Don Quichotte chez la Duchesse
Encyclopedia
Don Quichotte chez la Duchesse (Don Quixote at the Duchess') is a "comic ballet" (comédie lyrique) by the French
baroque
composer Joseph Bodin de Boismortier
. Although it is described as a ballet, it is sung throughout with a libretto
by Charles Simon Favart
.
in Paris
.
novel Don Quixote, in which a Duke and Duchess amuse themselves by creating an elaborate ruse to fool the title character.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
baroque
Baroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
composer Joseph Bodin de Boismortier
Joseph Bodin de Boismortier
Joseph Bodin de Boismortier was a French baroque composer of instrumental music, cantatas, opéra-ballets, and vocal music...
. Although it is described as a ballet, it is sung throughout with a libretto
Libretto
A libretto is the text used in 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 liturgical works, such as mass, requiem, and sacred cantata, or even the story line of a...
by Charles Simon Favart
Charles Simon Favart
Charles Simon Favart was a French dramatist.Born in Paris, the son of a pastry-cook, he was educated at the college of Louis-le-Grand, and after his father's death he carried on the business for a time...
.
Performance history
It was first performed on 12 February 1743 at the Académie Royale de Musique et de DanceAcadémie Royale de Musique
The Salle Le Peletier was the home of the Paris Opera from 1821 until the building was destroyed by fire in 1873. The theatre was designed and constructed by the architect François Debret on the site of the former Hôtel de Choiseul...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
Roles
- Don Quichotte, haute-contreHaute-contreThe haute-contre is a rare type of high tenor voice, predominant in French Baroque and Classical opera until the latter part of the eighteenth century.-History:...
Jean-Antoine Bérard - Sancho Pança, taille (baritenorBaritenorBaritenor is a musical term formed by a blend of the words "baritone" and "tenor". It is used to describe both baritone and tenor voices. In Webster's Third New International Dictionary it is defined as "a baritone singing voice with virtually a tenor range"...
) Louis-Antoine Cuvilliers - Altisidore, sopranoSopranoA soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
Marie FelMarie FelMarie Fel was a French opera singer, daughter of the organist Henri Fel.Marie Fel was born at Bordeaux. She made her debut at the Paris Opera in 1733 and sang regularly at the Concert Spirituel... - Peasant girl, soprano Mlle Bourbonnois
- Woman, soprano
- Duke, bass
- Merlin, basse-taille (bass-baritoneBass-baritoneA bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing three Wagnerian roles: the Dutchman in Der fliegende...
) Person - Montésinos, basse-taille Albert
- Japanese man, basse-taille Person
- Japanese woman, soprano Marie Fel
- Enchanted lovers, sopranos Mlles Clairon and Gondré
- Ballerinas, Marie Anne de Cupis de CamargoMarie Anne de Cupis de CamargoMarie Anne de Cupis de Camargo sometimes known simply as La Gorda Camargo, was a French/Belgian dancer...
and Mimi Dallemand - Male dancers, David Dumoulin, Louis DupréLouis DupréLouis Dupré was a French ballet dancer, ballet master and ballet teacher.-Life:Probably first dancing in child rôles under the name "petit Dupré", he made his official débuts at the Académie royale de musique in 1714 and became its ballet master in 1739. From 1725 to 1730, he regularly put on...
and Jean-Barthélémy Lany
Synopsis
The opera is based upon an episode in the CervantesMiguel de Cervantes
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was a Spanish novelist, poet, and playwright. His magnum opus, Don Quixote, considered the first modern novel, is a classic of Western literature, and is regarded amongst the best works of fiction ever written...
novel Don Quixote, in which a Duke and Duchess amuse themselves by creating an elaborate ruse to fool the title character.
Discography
- Don Quichotte chez la la Duchesse (Comic Ballet in Three Acts), by Joseph Bodin de Boismortier. Hervé NiquetHervé NiquetHervé Niquet is a French conductor, harpsichordist, tenor, and the director of Le Concert Spirituel, specializing in French Baroque music.-Biography:...
(conductor) and the Ensemble "Le Concert Spirituel" ; Naxos 8.553647 (1996).