Offenbach was born in Cologne, Germany and was the son of Isaac Juda Eberst, a cantor, bookbinder, music teacher and composer. His father was living at a time when the Napoleonic edict required that Jews had to take inheritable family names. An itinerant violinist, he adopted the name Offenbach since he was already known to his audiences as a native of Offenbach am Main called "der Offenbacher". His son received the name "Jakob Offenbach" at birth, though he changed it to Jacques when he settled in France.
Offenbach moved to Paris in 1833 to study the cello. He found employment playing cello in the orchestra of the Opéra Comique, and wrote many pieces for the instrument. In 1844, he converted to Catholicism and married Herminie de Alcain. He returned to Germany with his wife and daughter in 1848 to avoid revolutionary violence in France, but returned a year later to become the musician most closely associated with the reign of Louis Napoleon (III). In 1850 he became conductor of the Theatre Français, but in 1855 rented his own theatre, the Bouffes Parisiens on the Rue de Monsigny, and began a successful career devoted largely to operetta and opéras comiques until his death.
His most popular works are still performed regularly today. His best-known operettas in the English-speaking world are Orpheus in the Underworld, La vie parisienne, La belle Hélène, La Périchole, The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein. Gaîté Parisienne is an often heard ballet score which is a pastiche of Offenbach melodies arranged and garishly orchestrated by Manuel Rosenthal in 1938.
Offenbach's final opera, The Tales of Hoffmann, was more serious than his other works, perhaps reflecting the eternal wish of the clown to be taken seriously. It was still unfinished at his death in 1880, but was completed by his friend Ernest Guiraud and premiered in 1881.
Offenbach is buried in the Cimetière de Montmartre, Paris, France.
Barcarolle
Jacques Offenbach Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Souris nos ivresses,
Nuit plus douce que le jour,
belle nuit d'amour!
Le temps fuit et sans retour
Emporte nos tendresses,
Loin de cet heureux sjour
Le temps fuit sans retour.
Zphyrs embrass,
Versez-nous vos caresses,
Zphyrs embrass,
Donnez-nous vos baisers!
vos baisers! vos baisers! Ah!
Belle nuit, nuit d'amour,
Souris nos ivresses,
Nuit plus douce que le jour,
belle nuit d'amour!
The above lyrics are from Jacques Offenbach’s iconic song Barcarolle, which is sung in Act Three of his most famous opera, Les contes d'Hoffmann. This duet between two female characters, Giulietta and Nicklausse, expresses the beauty and magic of the night, as well as the fleeting nature of time and love. The lyrics begin by praising the night as a time of love and indulgence, sweeter than any day. The second stanza brings a sense of melancholy, as the characters lament the transience of their happiness and how time will take it away.
The final part of the song is a call for the zephyrs or gentle breezes to embrace them and to give them kisses. It highlights the sensuality and romanticism of the opera, while also conveying a sense of yearning and longing. Overall, the lyrics of Barcarolle emphasize the dichotomy of life and love, between the ephemeral and the eternal.
Line by Line Meaning
Belle nuit, nuit d'amour,
Beautiful night, night of love,
Souris nos ivresses,
Smile upon our drunkenness,
Nuit plus douce que le jour,
Night sweeter than the day,
belle nuit d'amour!
Beautiful night of love!
Le temps fuit et sans retour
Time flees and never returns,
Emporte nos tendresses,
Carrying away our tenderness,
Loin de cet heureux sjour
Far from this happy refuge,
Le temps fuit sans retour.
Time flees and never returns.
Zphyrs embrass,
Zephyrs embrace us,
Versez-nous vos caresses,
Shower us with your caresses,
Zphyrs embrass,
Zephyrs embrace us,
Donnez-nous vos baisers!
Give us your kisses!
vos baisers! vos baisers! Ah!
Your kisses! Your kisses! Ah!
Belle nuit, nuit d'amour,
Beautiful night, night of love,
Souris nos ivresses,
Smile upon our drunkenness,
Nuit plus douce que le jour,
Night sweeter than the day,
belle nuit d'amour!
Beautiful night of love!
Contributed by Caleb I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.