14 – French tenor Edmond Clément (1867-1928) as a menacing Don José (“Carmen”), Monnaie, Brussels, 1907, a role he sang successfully 180+ times, thanks to his dramatic instinct and handsome look…

Clément exemplified tonal beauty and phrasing, with a voice ideally tailored to opéra-comique, but in New York, his appearances were challenged by those of Enrico Caruso. Wounded during WW1, he reduced his operatic appearances and taught at Nice. He left a recording legacy.