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Dardanus (Rameau)
''Dardanus'' is an opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau with a French-language libretto by Charles-Antoine Leclerc de La Bruère. It takes the form of a ''tragédie en musique'' in a prologue and five acts. ''Dardanus'' premiered at the Paris Opéra on 19 November 1739 to mixed success, mainly because of the dramatic weakness of the libretto. This caused Rameau and La Bruère to rework the opera, completely rewriting the last three acts, for a revival in 1744. Only when ''Dardanus'' was again performed in 1760 did it win acclaim as one of Rameau's greatest works. The original story is loosely based on that of Dardanus, the son of Zeus and Electra, and ancestor of the Trojans. However, in the opera, Dardanus is at war with King Teucer, who has promised to marry his daughter Iphise to King Anténor. Dardanus and Iphise meet through the intervention of the magician Isménor and fall in love. Dardanus attacks a monster ravaging Teucer's kingdom, saving the life of Anténor who is attempt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tragédie En Musique
Tragédie en musique (, ''musical tragedy''), also known as tragédie lyrique (, ''lyric tragedy''), is a genre of French opera introduced by Jean-Baptiste Lully and used by his followers until the second half of the eighteenth century. Operas in this genre are usually based on stories from Classical mythology or the Italian romantic epics of Tasso and Ariosto. The stories may not necessarily have a tragic ending – in fact, most do not – but the works' atmospheres are suffused throughout with an affect of nobility and stateliness. The standard ''tragédie en musique'' has five acts. Earlier works in the genre were preceded by an allegorical prologue and, during the lifetime of Louis XIV, these generally celebrated the king's noble qualities and his prowess in war. Each of the five acts usually follows a basic pattern, opening with an aria in which one of the main characters expresses their feelings, followed by dialogue in recitative interspersed with short arias (''petits airs'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Castor Et Pollux
''Castor et Pollux'' (''Castor and Pollux'') is an opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau, first performed on 24 October 1737 by the Académie royale de musique at its theatre in the Palais-Royal in Paris. The librettist was Pierre-Joseph-Justin Bernard, whose reputation as a salon poet it made. This was the third opera by Rameau and his second in the form of the ''tragédie en musique'' (if the lost ''Samson'' is discounted). Rameau made substantial cuts, alterations and added new material to the opera for its revival in 1754. Experts still dispute which of the two versions is superior. Whatever the case, ''Castor et Pollux'' has always been regarded as one of Rameau's finest works. Composition history Charles Dill proposes that Rameau had composed the 1737 opera just after working with Voltaire on the opera "Samson" that was never completed, after which he composed "Castor et Pollux" implementing Voltaire's aesthetics. For example, Voltaire sought the presentation of static tableaus that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
René-Michel Slodtz
René-Michel Slodtz called Michel-Ange Slodtz (1705–1764) was a French sculptor who worked in Baroque style, and active mainly in Paris and Rome for the Menus-Plaisirs du Roi. Biography A Parisian by birth, Slodtz's father, Sébastien Slodtz, was also a sculptor. Slodtz spent seventeen years in Rome, where he was chosen to execute a statue of '' St. Bruno'' (1744) for a niche in the nave of St Peter's. The statue demonstrates the saint's refusal of the bishop's miter and staff offered by a cherub, while his right hand rests on a skull, evoking mortality. The simplicity of the monk's robes and the shaved head adds classical style to the heavily baroque sculpture. He also sculpted the tomb of Marquis Capponi in San Giovanni dei Fiorentini. Other Roman churches showcase his work including San Luigi dei Francesi and Santa Maria della Scala. After his return to France in 1747, Slodtz, in conjunction with his brothers, Antoine-Sebastien and Paul, produced many decorative wor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sophie Arnould
