, after a tour of England with soprano Jenny Lind he moved from the Opéra-Comique to the Opéra where he created the title role in Meyerbeer's extremely successful opera Le prophète in 1849.

He also created roles there in L’Enfant prodigue by Auber, 1850, in Le Juif errant of Halévy, 1852, and in Herculanum by Félicien David, 1859, as well as singing in revivals of popular works such as La favorite and Lucia di Lammermoor of Donizetti and Les Huguenots of Meyerbeer.

[2] In the opinion of some contemporary critics, Gustave-Hippolyte Roger was perfectly suited, both as singer and actor, for the kind of roles with which he began his career at the Opéra-Comique, but some of the music he had to sing in roles at the larger Paris Opera,such as his most famous part, Jean in Le prophète, was too heavy for his voice and caused vocal decline.