Grove's dictionary of music and musicians

122 ROI DES VIOLONS KOKITANSKY
pupil. The masters alone were privileged to
play in taverns and other public places, and in
case this rule were infringed, the 'roi' could
send the offender to prison and destroy his
instruments. This formidable monopoly extended
even to the King's band, the famous
'twenty -four violons,' who were admitted to
office by the ' roi ' alone on payment of his fee.
[See ViNGT-QUATKE ViOLONS.]
So jealously did Guillaume Dumanoir I.
guard his rights, that in 1662 he commenced an
action against thirteen dancing-masters, who,
with the view of throwing off the yoke of the
corporation, had obtained from Louis XIV.
permission to found an Academic ' de danse.'
The struggle gave rise to various pamphlets,'
and Dumanoir was beaten at all points. He
bequeathed a difficult task to his son Michel
Guillaume Dumanoir II., who succeeded him as
'roi' in 1668, and endeavoured to enforce his
supremacy on the instrumentalists of the
Academic de Musique, but, as might have been
expected, was overmatched by LuUy. After
his difficulties with the director of the Op^ra,
Dumanoir II., like his father, came into collision
with the dancing- masters. In 1691 a royal
proclamation was issued by which the elective
committee was abolished, and its place filled by
hereditary officials, aided by four others appointed
by purchase. Against this decree the
corporation and the thirteen membera of the
Academic de danse protested, but the Treasury
was in want of funds, and declined to refund
the purchase money. Finding himself unequal
to such assaults Dumanoir resigned in 1693, and
died in Paris in 1697. He delegated his powers
to the privileged committee of 1691, and thus
threw on them the onus of supporting the claims
of the Gonfrerie over the clavecinists and organists
of the kingdom ; a parliamentary decree
of 1695, however, set free the composers and
professors of music from all dependence on the
corporation of the nUw&riers. This struggle
was several times renewed. When Pierre
Guignon (bom 1702, died 1775), a good
violinist, and a member of the King's chambermusic,
and of the Chapel Royal, attempted to
reconstitute the Gonfrerie on a better footing,
it became evident that the musicians as a body
were determined to throw off the yoke of the
association. Guignon was appointed 'Roi des
violons ' by letters patent, June 15, 1741, was
installed in 1742, and in 1747 endeavoured to
enforce certain new enactments, but a parliamentary
decree of May 30, 1750, put an end
to his pretended authority over clavecinists,
organists, and other serious musicians. The
corporation was maintained, but its head was
1 of these the principal are EtatMaiemevt de PAcad&mte roytde
de dance [sic] en la vUle de Parii, avec u» ditcourt Acadimlgue
pour prouver que la dance, done ta plus Twbte partie, n'apas beioin
dee inetrumentt de mutique, et gu'elte eat en tout abatOument ind6-
pendamie duviolon (Parla, 1663, 4to}, and Le marioffe de tamurique
etdela dance, contenant la rSp/mce [ale] au livre det treite prSCetidue
acadimiciene touchante cea deux arte (ParlB, 1664, 12nio),
obliged to be content with the title of ' Roi et
maltre des menetriers, joueurs d'instruments
tant haut que bas, et hautbois, et communaute
des mattres ii danser.' Roi Guignon still preserved
the right of conferring on provincial
'
musicians the title of lieutenants gtodraux et
particuliers ' to the 'roi des violons," but even
this was abrogated by a decree of the Conseil
d'fitat, Feb. 13, 1773. The last 'roi dea
violons ' at once resigned, and in the following
month his office was abolished by an edict of
the King dated from Versailles.
This hasty sketch of a difficult subject may
be supplemented by consulting the following
works : Abrigi historiqiie de la Meneslramdie
(Versailles, 1774, 12mo) ; Statvis et riglements
des maitres de danse et jcmeurs d'instrumenis
. . . registry au Parlement le 2Z AoUt 1659
(Paris, 1753) ; Becueil d'idils, arrSts du Conseil
and ii.
du roi, lettres patevtes, . . . en faveur des
musiciens du Boyawme (Ballard, 1774, 8vo) ;
and Les InstruTmnts d, archet, by A. Vidal (i.
Paris, 1876, 1877, 4to), which last contains
nearly all the necessary information. G. c.
ROI D'YS, LE. Opera in three acts, text
by fidouard Blau, miisic by Edouard Lalo, produced
at the Opera -Comique, Paris, May 7,
1888, and at Covent Garden, July 17, 1901.
ROI L'A DIT, LE. Opera-comique in three
acts, text by Edm. Gondinet, music by L6o
Delibes ;
produced at the Opera-Comique, Paris,
May 24, 1873, in English at Prince of Wales's
Theatre, by the Royal College of Miisic, Dec.
13, 1894.
ROI MALGRE LUI, LE. Opera-comique in
three acts, text by Emile de Najac and Paul
Burani, music by Emmanuel Chabrier produced
at the Opera-Comique, Paris,
;
May 18,
1887.
ROITZSCH, F. August, bom Dec. 10, 1805,
at Gruna, near Gorlitz, won a high reputation
as a careful editor of old music, and more especially
of Bach's instrumental compositions,
in the valuable cheap editions of the firm of
Peters. He died at Leipzig, Feb. 4, 1889. M.
ROKITANSKY, Hans, Frbiherk von, born
March 8, 1835, at Vienna, eldest son of Carl
Freiherr von Rokitansky (1804-78), an eminent
medical professor. He studied singing chiefly
at Bologna and Milan, and first appeared in
England at concerts in 1856. In 1862 he
made his d^but at Prague in La ' Juive,' and
fulfilled a very successful engagement there of
two years. In 1863 he sang the same part
at Vienna, in 1864 obtained an engagement
there, and was a member of the opera company
for many years, retiring in 1892. His voice
was a basso -profondo of great compass and
volume, very equal in all its range ; he had a
commanding presence, and was an excellent
actor. His operas include ' La Juive," ' Robert
le Diable," '
Les Huguenots," ' Don Juan,' ' Zauberflbte,'
'Guillaume Tell,' 'Le Prophfete,'