Léontine de Maësen
(1835-1906)

A portrait of the French lyric soprano coloratura Léontine de Maësen.  

In 1863 she created the role of Leïla in Bizet’s Les pêcheurs de perles (The Pearl Fishers).

She is possibly seen here as Saïda, the daughter of the emir, in Auguste Mermet's four-act opera Roland à Roncevaux, first performed at the Académie impériale de la musique on 3 October 1864 with Louis Guéymard as Roland, Charles Bonnesseur as l'émir de Saragosse and Mlle de Maësen as his daughter, Saïda.