François Lays
François Lay, better known under the stage name Lays (14 February 1758 – 30 March 1831), was a French baritone and tenor opera singer. Originally destined for a career in the church, Lays was recruited by the Paris Opéra in 1779. He soon became a leading member of the company, in spite of quarrels with the management. Lays enthusiastically welcomed the French Revolution and became involved in politics with the encouragement of his friend Bertrand Barère. Barère's downfall led to Lays being imprisoned briefly, but he soon won back the public and secured the patronage of Napoleon, at whose coronation and second wedding he sang. This association with the Emperor caused him trouble when the Bourbon monarchy was restored and Lays's final years were darkened by disputes over his pension, mounting debts, the death of his only son and his wife's illness. After a career spanning more than four decades, he died in poverty.
François Lays
The number of 68 characters listed by Pitou is incomplete. In fact, the roles Lays created amount to at least 73 (cf next section). Moreover, this obviously does not include the roles Lays did not create directly (including those already mentioned, such as Thésée in Sacchini's "Œdipe à Colone", Oreste in "Iphigénie en Tauride" and Cynire in "Echo et Narcisse", both by Gluck, as well as Patrocle in the same composer's "Iphigénie en Aulide" and Figaro in "Le Mariage de Figaro" by Mozart). Lays's contribution to the Opéra repertoire, which lasted over forty years, was astonishing, and the long duration of the singer's career and the good vocal form he maintained to the last suggest that Fétis's adverse judgement on his technical skills should be accepted only with caution.