The Concert Tunisien, also known as Concert tunisiens and Concerts tunisiens was a form of popular entertainment in France in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It typically presented as a travelling fairground attraction or entertainment establishment featuring music, dance and other performances associated with exoticised representations of North African and Middle Eastern entertainment, popularized in France by the Paris Exposition Universelle. The term Concert Tunisien refers both to the type of attraction and to individual establishments or troupes operating under the name.
History The term concerts tunisiens was already in use in connection with the 1867 Paris Exposition, where music critic Oscar Comettant listed it among the exhibition's international musical attractions. A small concert Tunisien was also present at the 1878 Paris Exposition, where Rachel Eny, later known as La Belle Fatma, performed.
During the 1880s, concerts tunisiens became a recurring form of entertainment at French fairs and theatres. Contemporary newspapers documented the attractions at fairs in Reims, Épernay and elsewhere, while a travelling establishment operated by Justine Valck was reported across the fairgrounds of southern France.
The 1889 Paris Exposition gave the form of entertainment particular prominence. Concerts tunisiens were presented alongside Tunisian and Algerian displays in the exhibition's Rue du Caire and were among the paid spectacles offered to visitors. La Belle Fatma was associated with one of the Tunisian attractions.
The term continued to be used during the 1890s and early 20th century for attractions at fairs, exhibitions and theatres in France and elsewhere. The form remained visible at the 1900 Paris Exposition, where concerts tunisiens et algériens were among the foreign spectacles presented to visitors. The expression continued to appear in reports of fairground entertainment in the early 20th century, including in 1911.
Performance
Contemporary descriptions of the concerts tunisiens document performances combining dance, instrumental music and singing. The presentation also involved a defined stage arrangement, costumes and decorative furnishings.
Setting
At the 1889 Paris Exposition, the concerts tunisiens were presented on a raised platform. The women and musicians were seated on sofas, while the dancers performed on the platform. In the establishment associated with La Belle Fatma, the performer was seated on a raised platform described as resembling a throne, accompanied by her father, percussionists, three dancers and a piano player.
The interior furnishings also formed part of the presentation. A contemporary description states that the tables, stools, lamps and cups of the Tunisian attraction came directly from Tunisia. The furnishings of the concert at the Tunisian Souk were also described after the 1889 Paris Exposition. The inventory included twelve mirrors, thirty-two lanterns, six divans, Turkish tables, hangings, flags, carpets, one hundred stools and fifty guéridons.
A 1893 description places the concert tunisien in a gas-lit café-like hall divided between a general audience and a raised platform occupied by musicians and dancers. More prominent patrons paid one franc for seats on the platform.
An 1894 account described a concert indigène near the avenue de la Marine in Tunis. The gas-lit hall was divided into two sections: one for the general public and another, raised platform for prominent patrons who paid one franc.
Dance
Dance was a principal component of the performances. Contemporary programmes and descriptions mention the "danse du ventre", "danse tunisienne", "danse algérienne", "danse kabyle", "danse du Maroc", "danse égyptienne", "danse circassienne", "danse du Soudan" and "danses d’almées". Mentioned in an 1893 account is the “dance of the handkerchiefs and the belly” (danse des mouchoirs et du ventre), performed by almées. The performances more generally featured "les danses les plus originales", accompanied by an "rythme oriental" and "pas pleins de langueur" ("languorous steps").
The dances could be performed as separate acts by individual or several members of a troupe. Some programmes also included larger ensemble numbers, such as the Grande Fantasia Arabe, performed by the entire troupe of Concert de Howas. Another show concluded with poses vivantes performed by the female members of the troupe of La Belle Fatma, representing the conquête de Tunis par la France. The travelling Concerts tunisiens associated with Justine Valck, featured the wrestler Mohammed Ben-Saïd, where he was described as a bel Arabe and as the troupe's leading performer.
Music
The musical accompaniment could involve a small ensemble. At the 1889 Paris Exposition, one contemporary description lists a piano, two violins, a mandolin and a guitar, with the accompaniment supplemented by the "tabourka" and "tar". The two percussion instruments were played by women. At the Tunisian Souk, the danses d’almées were accompanied by a European piano. An 1893 account described an ensemble consisting of a rebab, two violins, a bendaïr and a regg, played by Jewish musicians under the direction of a woman who also sat before a piano. The performance began with music that was described as monotonous but pleasing to the audience.
A 1900 account describes musicians accompanied the performers on tambourines and drums, producing what the contemporary observer described as monotonous melody.
Singing could accompany the dancing. The 1889 description states that women sang plaintive refrains while a dancer performed the "danse du ventre". The 1891 programme of the concert des Howas additionally included the "Prière à Mahomet".
Costume
Costume was prominently described in accounts of the 1889 performances. The female dancers wore long blue or red skirts decorated with silver, with scarves, necklaces and bracelets. Female singers wore similar ornaments and wide silk trousers decorated with gold or silver bands. Another account described a female performer in a satin bodice covered with jewellery.