Sophie Arnould (13 February 1740, in Paris – 18 October 1802, in Paris) was a French operatic soprano. Born Magdeleine Sophie Arnould, she studied in Paris with Marie Fel and La Clairon, and made her stage debut at the Opéra de Paris on 15 December 1757 and sang there for 20 years. She created for Christoph Wilibald Gluck the roles of Eurydice in '' Orphée et Eurydice'' and the title role in ''Iphigénie en Aulide''. She also obtained considerable success in operas by Jean-Philippe Rameau, François Francoeur, and Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny. Her love life was extremely colorful. Her tumultuous relationship with Louis-Léon de Brancas, duc de Lauragais, resulted in four children, including , colonel of the First Empire dead at Essling. She was also the lover of Paul Barras and Nicolas-François de Neufchâteau, among many others.Jean Haechler, ''Le règne des femmes - 1715-1792'', Paris, Grasset, 2001, . In fact, she was notorious for having as many affairs with women as wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Simon-Joseph Pellegrin
The abbé Simon-Joseph Pellegrin (1663 – 5 September 1745) was a French poet and playwright, a librettist who collaborated with Jean-Philippe Rameau and other composers. Biography He was born at Marseille, the son of a ''conseiller'' to the Siège Présidial of the city. He was at first designated for an ecclesiastical career, from which he retained the courtesy title ''abbé''. Though he was for a time a novitiate of the Servites at Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, he soon embarked on a career as a ship's bursar. Returning to France in 1703, he settled in Paris and composed his earliest poems, among them an ''Epître à Louis XIV'', praising the Sun King's military successes, which gained the king's attention and the Académie française prize in 1704. Probably thanks to Madame de Maintenon, Pellegrin succeeded in escaping the urging of his superiors that he become more fully integrated with his order; instead a papal dispensation enabled him to enter the Cluniac order, whereupon he w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jean-Baptiste-Louis Gresset
Jean-Baptiste-Louis Gresset (August 29, 1709 – June 16, 1777) was a French poet and dramatist, best known for his poem ''Vert-Vert''. Life He was born at Amiens. During the last twenty-five years of his life, he regretted the frivolity of his youth, which enabled him to produce his most famous poem. He was brought up by the Jesuits of Amiens. Accepted as a novice at the age of seventeen, he was sent to study at the Collège Louis le Grand in Paris. After completing his course he was appointed, at the age of nineteen, to a post as assistant master in a college at Rouen. Gresset published ''Vert-Vert'' at Rouen in 1734. It is the humorous story of a parrot, the delight of a convent whose talk was all of prayers and pious ambitions, and how it was conveyed to another convent as a visitor to please the nuns. On the way it falls among bad companions, forgets its convent language, and shocks the sisters on arrival by profane swearing. It is sent back in disgrace, punished by solitu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles-Simon Favart
Charles Simon Favart (13 November 1710 – 12 May 1792) was a French playwright and theatre director. The Salle Favart in Paris is named after him. Biography Born in Paris, the son of a pastry-cook, he was educated at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand, and after his father's death he carried on the business for a time. His first success in literature was ''La France delivrée par la Pucelle d'Orléans'', a poem about Joan of Arc which obtained a prize of the Académie des Jeux Floraux. After the production of his first ''vaudeville'', ''Les Deux Jumelles'' (1734), circumstances enabled him to relinquish business and devote himself entirely to the drama. He provided many pieces anonymously for the lesser theatres, and first put his name to ''La Chercheuse d'esprit'', which was produced in 1741. Among his most successful works were ''Annette et Lubin; Le Coq du milage'' (1743); ''Les Vendanges de Tempé'' (1745), later reworked as ''La Vallée de Montmorency'' (1752); ''Ninette à la cour' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Comédie-Italienne
Comédie-Italienne or Théâtre-Italien are French names which have been used to refer to Italian-language theatre and opera when performed in France. The earliest recorded visits by Italian players were commedia dell'arte companies employed by the French court under the Italian-born queens Catherine de Medici and Marie de Medici. These troupes also gave public performances in Paris at the theatre of the Hôtel de Bourgogne, probably the earliest public theatre to be built in France. The first official use of the name Comédie-Italienne was in 1680, when it was given to the commedia dell'arte troupe at the Hôtel de Bourgogne, to distinguish it from the French troupe, the Comédie-Française, which was founded that year, and just as the name Théâtre-Français was commonly applied to the latter, Théâtre-Italien was used for the Italians. Over time French phrases, songs, whole scenes, and eventually entire plays were incorporated into the Comédie-Italienne's performances. B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jephté
