Nicolas-François Guillard (16 January 1752 – 26 December 1814) was a French
librettist
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. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...
. He was born in
Chartres
Chartres () is the prefecture of the Eure-et-Loir department in the Centre-Val de Loire region in France. It is located about southwest of Paris. At the 2019 census, there were 170,763 inhabitants in the metropolitan area of Chartres (as d ...
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
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 k ...
. One of the foremost of the French librettist of his generation, he wrote libretti for many noted composers of the day, including
Salieri
Antonio Salieri (18 August 17507 May 1825) was an Italian classical composer, conductor, and teacher. He was born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, and spent his adult life and career as a subject of the Habsburg monarchy ...
(''
Les Horaces
''Les Horaces'' (''The Horatii'') is an operatic tragédie lyrique by Antonio Salieri. The text was by Nicolas-François Guillard after Pierre Corneille's '' Horace''.
The opera was commissioned by the Paris Opera after the success of Salieri's ...
'') and in particular
Sacchini
Antonio Maria Gasparo Gioacchino Sacchini (14 June 1730 – 6 October 1786) was an Italian composer, best known for his operas.
Sacchini was born in Florence, but raised in Naples, where he received his musical education. He made a name for him ...
(''
Œdipe à Colone'', amongst many others). His most famous work is ''
Iphigénie en Tauride
''Iphigénie en Tauride'' (, ''Iphigenia in Tauris'') is a 1779 opera by Christoph Willibald Gluck in four acts. It was his fifth opera for the French stage. The libretto was written by Nicolas-François Guillard.
With ''Iphigénie,'' Gluck took ...
'', his first libretto, set by
Gluck
Christoph Willibald (Ritter von) Gluck (; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period (music), classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the ...
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 invention. He used a wide range of subjects as a starting point, basing his libretto for Sacchini's final opera, ''
Arvire et Évélina'', on an English dramatic poem and also using the works of
Pierre Corneille
Pierre Corneille (; 6 June 1606 – 1 October 1684) was a French tragedian. He is generally considered one of the three great seventeenth-century French dramatists, along with Molière and Racine.
As a young man, he earned the valuable patronag ...
on two occasions. In the 1790s he altered his style to fit the revolutionary atmosphere of the time, one of his last works being the epic ''
La mort d'Adam
''La mort d'Adam'' is a tragédie lyrique on a biblical theme in 3 acts by Jean-François Le Sueur with a French libretto by Nicolas-François Guillard after Klopstock, first performed in 1809, though written a few years earlier.
Composition and ...
'', where he turned to biblical themes.
Works
*1779: ''
Iphigénie en Tauride
''Iphigénie en Tauride'' (, ''Iphigenia in Tauris'') is a 1779 opera by Christoph Willibald Gluck in four acts. It was his fifth opera for the French stage. The libretto was written by Nicolas-François Guillard.
With ''Iphigénie,'' Gluck took ...
'', opera in 4 acts, music by
Christoph Willibald Gluck
Christoph Willibald (Ritter von) Gluck (; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the Holy Roman Empire, he g ...
, premiered at the
Académie royale de musique
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 ...
, 18 May.
*1781: ''Émilie ou La Belle Esclave'',
comédie lyrique in 1 act, music by
André Grétry
André Ernest Modeste Grétry (; baptised 11 February 1741; died 24 September 1813) was a
composer from the Prince-Bishopric of Liège (present-day Belgium), who worked from 1767 onwards in France and took French nationality. He is most famous ...
, premiered at the Académie royale de musique, 22 February.
*1782: ''
Électre'', opera in 3 acts, music by
Jean-Baptiste Moyne, premiered at the Académie royale de musique, 2 July.
*1783: ''
Chimène ou le Cid'', opera in 3 acts, music by Antonio Sacchini, premiered at
Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau (; ) is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the ''arrondissement ...
.
*1784: ''
Dardanus'', three-act tragedy, after
Charles-Antoine Leclerc de La Bruère, music by Antonio Sacchini, premiered at Trianon,
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 ...
