Songs for the Ladies in 1830: Chansonnier des dames [Ladies' Songbook]

Chansonnier des dames [Ladies' Songbook]. Undated [1830]. Louis Janet: Paris. Softcover 32-mo with hand-written spine text. Inner back page inscribed by early owner in inscrutable pencil. 

   

This anthology of song-lyrics aimed at female readers was published by Janet, who also issued the yearly Annales Romantiques anthologies. With its small size, elegant design, and engravings it doubled as a "keepsake anthology", the forerunner of the modern anthology-format, which Janet pioneered. As was standard at the time, the lyrics were written for popular, public domain tunes, usually indicated at the head of the poem. Several well-known poets and songwriters are represented, including The Princess de Salm, Madame Tastu, Jean-Pierre Béranger (as well as his wife), Castil-Blaze, Madame de Genlis, and de Jouy, as well as some lesser-known writers associated with Romanticism, but the greater number were rarely published, nor is there any trace of romanticist partisanship. The proportion of female writers is quite high for the period – at least 14 female writers are represented, compared to 29 male, and the remarkable fact that over half of the contributors use gender-neutral credits (pseudonyms, last names only, and anonymous texts) probably indicates even more.* 

The preface laments the number of strong submissions received after the deadline, lists the deadline for next year's anthology, and goes on to lay out one of the earliest comprehensive open-submission guidelines I have seen printed in a periodical.

Janet was arguably the most typographically experimental publisher of the period, and this volume is yet another lovely example of romanticist typography and book design, printed by Firmin-Didot. The obligatory  engravings fill out the keepsake-anthology form, with closer relation to the texts than is sometimes the case in Janet's collections. The fact that it is a paperback – technically an unbound copy with hand-written title on the spine – suggests that its original owner was not swimming in cash.

*I have included poets not gendered in the credits but whose gender in the applicable counts, not as neutral.

Contents:

 Can anybody read any of that hand-written note?!

 

Interior:

Check out the floating ghost lady!