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Augustine Hymm
Augustine Albert, also known as Augustine Albert-Himm (28 August 1791 – after 1846) was a French opera singer who sang leading soprano roles at the Paris Opéra from 1806 to 1823. Amongst the many roles she created in their world premieres was the title role of Spontini's ''Olimpie''. Born in Paris and trained at the Conservatoire de Paris, she was also a principal singer of the '' Chapelle royale'' until 1830. She was married to Albert, ''danseur noble'' of the Paris Opéra. Life and career Albert was born Louise-Marguerite-Augustine Himm in Paris. She entered the Conservatoire de Paris in 1803 where she was a pupil of Charles-Henri Plantade. The following year she received the conservatory's first prize in singing and later studied with the castrato singer Girolamo Crescentini. She first appeared at the Paris Opéra in 1803 at the age of 12 as L'Amour (Cupid) in Cherubini's '' Anacréon''. However, her official debut there came in 1806 when she sang Antigone in Sacchini's ''Š... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880 Hz in choral music, or to "soprano C" (C6, two octaves above middle C) = 1046 Hz or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which often encompasses the melody. The soprano voice type is generally divided into the coloratura, soubrette, lyric, spinto, and dramatic soprano. Etymology The word "soprano" comes from the Italian word '' sopra'' (above, over, on top of),"Soprano" '' |
Charles X
Charles X (born Charles Philippe, Count of Artois; 9 October 1757 – 6 November 1836) was King of France from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. An uncle of the uncrowned Louis XVII and younger brother to reigning kings Louis XVI and Louis XVIII, he supported the latter in exile. After the Bourbon Restoration in 1814, Charles (as heir-presumptive) became the leader of the ultra-royalists, a radical monarchist faction within the French court that affirmed rule by divine right and opposed the concessions towards liberals and guarantees of civil liberties granted by the Charter of 1814. Charles gained influence within the French court after the assassination of his son Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Berry, in 1820 and succeeded his brother Louis XVIII in 1824.Munro Price, ''The Perilous Crown: France between Revolutions'', Macmillan, pp. 185–187. His reign of almost six years proved to be deeply unpopular amongst the liberals in France from the moment of his coronation in 18 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Étienne Méhul
Étienne Nicolas Méhul (; 16 November 1765 ~ 24 December 1817) was a French composer of the Classical period (music), classical period. He was known as "the most important opera composer in France during the French Revolution, Revolution". He was also the first composer to be called a "Romanticism, Romantic". He is known particularly for his operas, written in keeping with the reforms introduced by Christoph Willibald Gluck and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Life Méhul was born at Givet in Ardennes to Jean-François Méhul, a wine merchant, and his wife Marie-Cécile (née Keuly). His first music lessons came from a blind local organist. When he showed promise, he was sent to study with a German musician and organist, , at the monastery of Lavaldieu, a few miles from Givet. Here Méhul developed his lifelong love of flowers. In 1778 or 1779 he went to Paris and began to study with Jean-Frédéric Edelmann, a harpsichord player and friend of Méhul's idol Christoph Willibald Gluck. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
François-Benoît Hoffman
François-Benoît Hoffman (11 July 1760 – 25 April 1828) was a French playwright and critic, best known today for his operatic librettos, including those set to music by Étienne Méhul and Luigi Cherubini (most notably Cherubini's ''Médée'', 1797). Career Hoffman was born in Nancy, and studied law at the University of Strasbourg. Believing that his stammer hindered his legal career, he entered military service in Corsica. He served there for only a very short time, and, returning to Nancy, wrote some poems which brought him into notice at the little court of Lunéville over which the Marquise de Boufflers then presided. In 1784 he went to Paris where he wrote his first opera libretto, ''Phèdre'', for the composer Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne. It was performed at Fontainebleau in October 1786. After quarrelling with Lemoyne, Hoffman offered his libretto ''Adrien, empereur de Rome'' to Cherubini, who turned it down in favour of another Hoffman drama, ''Médée''. ''Adrien'' was acce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rodolphe Kreutzer
Rodolphe Kreutzer (15 November 1766 – 6 January 1831) was a French violinist, teacher, conductor, and composer of forty French operas, including ''La mort d'Abel'' (1810). He is probably best known as the dedicatee of Beethoven's Violin Sonata No. 9, Op. 47 (1803), known as the ''Kreutzer Sonata'', though he never played the work. Kreutzer made the acquaintance of Beethoven in 1798, when at Vienna in the service of the French ambassador, Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte (later King of Sweden and Norway). Beethoven originally dedicated the sonata to George Bridgetower, the violinist at its first performance, but after a quarrel he revised the dedication in favour of Kreutzer. Biography Kreutzer was born in Versailles, and was initially taught by his German father, who was a musician in the royal chapel, with later lessons from Anton Stamitz. He became one of the foremost violin virtuosos of his day, appearing as a soloist until 1810. He was a violin professor at the Conse ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
La Mort D'Abel
