(English: ''Tithonus and Aurora'') is an

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

in three acts and a prologue by the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

composer

Jean-Joseph de Mondonville Jean-Joseph de Mondonville (, 25 December 1711 (baptised) – 8 October 1772), also known as Jean-Joseph Cassanéa de Mondonville, was a French violinist and composer. He was a younger contemporary of Jean-Philippe Rameau and enjoyed great succe ...

which was first performed 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 kn ...

in Paris on 9 January 1753. The authorship of the

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) 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 th ...

has been subject to debate; Mondonville's contemporaries ascribed the prologue to Antoine Houdar de la Motte and the three acts of the opera to the Abbé de La Marre. ''Titon et l'Aurore'' belongs to the genre known as the ''

pastorale héroïque Pastorale refers to something of a pastoral nature in music, whether in form or in mood. In Baroque music, a pastorale is a movement of a melody in thirds over a drone bass, recalling the Christmas music of ''pifferari'', players of the trad ...

''. The work played an important role in the so-called

Querelle des Bouffons The ("Quarrel of the Comic Actors"), also known as the ("War of the Comic Actors"), was the name given to a battle of musical philosophies that took place in Paris between 1752 and 1754. The controversy concerned the relative merits of French ...

, a dispute over the relative merits of the French and Italian operatic traditions which dominated the intellectual life of Paris in the early 1750s. The tremendous success of Mondonville's opera at its premiere was an important victory for the French camp (although their Italian rivals claimed that this was because they had been excluded from their seats by members of the army). ''Titon'' was one of Mondonville's most popular works and went on to enjoy several revivals during his lifetime.

Roles

Synopsis

*Prologue Promethée (

Prometheus In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning "forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titans, Titan. He is best known for defying the Olympian gods by taking theft of fire, fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technol ...

) has stolen fire from heaven to give life to his statues. L'Amour (

Cupid In classical mythology, Cupid ( , meaning "passionate desire") is the god of desire, erotic love, attraction and affection. He is often portrayed as the son of the love goddess Venus and the god of war Mars. He is also known as Amor (Latin: ...

) teaches them about the delights of love. *Act One Titon (

Tithonus In Greek mythology, Tithonus ( or ; ) was the lover of Eos, Goddess of the Dawn. He was a prince of Troy, the son of King Laomedon by the Naiad Strymo (). The mythology reflected by the fifth-century vase-painters of Athens envisaged Tithonus a ...

), a mortal shepherd, is in love with Aurore (

Aurora An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...

), the goddess of the dawn. He awaits her and when she arrives the two sing of their love for each other. This arouses the jealousy of Eole (

Aeolus In Greek mythology, Aiolos, transcribed as Aeolus (; ; ) refers to three characters. These three are often difficult to tell apart, and even the ancient mythographers appear to have been perplexed about which Aeolus was which. Diodorus Siculus m ...

), the god of the winds, who is in love with Aurore. Palès (

Pales In ancient Roman religion, Pales was a deity of shepherds, flocks and livestock. Regarded as male by some sources and female by others, ''Pales'' can be either singular or plural in Latin, and refers at least once to a pair of deities. Pales' fe ...

), the goddess of shepherds, flocks and livestock, is also in love with Titon and asks Eole to be allowed to deal with him. *Act Two Aurore rejects Eole's advances, saying she would rather lose her immortality than the love of Titon. Palès is also unsuccessful in her wooing of Titon and her love turns to anger. *Act Three Palès curses Titon with premature old age. Nevertheless, Aurore remains faithful to him and L'Amour saves the day by reversing the spell.

Recordings

*''Titon et l'Aurore''

Jean-Paul Fouchécourt 2015 Jean-Paul Fouchécourt is a French tenor, mostly as an opera singer. He was born on 30 August 1958 at Blanzy in the Burgundy region. He is best known for singing French Baroque music, especially the parts called in French ''haute-contre'', ...

, Catherine Napoli,

Philippe Huttenlocher Philippe Huttenlocher (born 29 November 1942) is a Swiss baritone. Life and career He was born in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. He first studied violin at the conservatory in Neuchâtel, and then voice in Fribourg. In 1972, he won the international sin ...

Les Musiciens du Louvre Les Musiciens du Louvre (literally ''The Musicians of the Louvre'') is a French Historically informed performance, period instrument ensemble, formed in 1982. Originally based in Paris, since 1996 it has been based in the Couvent des Minimes de Gre ...

, conducted by

Marc Minkowski Marc Minkowski (born 4 October 1962) is a French conductor of classical music, especially known for his interpretations of French Baroque works. Minkowski was musical director of Mozartwoche in Salzburg, Austria, from 2013 to 2017 and was gene ...

(Erato, 1992) *''Titon et l'Aurore'', Les Arts Florissants, dir. William Christie, Naxos DVD (2021)

References

;Notes ;Sources * Original libretto: ''Titon et l'Aurore, Pastorale Héroïque, Représentée pour la Première Fois, par l'Académie Royale de Musique, Le Mardi neuf Janvier 1753'', Paris, Delormel, 1753 (accessible for free online a
Internet Archive
* Period printed score: ''Titon et l'Aurore, Pastorale Héroïque Dediée À Monseigneur le Prince de Soubise Mise en Musique par Monsieur Mondonville '' (Œvre VIII^e}), Paris Chez l'Auteur, s.d. (accessible for free online a
Gallica - Bibliothèque Nationale de France
* Booklet notes to the Minkowski recording {{Authority control French-language operas Operas by Jean-Joseph Cassanéa de Mondonville 1753 operas Operas Aurora (mythology) Operas based on classical mythology