A 1890 description of the concerts tunisiens likewise describes female performers wearing an Algerian Jewish-style costume, a small Turkish cap, voluminous gauze trousers and Oriental silks, with decorated hair and orange blossoms. A 1900 description says women performed in light costumes decorated with sequins or imitation pearls.
In 1894 the woman directing the musicians wore a white silk casaque decorated with pink flowers and trousers embroidered in gold. The women collecting money from the audience were described as having hands stained red with henna.
A 1909 study described dancers at café-concerts tunisiens as performing barefoot and with the upper body exposed. The authors associated the performances with the danse du ventre, emphasizing movements of the hips and torso. The same work illustrated the subject with a figure captioned “La danse du ventre à l’Exposition de 1900” (“Belly dance at the 1900 Exposition”).
Documented chronology The following chronology records documented appearances of concerts tunisiens in contemporary sources, including fairs, theatres, and international exhibitions.
1860s 1867 Paris Exposition
The term concerts tunisiens was already in use in connection with the 1867 Paris Exposition. Music critic Oscar Comettant described the musical entertainment at the 1867 Paris Exposition in his book "La Musique et les musiciens à l'Exposition internationale". The concerts tunisiens were among the exhibition's various musical attractions, alongside Chinese music concerts and performances by Gypsy and Hungarian orchestras. Comettant described the concert tunisiens as "si agaçants, si pittoresques et si étourdissants" ("so irritating, picturesque and dazzling") and grouped them among the exhibition's numerous "manifestations musicales".
1870s 1878 Paris ExpositionAt the 1878 Paris Exposition, there was only one small concert Tunisien present, near the Pont d'Iéna. A later account stated that, unlike the 1889 Exposition, the 1878 Exposition had not given as much space to the "élément exotique et pittoresque". It performed with a small orchestra and the principal musician was an Algerian man known as "Géant de Souze". His little daughter Rachel Eny (later known as La Belle Fatma) performed as well and her dance became a great succes.
1880s Exposition internationale de Nice
At the International Exhibition of Nice in 1883, a contemporary account described the concerts tunisiens as “inevitable” attractions in the exhibition park.
In April 1884, two concerts tunisiens were among the popular attractions at the Easter fair in Reims, alongside femmes torpilles, a femme oiseau, dioramas, and tirs.
Later in April 1884, an Easter fair, also known as the Quasimodo Fair, featured two concerts tunisiens, one of them explicitly identified as that of La Belle Fatma.
In October 1884, the concerts tunisiens were among the popular attractions at the Foire de Bordeaux on the Esplanade des Quinconces. A contemporary account noted that the concerts tunisiens “ont un succès considérable” (“were enjoying considerable success”). The first featured La Belle Fatma, the "colosse de Sousse" and other performers, while the second, directed by Lagneaux, presented Mademoiselle Mima. Both attracted large crowds; the account noted that spectators had to queue for the second establishment.
By April 1885 “Concert Tunisien — La belle Fatma Ben-Eny” was performing in Libourne for a few days after attracting large crowds at the Bordeaux fairs of October and March.
In November 1885, M. Lagneau, identified as director of the Concert tunisien, published a notice stating that La Belle Fatma was alive and performing successfully in Rouen, correcting reports that she had been killed in Arles.
From 1885 to 1886, the travelling booth ("la baraque ambulante") known as the Concerts tunisiens, operated by proprietor Justine Valck, appeared in contemporary newspapers. Multiple accounts stated that Valck's Concert tunisiens was known throughout the fairgrounds of southern France.
In January 1886, a contemporary account records the Concert Tunisien among the attractions on the Place Bretagne fairground, where La Belle Fatma performed "la danse Tunisienne", accompanied by several performers including the colosse de Sousse. The accompanying voices are also mentioned, as well as the low, melancholy cries of the colosse de Sousse.
Later in January 1886 a contemporary report on an upcoming fair in Alais announced that visitors would find “deux concerts Tunisiens” among its attractions.
In February 1886, two concerts Tunisiens were among the establishments at the New Year's fair at Épernay.
In March 1886 the Concert Tunisien was described as “splendidement organisé” under its director, M. Lagneau. La Belle Fatma was named as the star of the troupe.
A contemporary account from October 1886 reported that at the Neuilly fair, the Concert Tunisien attracted large crowds each evening, with particularly strong public interest in la belle Fathma. It further stated that Fathma subsequently had a booth within the Concert de Paris on the Champs-Élysées, where visitors continued to crowd the entrance of the Concert Tunisien each evening.
In December 1886, concerts tunisiens took place at the Eden Theatre in Paris, featuring La Belle Fatma.
By June 1887, the concert tunisien received negative criticism. One contemporary report described the concerts tunisiens ou arabes as featuring “imitation Fatmas” performing so-called characteristic dances to discordant music, concluding that what had once been novel had “become commonplace.”