' (''The Death of Abel'') is an opera by the French composer Rodolphe Kreutzer. The libretto, by François-Benoît Hoffman, deals with the Biblical story of Cain and Abel. It was first performed in a three-act version at the Salle Montansier by the Académie Impériale de Musique (the Paris Opéra) on 23 March 1810 under the title ''Abel''. A revival at the Salle Le Peletier in 1823, in which the second act was cut, impressed the young Hector Berlioz. Background ' was one of a number of French operas and oratorios on Biblical themes to appear in the first decades of the 19th century. This fashion was inspired by a performance of Haydn's '' The Creation'' at the Paris Opéra in 1800. Examples of the genre include Kalkbrenner's staged oratorios ''Saul'' and ', Lesueur's ' and, most famously, Méhul's ''Joseph'' (1807). Alexandre Dratwicki in the book accompanying the Van Waas recording, p. 62 The French Emperor Napoleon did not share the enthusiasm for putting Bible stories ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giuseppina Grassini
Gioseppa Maria Camilla, commonly known as Giuseppina (or also Josephina) Grassini (8 April 1773 – 3 January 1850) was a noted Italian dramatic contralto, and a singing teacher. She was also known for her affairs with Napoleon and the Duke of Wellington. She sang in various productions by composers such as Cimarosa, Cherubini and Zingarelli. Biography After growing up under the musical guidance of her mother, an amateur violinist, and Domenico Zucchinetti in Varese, and Antonio Secchi in Milan, Grassini made her stage début in 1789 in Parma singing in Guglielmi's ''La pastorella nobile'', and the following year at Milan's La Scala in three ''opere buffe'' including Guglielmi's ''La bella pescatrice'' and Salieri's ''La cifra''. These first comic performances were not a great success, and Grassini was driven to resume the study of singing and to turn to drama. Beginnings and Italian career apex From 1792 she returned fully to the stage in the theatres of Vicenza, Ven ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led successful campaigns during the Revolutionary Wars. He was the ''de facto'' leader of the French Republic as First Consul from 1799 to 1804, then Emperor of the French from 1804 until 1814 and again in 1815. Napoleon's political and cultural legacy endures to this day, as a highly celebrated and controversial leader. He initiated many liberal reforms that have persisted in society, and is considered one of the greatest military commanders in history. His wars and campaigns are studied by militaries all over the world. Between three and six million civilians and soldiers perished in what became known as the Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon was born on the island of Corsica, not long af ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tuileries Palace
The Tuileries Palace (french: Palais des Tuileries, ) was a royal and imperial palace in Paris which stood on the right bank of the River Seine, directly in front of the Louvre. It was the usual Parisian residence of most French monarchs, from Henry IV to Napoleon III, until it was burned by the Paris Commune in 1871. Built in 1564, it was gradually extended until it closed off the western end of the Louvre courtyard and displayed an immense façade of 266 metres. Since the destruction of the Tuileries, the Louvre courtyard has remained open and the site is now the location of the eastern end of the Tuileries Garden, forming an elevated terrace between the Place du Carrousel and the gardens proper. History Plan of Catherine de Medici (16th C.) The site of the Tuileries palace was originally just outside the walls of the city, in an area frequently flooded by the Seine as far as the present Rue Saint-Honore. The land was occupied by the workshops and kilns craftsmen who ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pimmalione
''Pimmalione'' (''Pygmalion'') is an opera in one act by Luigi Cherubini, first performed at the Théâtre des Tuileries, Paris, on 30 November 1809. The libretto is an adaptation by Stefano VestrisStefano Vestris, "a stage poet of no ability", was a member of the famous Italian-French theatrical family which had originated with his father, dancer Gaétan Vestris, and later shone with his brother Auguste Vestris, also a ballet étoile (Henry Sutherland Edwards, ''History of the Opera, from its Origin in Italy to the present Time'', Londra, Allen, 1862, I, p. 302; accessible for free online aGoogle Books. of Antonio Simone Sografi's Italian translation of the text Jean-Jacques Rousseau wrote for his ''scène lyrique'' '' Pygmalion'' (1770). It is based on the Classical legend of the sculptor Pygmalion. Cherubini, beset by severe depression, financial difficulties, and the hostility of Napoleon, was persuaded to write the one-act opera by two of the Emperor's favourite singers, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Luigi Cherubini
Luigi Cherubini ( ; ; 8 or 14 SeptemberWillis, in Sadie (Ed.), p. 833 1760 – 15 March 1842) was an Italian Classical and Romantic composer. His most significant compositions are operas and sacred music. Beethoven regarded Cherubini as the greatest of his contemporaries. His operas were heavily praised and interpreted by Rossini. Early years Cherubini was born Maria Luigi Carlo Zenobio Salvatore Cherubini in Florence in 1760. There is uncertainty about his exact date of birth. Although 14 September is sometimes stated, evidence from baptismal records and Cherubini himself suggests the 8th is correct. Perhaps the strongest evidence is his first name, Maria, which is traditional for a child born on 8 September, the feast-day of the Nativity of the Virgin. His instruction in music began at the age of six with his father, Bartolomeo, '' maestro al cembalo'' ("Master of the harpsichord", in other words, ensemble leader from the harpsichord). Considered a child prodigy, Cherubini st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
