Louis Auguin

Louis Edgard Alfred Jules Auguin was born on 17 September 1872 in Vittel (France), the son of the mining engineer Alexandre Edgard Ernest Auguin and his wife Marie Claire, née Klein. His parents lived in Nancy at the time of his birth. Louis Auguin initially studied philosophy but abandoned his studies to devote himself to music. He became a singer and composer and was particularly active in the Parisian cabaret scene. In September 1899 he organized a singing competition at the reopening of the Cabaret des Arts in Paris. He also performed at various concerts, among them an appearance at the Casino in Contrexéville in July 1901, together with Xavier Privas, Dominique Bonnaud and other chansonniers.

As a composer, Louis Auguin concentrated mainly on songs, setting poems by Gabriel Montoya, Gaston Couté, Théophile Gautier and others. In his final years he lived at 71 Rue Caulaincourt in Paris. Following personal difficulties and problems with alcohol, he was admitted to the Sainte-Anne psychiatric hospital in Paris, where he died by suicide on 16 July 1902, aged only 29.

In my possession are two autograph manuscripts by Louis Auguin. Both works are songs for voice and piano and both set poems by Gabriel Montoya to music. The first work is titled "Pastourelle poitevine" and the second "Ce que dit le passant". The second work was published in the issue 214 of the magazine "Paris qui chante" in 1907, a special issue completely dedicated to Gabriel Montoya as a songwriter. The song "Pastourelle poitevine" was published in 1896 by Costallat.