, 18 September.
*1786: ''
Les Horaces
''Les Horaces'' (''The Horatii'') is an operatic tragédie lyrique by Antonio Salieri. The text was by Nicolas-François Guillard after Pierre Corneille's '' Horace''.
The opera was commissioned by the Paris Opera after the success of Salieri's ...
'',
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 3 acts mingled with intermedes, music by
Antonio Salieri
Antonio Salieri (18 August 17507 May 1825) was an Italian classical composer, conductor, and teacher. He was born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, and spent his adult life and career as a subject of the Habsburg monarchy ...
, premiered at Fontainebleau, 2 November.
*1786: ''
Œdipe à Colone'', opera in 3 acts, music by Antonio Sacchini, premiered at Versailles, 4 January
*1788: ''
Arvire et Evélina'', tragédie lyrique in 3 acts, music by Antonio Sacchini, premiered at the Académie royale de musique, 29 April.
*1790: ''Louis IX en Égypte'', opera in 3 acts, with
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'Harlevil ...
, music by Jean-Baptiste Moyne, premiered at the Académie royale de musique, 15 June;
*1792: ''Elfride'', heroic drama in 3 acts, music by Jean-Baptiste Moyne, premiered at the
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 ...
, 17 December.
*1793: ''Miltiade à Marathon'', opera in 2 acts, music by Jean-Baptiste Moyne, presented at the
Opéra de Paris
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 ...
15
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 ...
an II (5 November)
*1794: ''
Proserpine'', tragédie lyrique in 3 acts, after the libretto by
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 w ...
, music by
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 T ...
, presented at the Opéra de Paris, 8
germinal an II (28 March)
*1798: ''Olimpie'', tragédie lyrique in 3 acts, music by
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 ...
, presented at the Théâtre de la République et des Arts à Paris, 18
frimaire
Frimaire () was the third month in the French Republican Calendar. The month was named after the French word ''frimas'', which means ''frost''.
Frimaire was the third month of the autumn quarter (''mois d'automne''). It started between 21 Novem ...
an VII (8 December)
*1801: ''Le Casque et les colombes'', opéra-ballet in one act, music by André Grétry, premiered at the Opéra de Paris, 7 November.
*1809: ''
La Mort d'Adam
''La mort d'Adam'' is a tragédie lyrique on a biblical theme in 3 acts by Jean-François Le Sueur with a French libretto by Nicolas-François Guillard after Klopstock, first performed in 1809, though written a few years earlier.
Composition and ...
'', religious tragédie lyrique, music by
Jean-François Lesueur
Jean-François is a French given name. Notable people bearing the given name include:
* Jean-François Carenco (born 1952), French politician
* Jean-François Champollion (1790–1832), French Egyptologist
* Jean-François Clervoy (born 1958), Fr ...
.
References
*
Further reading
*F. Pillet: "Guillard (Nicolas-François)", ''Biographie universelle'', ed. L. G. Michaud (Paris, 1843–65)
*E. Desnues: "Guillard (Nicolas-François)", ''Nouvelle biographie générale'', ed. J. C. F. Hoefer (Paris, 1852–66)
*P. Howard: ''Gluck and the Birth of Modern Opera'' (London, 1963)
*P. Smith: ''The Tenth Muse: a Historical Study of the Opera Libretto'' (London, 1971)
*
J. Rushton: "''Iphigénie en Tauride'': The Operas of Gluck and Piccinni", ''
Music & Letters
''Music & Letters'' is an academic journal published quarterly by Oxford University Press with a focus on musicology. The journal sponsors the Music & Letters Trust, twice-yearly cash awards of variable amounts to support research in the music fie ...
'', vol. 53, no. 4, October 1972, pp. 411–30
External links
Nicolas-François Guillardon
Data.bnf.fr His workso
CÉSAR
{{DEFAULTSORT:Guillard, Nicolasfrancois
1752 births
1814 deaths
French opera librettists
Writers from Chartres
18th-century French dramatists and playwrights
18th-century French writers
18th-century French male writers