''Ossian, ou Les bardes'' (English: ''Ossian, or The Bards'') is an opera in five acts by the French composer Jean-François Le Sueur. The

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 t ...

, by Alphonse François "Paul" Palat-Dercy and

Jacques-Marie Deschamps Jacques-Marie Deschamps (1750, Paris – 1826) was an 18th–19th-century French playwright, librettist and writer. During the French First Empire, Deschamps was Joséphine de Beauharnais's "secrétaire des commandements" and remained at her s ...

, is based on the

Ossian Ossian (; Irish Gaelic/Scottish Gaelic: ''Oisean'') is the narrator and purported author of a cycle of epic poems published by the Scottish poet James Macpherson, originally as ''Fingal'' (1761) and ''Temora'' (1763), and later combined under t ...

poems of James Macpherson (specifically the poem "Calthon and Colmal"), which had been translated into French by .

Performance history

Le Sueur probably began work on the opera as early as 1795. It was first performed at 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 10 July 1804. The premiere was a huge success, especially with Emperor

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

, who was a great admirer of the Ossian poems. Napoleon was so enthusiastic, he invited the composer to join him in the imperial box at the third act and the next day he sent Le Sueur a gold casket engraved "The Emperor Napoleon to the author of ''Les bardes''", containing the cross of the Légion d'honneur. The opera received almost 70 performances over the next 12 years.

Roles

Synopsis

The opera is set in an imaginary Scotland in the third century AD.

Caledonia Caledonia (; ) was the Latin name used by the Roman Empire to refer to the part of Great Britain () that lies north of the River Forth, which includes most of the land area of Scotland. Today, it is used as a romantic or poetic name for all ...

has been invaded by the Scandinavians under their leader Duntalmo. He oppresses the Caledonians and imposes the worship of

Odin Odin (; from non, Óðinn, ) is a widely revered Æsir, god in Germanic paganism. Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about him, associates him with wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, knowledge, war, battle, v ...

on them. He also plans to marry his son Mornal to Rosmala, daughter of the

bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise t ...

Rozmor, who is already betrothed to the bard and warrior Ossian. Finally, a group of Caledonians defeat the Scandinavians and Ossian is able to marry Rosmala.

The work

The opera is on an epic scale and contains many experimental elements. For instance, act 4 has visions of heroes and bards in a cave behind a backlit curtain of gauze. The score also calls for 12

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...

s as the bards hymn the rising sun. According to the musicologist David Charlton, ''Les bardes'' turns away from the classical aesthetic of Gluck (the dominant operatic influence of the time in France) and prefigures grand opera. The work had an influence on Le Sueur's most famous pupil,

Hector Berlioz In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

References

External links