''Jephté'' (''Jephtha'') is an opera by the French composer Michel Pignolet de Montéclair. It takes the form of a ''tragédie en musique'' in a prologue and five acts (because of its subject matter it was also styled a ''tragédie biblique''). The libretto, by the Abbé Simon-Joseph Pellegrin, is based on the Biblical story of Jephtha. The oratorio was first performed at the Académie royale de musique, Paris on 28 February 1732. It was the first opera in France using a story from the Bible to appear on a public stage. For this reason, Cardinal de Noailles banned performances of the work for a time. Montéclair made revisions for revivals of the work in March 1732 and April 1737. In 1735, the soprano who had premiered Iphise, Catherine-Nicole Lemaure, was forced to appear in that year's revival via threats of imprisonment if she would not do so; therefore, she intentionally bombed the performance and was booed at by the audience.Julie Anne Sadie, ''Guide de la Musique baroque', Fay ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michel Pignolet De Montéclair
Michel Pignolet de Montéclair (4 December 1667 – 22 September 1737) was a French composer of the baroque period. He was born Michel Pignolet in Andelot, Haute-Marne, France, and only later added "Montéclair" (the name of a fortress in his home town) to his name. Little is known of his life, and there are no known official portraits. He was the son of a weaver; his entrance into the choir school at the age of nine may have been the only chance of escaping the poverty of a weaver's life. In 1687, he went to Paris and joined the orchestra of the Opera, where he played the basse de violon. In Paris he studied with Jean-Baptiste Moreau. At some point between 1687 and the early years of the new century, he seems to have been ''maître de musique'' to the Prince de Vaudémont and to have followed him to Italy. It was probably from there that he brought the idea to add the double bass to the opera orchestra. All the time Montéclair must have worked as a music teacher of high re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pyrrhus (Royer)
''Pyrrhus'' is an opera by the French composer Joseph-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer, first performed at the Académie Royale de Musique (the Paris Opera) on 26 October 1730. It takes the form of a ''tragédie en musique'' in a prologue and five acts. The libretto, by Fermelhuis, is based on the Greek myth of Pyrrhus, son of Achilles. The opera was revived at Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ... on 16 September 2012. The performance was recorded and subsequently released in 2014. Recording *''Pyrrhus'', Alain Buet (Pyrrhus), Guillemette Laurens (Eriphile), Emmanuelle de Negri (Polixène), Jeffrey Thompson (Acamas), Orchestra and chorus of Les Enfants d'Apollon, conducted by Michael Greenberg (Alpha, 2014) Sources Libretto at "Livres baroques"Félix Clément and P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joseph-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer
Joseph-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer (12 May 1703 – 11 January 1755) was a French composer, harpsichordist, organist, and administrator.Lionel Sawkins and David Fuller"Royer, Joseph-Nicolas-Pancrace" Grove Music Online. Biography Born in Turin, Royer went to Paris in 1725, and in 1734 became ''maître de musique des enfants de France'', responsible for the musical education of the children of the king, Louis XV. Together with the violinist Jean-Joseph de Mondonville, Royer directed the Concerts Spirituels, starting in 1748. Royer was at the Paris Opéra during the 1730s and the 1750s, writing six operas himself, of which the best known is the ballet héroïque '' Zaïde, reine de Grenade''. In 1753 he acquired the prestigious position of music director of the ''chambre du roi'' (the king's chamber), and in the same year was named director of the Royal Opera orchestra. He died in Paris. Works Royer is particularly known for his often extravagant and virtuosic harpsichord music, especia ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_by_Jean-Baptiste_Greuze.jpg "Click for more on -> Sophie Arnould")
