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Nicolas-François Guillard
Nicolas-François Guillard (16 January 1752 – 26 December 1814) was a French librettist. He was born in Chartres and died in Paris, the recipient of a government pension in recognition of his work writing librettos. He was also on ''Comité de Lecture'' of the Paris Opéra. One of the foremost of the French librettist of his generation, he wrote libretti for many noted composers of the day, including Salieri (''Les Horaces'') and in particular Sacchini ('' Œdipe à Colone'', amongst many others). His most famous work is ''Iphigénie en Tauride'', his first libretto, set by Gluck after the composer had initially rejected it. Gluck collaborated with Guillard to heavily recast the libretto, not only to suit Gluck's artistic preferences, but also to accommodate pre-existing music that Gluck borrowed, both from himself and from other composers, when composing the opera. Guillard's librettos were often adaptations of previously written works, rather than the products of original inve ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Libretto
A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as the Mass (liturgy), Mass, requiem and sacred cantata, or the story line of a ballet. ''Libretto'' (; plural ''libretti'' ), from Italian, is the diminutive of the word ''wiktionary:libro#Italian, libro'' ("book"). Sometimes other-language equivalents are used for libretti in that language, ''livret'' for French works, ''Textbuch'' for German and ''libreto'' for Spanish. A libretto is distinct from a synopsis or scenario of the plot, in that the libretto contains all the words and stage directions, while a synopsis summarizes the plot. Some ballet historians also use the word ''libretto'' to refer to the 15 to 40 page books which were on sale to 19th century ballet audiences in Paris and contained a ve ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chimène
''Chimène, ou Le Cid'' is a French-language opera by Antonio Sacchini. It takes the form of a ''tragédie en musique, tragédie (lyrique)'' in three acts, with a libretto by Nicolas-François Guillard. It was first staged at Fontainebleau on 16 November 1783. The subject of the work was inspired by the tragicomedy ''Le Cid'' by Pierre Corneille, and indirectly by the medieval Spanish epic ''Cantar de Mio Cid'' and a play by Guillén de Castro y Bellvís, ''Las Mocedades del Cid. Comedia Comedia primera and segunda'' (also known as ''Las Hazañas del Cid'') (1605–1615). Background Antecedents Sacchini had already dealt with the subject of El Cid twice before. The first occasion was in Rome during the Carnival season of 1769, when, under the title of ''Il Cidde'', he had set a libretto by Gioacchino Pizzi, previously used by Niccolò Piccinni, which retained its popularity for at least another decade. The star of the work was the soprano castrato, , then at the height of his fame. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christian Kalkbrenner
Christian Kalkbrenner (Hann. Münden, September 22, 1755 – Paris, August 10, 1806) was a German Kapellmeister, violinist, organ and keyboard player, and composer. Almost an exact contemporary of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, he was a prolific composer in many fields and a force in the musical world. He rose to high honours at the courts of the Prussian Kings. For unknown reasons, Kalkbrenner left his position as Kapellmeister to Prince Henry of Prussia and went first to Naples and later on to Paris. He was the father of Friedrich Wilhelm Kalkbrenner, one of the great piano virtuosos of the first half of the 19th century. Biography Christian Kalkbrenner was born in Münden, Germany. Münden, nowadays called Hann. Münden, an old town with a historic inner city, is situated 17 kilometres north-east of Kassel. Kalkbrenner had his first musical education from his father who was town musician (Stadtmusikus) in the Hessian town of Kassel. Kalkbrenner learned to play violin and organ. In vi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Germinal (French Republican Calendar)
Germinal () was the seventh month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the Latin word ''germen'', "germination". Germinal was the first month of the spring quarter (''mois de printemps''). It started March 21 or March 22, and ended April 19 or April 20. It follows Ventôse and precedes Floréal. In the context of the French Revolution, ''Germinal'' sometimes refers to the downfall and execution of the Indulgents, Georges Danton and Camille Desmoulins, which took place during Germinal of 1794, four months before the Thermidorian Reaction in which Robespierre himself was executed. The events of Germinal 1794 signaled the beginning of the end of the Reign of Terror. Day name table Like all FRC months, Germinal lasted 30 days and was divided into three 10-day weeks called ''décades'' (decades). Every day had the name of an agricultural plant, except the 5th (Quintidi) and 10th day (Decadi) of every decade, which had the name of a domestic animal ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giovanni Paisiello
Giovanni Paisiello (or Paesiello; 9 May 1740 – 5 June 1816) was an Italian composer of the Classical era, and was the most popular opera composer of the late 1700s. His operatic style influenced Mozart and Rossini. Life Paisiello was born in Taranto in the Apulia region and educated by the Jesuits there. He became known for his beautiful singing voice and in 1754 was sent to the Conservatorio di S. Onofrio at Naples, where he studied under Francesco Durante, and eventually became assistant master. For the theatre of the Conservatorio, which he left in 1763, he wrote some intermezzi, one of which attracted so much notice that he was invited to write two operas, ''La Pupilla'' and ''Il Mondo al Rovescio'', for Bologna, and a third, ''Il Marchese di Tidipano'', for Rome. His reputation now firmly established, he settled for some years at Naples, where, despite the popularity of Niccolò Piccinni, Domenico Cimarosa and Pietro Guglielmi, of whose triumphs he was bitterly jealous, h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Philippe Quinault
