''Adèle de Ponthieu'' is an opera by the French composers
Jean-Benjamin de La Borde
Jean-Benjamin François de la Borde (5 September 1734 – 22 July 1794) was a French composer, writer on music and '' fermier général'' (farm tax collector). Born into an aristocratic family, he studied violin under Antoine Dauvergne and composi ...
and
Pierre Montan Berton
Pierre Montan Berton (7 January 1727 – 14 May 1780) was a French composer and conductor. He resided primarily in Paris and was an opera director.
Pierre's son Henri Montan Berton
Henri-Montan Berton (17 September 1767 – 22 Apri ...
, first performed at the Académie Royale de Musique, Paris (the
Paris Opera
The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be ...
) on 1 December 1772. It takes the form of a ''
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 c ...
'' in three acts. The libretto was written by
Jean-Paul-André Razins de Saint-Marc
Jean-Paul-André des Razins, marquis de Saint-Marc, (29 November 1728 – 11 September 1818) was an 18th-century French playwright and librettist.
A former officer of the Gardes françaises, Saint-Marc wrote the libretto for '' Adèle de Ponthieu ...
, after a tragedy by
Pierre-Antoine de La Place, staged at the
Comédie-Française
The Comédie-Française () or Théâtre-Français () is one of the few state theatres in France. Founded in 1680, it is the oldest active theatre company in the world. Established as a French state-controlled entity in 1995, it is the only state ...
in 1757.
The opera had little success in its first run and was only revived in 1775 in five acts, for 38 performances, before being withdrawn for good.
[ Lajarte, p. 256.] The three-act libretto, however, was
later set by
Niccolò Piccinni
Niccolò Piccinni (; 16 January 1728 – 7 May 1800) was an Italian composer of symphonies, sacred music, chamber music, and opera. Although he is somewhat obscure today, Piccinni was one of the most popular composers of opera—particularly the ...
in 1781.
Roles
References
;Notes
;Sources
*
Théodore Lajarte
Théodore Lajarte (10 July 1826 – 20 June 1890) was a French musicologist, librarian, and composer.Huebner 1992.
Early years
Lajarte was born in Bordeaux. His full name has been given as Théodore Édouard Dufaure de Lajarte. He studied at t ...
, ''Bibliothèque Musicale du Théatre de l'Opéra. Catalogue Historique, Chronologique, Anecdotique'', Tome 1, Paris, Librairie des bibliophiles, 1878 (copy a
Internet Archive
* Spire Pitou, ''The Paris Opéra. An Encyclopedia of Operas, Ballets, Composers, and Performers – Rococo and Romantic, 1715-1815'', Greenwood Press, Westport/London, 1985.
*
Original 1772 libretto at ''Gallica, BNF''Félix Clément and Pierre Larousse ''Dictionnaire des Opéras'' p. 6
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adele de Ponthieu (La Borde and Berton))
1772 operas
Operas
French-language operas
Tragédies en musique
Operas by Jean-Benjamin de La Borde