''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opera had little success in its first run and was only revived in 1775 in five acts, for 38 performances, before being withdrawn for good.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