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- François Lay, better known under the stage name Lays (14 February 1758 – 30 March 1831), was a French baritone and tenor opera singer. Originally destined for a career in the church, Lays was recruited by the Paris Opéra in 1779. He soon became a leading member of the company, in spite of quarrels with the management. Lays enthusiastically welcomed the French Revolution and became involved in politics with the encouragement of his friend Bertrand Barère. Barère's downfall led to Lays being imprisoned briefly, but he soon won back the public and secured the patronage of Napoleon, at whose coronation and second wedding he sang. This association with the Emperor caused him trouble when the Bourbon monarchy was restored and Lays's final years were darkened by disputes over his pension, mounting debts, the death of his only son and his wife's illness. After a career spanning more than four decades, he died in poverty. Lays was famous for the beauty of his voice. One of the Opéra's most popular artistes, he enjoyed his greatest success singing comic roles, such as Anacreon in Grétry's Anacréon chez Polycrate (1797) and the bailiff in Lebrun's Le rossignol (1816). (en)
- François Lay, dit Laÿs (ou Laïs ou, plus communément, Lays) est un chanteur classique né le 14 (ou 6) février 1758 à La Barthe-de-Neste (Hautes-Pyrénées) et mort à Ingrandes (Maine-et-Loire) le 27 mars 1831. (fr)
- François Lay, più noto con il nome d'arte di Lays (La Barthe-de-Neste, 14 febbraio 1758 – Ingrandes, 27 marzo 1831), è stato un baritono e tenore francese. (it)
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- 72183 (xsd:nonNegativeInteger)
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- The Paris Opéra. An Encyclopedia of Operas, Ballets, Composers, and Performers – Rococo and Romantic, 1715–1815, Westport/London, Greenwood Press, 1985, p. 329 (en)
- Biographie universelle des musiciens et Bibliographie générale de la musique , Paris, Didot, 1867, V, p. 236 (en)
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- In spite of the long-lasting enthusiasm he aroused among the habitués of the Opéra, Lays was not a great singer: one might even say he knew nothing about the fundamentals of the art of singing. His vocalisation was clumsy; he had not learned how to equalise the registers of his voice, and when he changed from chest voice to mixed voice it was by a sudden leap from a mighty organ tone to a sort of flute-like voice, which had a ridiculous rather than pleasant effect. Nonetheless, he used to show off this effect, which would make the aficionados of the time swoon with pleasure. Most of his ornamentation was old-fashioned and tasteless; in spite of these faults, the beauty of his voice made almost everyone who heard him into an admirer, and it was scarcely possible for an opera to succeed unless Lays had a role in it. (en)
- The most impressive aspect of Lays's professional life was not in the quality of his voice, but in the number of times that he used it. He created 68 new characters at the Opéra between 1780 and 1818. It would be interesting to determine how many records he broke in the course of performing this single feat alone. How many singers have had a longer tenure at the Opéra? Has any artist created more roles at the Opéra? What singers besides Lays have learned five new parts in a year? He performed before the days of planes and fast trains, of course, but even making allowances for this lack of temptation to interrupt his activities in Paris to visit foreign opera houses for large fees, modern critics must credit Lays with a singleness of purpose that merits recognition. (en)
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- François Lay, dit Laÿs (ou Laïs ou, plus communément, Lays) est un chanteur classique né le 14 (ou 6) février 1758 à La Barthe-de-Neste (Hautes-Pyrénées) et mort à Ingrandes (Maine-et-Loire) le 27 mars 1831. (fr)
- François Lay, più noto con il nome d'arte di Lays (La Barthe-de-Neste, 14 febbraio 1758 – Ingrandes, 27 marzo 1831), è stato un baritono e tenore francese. (it)
- François Lay, better known under the stage name Lays (14 February 1758 – 30 March 1831), was a French baritone and tenor opera singer. Originally destined for a career in the church, Lays was recruited by the Paris Opéra in 1779. He soon became a leading member of the company, in spite of quarrels with the management. Lays enthusiastically welcomed the French Revolution and became involved in politics with the encouragement of his friend Bertrand Barère. Barère's downfall led to Lays being imprisoned briefly, but he soon won back the public and secured the patronage of Napoleon, at whose coronation and second wedding he sang. This association with the Emperor caused him trouble when the Bourbon monarchy was restored and Lays's final years were darkened by disputes over his pension, mounti (en)
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- François Lays (en)
- François Lays (it)
- François Lay (fr)
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