Philippe Quinault (; 3 June 1635 – 26 November 1688), French dramatist and librettist, was born in Paris. Biography Quinault was educated by the liberality of François Tristan l'Hermite, the author of ''Marianne''. Quinault's first play was produced at the Hôtel de Bourgogne in 1653, when he was only eighteen. The piece succeeded, and Quinault followed it up, but he also read for the bar; and in 1660, when he married a widow with money, he bought himself a place in the ''Cour des Comptes''. Then he tried tragedies (''Agrippa'', etc.) with more success. He received one of the literary pensions then recently established, and was elected to the Académie française in 1670. Up to this time he had written some sixteen or seventeen comedies, tragedies, and tragi-comedies, which began at the ''Hôtel de Bourgogne'' in 1653, and of which the tragedies were mostly of very small value and the tragi-comedies of little more. But his comedies—especially his first piece ''Les Riv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Proserpine (Paisiello)
''Proserpine'' is a French-language opera by the Italian composer Giovanni Paisiello. It takes the form of a ''tragédie lyrique'' in three acts. The libretto, by Nicolas-François Guillard, is a reworking of Philippe Quinault's '' Proserpine''. Paisiello's opera was first performed on 28 March 1803 at the Paris Opéra. Background Paisiello was the favourite composer of Napoleon Bonaparte. When Napoleon became First Consul of France in 1801, he invited Paisiello to Paris to become his private ''maître de chapelle''. The seventy-one-year-old musician was reluctant to leave Naples but King Ferdinand IV pressured him to agree in order to help Franco-Neapolitan diplomatic relations. Paisiello arrived in Paris in 1802. Here the Opéra proposed he should write a setting of Guillard's reworking of ''Proserpine'', a libretto by Philippe Quinault originally set by Jean-Baptiste Lully and premiered in 1680. The fashion for such reworkings had emerged in the late 18th century. Examples ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brumaire
Brumaire () was the second month in the French Republican calendar. The month was named after the French word for fog, ''brume'', fog occurring frequently in France at that time of the year. Brumaire was the second month of the autumn quarter (''mois d'automne''). It started between 22 October and 24 October. It ended between 20 November and 22 November. It follows the Vendémiaire and precedes the Frimaire. In political/historical usage, Brumaire can refer to the coup of 18 Brumaire in the year VIII (9 November 1799), by which General Napoleon Bonaparte overthrew the government of the Directory to replace it with the Consulate, as referenced by Karl Marx in his pamphlet, ''The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte'', in which Marx parallels Napoleon's original coup with the later 1851 Coup of his nephew, Louis-Napoleon Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Opéra-Comique
The Opéra-Comique is a Paris opera company which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with – and for a time took the name of – its chief rival, the Comédie-Italienne at the Hôtel de Bourgogne. It was also called the Théâtre-Italien up to about 1793, when it again became most commonly known as the Opéra-Comique. Today the company's official name is Théâtre national de l'Opéra-Comique, and its theatre, with a capacity of around 1,248 seats, sometimes referred to as the Salle Favart (the third on this site), is located at Place Boïeldieu in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris, not far from the Palais Garnier, one of the theatres of the Paris Opéra. The musicians and others associated with the Opéra-Comique have made important contributions to operatic history and tradition in France and to French opera. Its current mission is to reconnect with its history and discover its unique repertoire to ensu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
François Andrieux
François Guillaume Jean Stanislaus Andrieux (6 May 17599 May 1833) was a French man of letters and playwright. Life Born and educated at Strasbourg, Andrieux proceeded to Paris to study law. There he became a close friend of Collin d'Harleville. He became secretary to the duke of Uzès, and practised at the bar, but his attention was divided between his profession and literature. He died on 9 May 1833 in Paris. His plays are of the 18th century style, comedies of intrigue, but they rank with those of Collin d'Harleville among the best of the period next to those of Pierre Beaumarchais. ''Les Étourdis'' is probably his best comedy. Works Theatre *1782: ''Anaximandre, ou le Sacrifice aux Grâces'', comedy in one act and verse of ten syllables, Comédie Italienne, 20 December *1787: ''Les Étourdis, ou le Mort supposé'', comedy in three acts and in verse, Théâtre-Italien, 14 December *1790: ''Louis IX en Égypte'', opera in three acts by Nicolas-François Guillard an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tragédie Lyrique
This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names. "Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most composers used more precise designations to present their work to the public. Often specific genres of opera were commissioned by theatres or patrons (in which case the form of the work might deviate more or less from the genre norm, depending on the inclination of the composer). Opera genres are not exclusive. Some operas are regarded as belonging to several. Definitions Opera genres have been defined in different ways, not always in terms of stylistic rules. Some, like opera seria, refer to traditions identified by later historians,McClymonds, Marita P and Heartz, Daniel: "Opera seria" in ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', ed. Stanley Sadie (London, 1992) and others, like Zeitoper, have been defined by their own inventors. Other form ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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, under the direction of the French Ministry of Culture, by the Public Establishment of the Palace, Museum and National Estate of Versailles. Some 15,000,000 people visit the palace, park, or gardens of Versailles every year, making it one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world. Louis XIII built a simple hunting lodge on the site of the Palace of Versailles in 1623 and replaced it with a small château in 1631–34. Louis XIV expanded the château into a palace in several phases from 1661 to 1715. It was a favorite residence for both kings, and in 1682, Louis XIV moved the seat of his court and government to Versailles, making the palace the ''de facto'' capital of France. This state of affairs was continued by Kings Louis XV an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
