Solresol: The Universal Musical Language (Part 2)

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

Sudre Plummets at His Highest  

Scattered papers decorate the floor like crumpled confetti after the after-party. Arabic’s spilled over Dutch, and Turkish is snuggled into French. German leans on Persian while Mandarin is interlocked with Italian. A woman stands in the dark hall, holding a flame that reveals her melancholy look. She watches her husband, who writes tirelessly into the twilight under the candlelight of buoyed wicks. His calloused fingertips flip listlessly through foreign dictionaries. 

It’s been two years since M. Sudre first locked himself in his study, and he’s now well surpassed his limits. His feverish ambition has rendered his health and all his wealth, including his estate, to be squandered. 

M. Sudre had announced to the Institute of France that he would compile 12 translations of his universal musical language, Solresol. The 12 translations included Dutch, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Persian, Arabic, Mandarin, etc. This overwhelming promise is now dragging him headlong into the void. 

So far, he’s accomplished 8 of the 12 translated copies promised to his sponsors. But he fears that his threshold is decimated. He no longer has the capital to his name, and his efforts have still left him severely short of achieving his dream. 

Pinned under financial obligations and impaired by health complications, he surrenders his ambitions for fodder. He tosses the dictionaries against the walls of his study and laments, “I’ve dwindled my existence to a thread. It’s hopeless. I must quit now or endure the relentless limits of mortality.” 

An Unexpected Interest

Regardless of this setback, his dream still lives—and so does the curiosities of foreign aristocracies. The high courts of Europe continue to summon his presence. The show must go on. 

While in London, he performed his musical language on violin for Queen Victoria and other nobility. As he would read in the La Presse the following morning, they all “were in awe.” The Times, and other publishers, unanimously echoed each other’s eulogies. 

With all the shock and awe, the powers that could lift his invention applauded him. But they failed to see the direct application of Solresol. Although M. Sudre consistently improved his musical language, modifying it wherever best fit, the vision for its application was missing. 

5 years later, in 1843, a new term was coined for his musical communication system: La Téléphonie (The Telephony). This was concerning his ability to communicate with his violin from far distances. Again, the world’s first “telephone” was 6 years from being invented. His invention, however, was the first-ever example of long-distance (and coded) conversations. 

The man who first nationally published the term Telephony came from an unlikely party. Maréchal Soult, President Secretary of State of War, declares that M. Sudre’s Telephony “should be examined by his ministry.” He sees the future of military intelligence, and Telephony is the seed. 

A Language of Peace Made Military Aid 

As anyone would expect, this comes as a surprise to M. Sudre. The vision for his language was about unity and diplomacy. But he is also in major debt, due to his tyrannical ambition to complete his 12 translations of the universal musical language. 

M. Sudre agrees to attend a secret meeting held by the French government. During their proceedings, the government expressed that they would offer him 50,000 francs as a national reward for his invention and an allowance of 3,000 francs annually. In return, M. Sudre would be given his school under the title of Director of the School of Téléphonie. 

He would allow the French military intelligence to study, generalize, and edit his communication system for swifter and more strictly regulated messages. Then he would create a curriculum for French soldiers to study the government’s edited version of the universal musical language. 

Napoléon Invites The Sudre’s For Tea

After a decade of instructing at the School of Telephony, M. Sudre received one of the highest honors in French society at that period: Napoléon III (not the short one) invited Monsieur and Madame Sudre for tea. 

The Sudre’s arrive at Napoléon III’s court in Plombières-les-Bains, a heavily forested town in Eastern France. Shortly after their arrival, Napoléon inquires about M. Sudre’s progress in training his military in the studies of Telephony. 

He assures the Emperor that all is well on track, then proceeds to educate him about all the mediums of his universal musical language: The spoken word, the instrumentation, the hand signing, and the touch system. 

Immediately after his explanation, he requests any sentence Napoléon could think of. So, he writes something on paper and hands it to M. Sudre.

 “Le premier qui fut roi fut un soldat heureux.” 

M. Sudre lay his bow on his violin strings. The air is static. Napoléon leans over his toes, staring at the man before him. He strikes his bow. Words of notation pour from his instrument. He plays Napoléon’s verse again, but slowly this time. 

“The first king was a happy soldier.” 

Excitedly, and very pleased, Napoléon raises to his feet and claps, “That’s inconceivable. Incredible!” 

Without skipping a beat, M. Sudre sustains his audience’s amazement. For his next demonstration, M. Sudre asked for another written message. This time he would speak it aloud. Napoléon hands him the note. 

“Plombières est une ville charmante ce soir.” 

M. Sudre pronounces a string of his solfège sounds. Without hesitation, his wife swiftly joins him in harmony. 

“Plombières is a charming city this evening.”

Napoléon exclaims his shock and his praise for what he just witnessed. He was convinced of M. Sudre’s success. The following day, he would receive several letters of flattery, approval, and high satisfaction for his progress. 

The Flame of François Sudre Is Passed On

Despite the height of his triumphs in his final years, François Sudre passed away in 1862. But this was never a mission that he journeyed alone. Madame Joséphine Sudre always stood by his side and attended every conference, public or private. She was more than his supporter; she was his partner. And when one partner falls, the other carries the torch in their memory. 

In the next few years, Joséphine Sudre would carry her husband’s torch and shine its light on the world in his honor. 

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Words of Sympathy From One Legend to Another 

I’ll leave the final words for François Sudre to Victor Hugo. 

“…Monsieur Sudre, the celebrated inventor of the Musical Language…, little rewarded for his work to date, [has] the sympathy of men in all countries who are interested in the progress of human intelligence and the peaceful conquests of civilization.”

Reference

Sudre, Joséphine. Flaxand, G.(1866). Langue Musicale Universelle. l’Institut de France, X — XVI.

French translations were edited thanks to DeepL Translator.