thumb|Paul Paray
Paul Marie-Adolphe Charles Paray (French: [pɔl paʁɛ]; 24 May 1886 – 10 October 1979) was a French conductor, organist and composer. After winning France's top musical award, the Prix de Rome, he fought in the First World War and was a prisoner of war for nearly four years. He held a succession of chief conductorships, including those of the Lamoureux and Colonne Orchestras in Paris and the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra in Monaco. For ten years from 1952 he was chief conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, with which he made a celebrated series of recordings for Mercury Records' "Living Presence" series, many of which have been digitally released in the 21st century.
Life and career
Early years
Paul Paray was born in Le Tréport, Normandy, on 10 October 1886, the second son and youngest of three children of Auguste Paray and his wife Hortense Picard. Auguste's principal occupation was as an ivory sculptor, but he was also a working musician – organist of the church of Saint-Jacques au Tréport and musical director of the town’s municipal band and theatre. He gave his three children their first music lessons. Both sons sang in the choir of Rouen Cathedral, for which, aged fourteen, Paray composed his first Magnificat, which his biographer David Patmore writes has remained in the choir's repertoire ever since. He played the piano, cello and timpani, After compulsory military service, not far from his home, in an infantry regiment in Dieppe, he accepted in 1909 the position of piano accompanist in the Parisian Cabaret des Quat'z'Arts an establishment directed by Gabriel Montoya. There he met Maurice Yvain, and became friends with several famous chansonniers of the time.
Prix de Rome and First World War
In 1911 Paray competed for France's most prestigious musical prize, the Prix de Rome and was awarded first prize for his cantata Yanitza by a jury that included Gabriel Fauré – director of the Conservatoire – and other composers including Camille Saint-Saëns, Charles-Marie Widor and Gabriel Pierné.
The Prix de Rome brought with it two years' residence and study at the Villa Medici, the French Academy in Rome. Shortly after his return to Paris the First World War broke out and Paray was conscripted into the French army.
Conductor
After his release, Paray conducted professionally for the first time at the Casino in Cauterets, and shortly afterwards, on Pierné's recommendation, he made his début with the Lamoureux Orchestra in Paris Paray was elected to succeed him. They also performed with several well-known solo players who were making their Paris débuts, including Jascha Heifetz, Nathan Milstein and Yehudi Menuhin. While with the Colonne Orchestra, Paray engaged in a celebrated dispute with the music critic Émile Vuillermoz, who complained in print in 1935 about what he saw as the frequent inadequacy of the performances of new works at symphony concerts. From the Colonne platform Paray denounced Vuillermoz as hypocritical and venal.
1939–1952
The French government sent Paray to America to represent France at the 1939 World’s Fair, conducting the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. He made a sufficiently strong impression to be offered the post of co-conductor of the NBC Symphony Orchestra with Toscanini, but chose to return to France, just as the Second World War was about to start.
Paray married his long-term partner, Yolande Falck in 1942. Returning to Paris after the Liberation he once again directed the Colonne Orchestra between 1945 and 1952. He toured Europe with the Vienna Philharmonic. He conducted the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra in 1949 and was invited back every year, continuing to appear with the orchestra until shortly before his death. Following a successful appearance in America in 1951 with the recently reconstituted Detroit Symphony Orchestra, he was appointed as the orchestra’s chief conductor with effect from 1952. He retired from the chief conductorship at Detroit in 1962 and was given the title of Emeritus Conductor. He returned to the orchestra for four weeks each year, from his home in Monte Carlo. The New York Times said of him, "He was credited with establishing the Detroit Symphony as a thoroughly professional ensemble of national stature, and within two years after taking it over, he brought it to New York for its first concert here". The same paper remarked "Mr Paray limited his conducting of 20th‐century works to those of a conservative stamp".