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- 1er quatuor, pour deux violons, alto et basse, oeuvre 5
- Musical score containing the four parts of Charles Dancla's first string quartet, op.5 in F minor, written for two violins, with alto and bass.
- 7e. quatuor, pour deux violons, alto et violoncelle, oeuv.80
- This is a digital copy of the four parts of Charles Dancla's seventh string quartet, op.80 in D minor. Charles Dancla was the most prominent member of a family of musicians and a virtuoso violinist, composer and teacher. In 1828, he was admitted to the Paris Conservatory of Music, where he won the first prize in 1833. At the Conservatory, he studied violin with Paul Guérin and Pierre Baillot. Dancla played solo violin with the orchestra of the théâtre Royal de l'Opera Comique and with the Société des Concerts. In ca. 1860, he was appointed professor of violin at the Paris Conservatory and retired from that post in 1892. He wrote 14 string quartets intended for professional or amateur players (opp. 5, 7 ,18, 41, 48, 56, 80, 87, 101, 113, 125, 142, 160, and 195a) and three easy string quartets (op. 208).
- Achille et Polixene, tragédie dont le prologue & les quatre derniers actes
- Achille et Polixene, Jean-Baptiste Lully's last opera, premiered on 7 November 1687, eight months after Lully's death on March 22 of that year. Since the composer had only finished the overture and first act, the score was completed by Pascal Colasse, Lully's secretary and student, to a text by Jean Galbert de Campistron based on events in Virgil's Aeneid.
- Airs russes, [op.20]
- Musical score for "Airs russes" written for piano by Leopold von Meyer, as part of opus 20. This piece was issued as the second of four pieces published under the title "Repertoire de Léopold de Meyer."
- Alceste: tragedie opera en trois actes
- According to Grove Music, "when Admetus, King of Pherae in Thessaly, is ill and about to die an oracle announces that he will be saved if someone else is willing to die in his stead. His wife Alcestis displays her conjugal devotion by offering herself; she dies and Admetus recovers. Under the influence of tragédie lyrique, Calzabigi enriched his libretto with choruses, ballets and opportunities for impressive scenery."
- Amadis, tragedie en musique
- Libretto of the 1684 opera "Amadis," by Philippe Quinolt. The premiere of Amadis was delayed for a year after Lully completed its composition in order to allow the proper mourning period for Marie Thérese, wife of Louis XIV, who died in July of 1683. While still abstaining from theater at court, Louis XIV at last allowed the first public presentation of "Amadis" at the Opéra in Paris on 18 January 1684. It was an immediate public success. On the title page for this opera, there is a lithograph illustration of the god Apollo holding a lyre and the goddess Euterpe playing a stringed instrument that resembles a guitar. It also depicts the fleur de lis, and on the background, an allegorical image Louis XIV, the Sun King.
- Amadis; tragedie, mise en musique
- The premiere of Amadis was delayed for a year after Lully completed its composition in order to allow the proper mourning period for Marie Thérese, wife of Louis XIV, who died in July of 1683. While still abstaining from theater at court, Louis XIV at last allowed the first public presentation of Amadis at the Opéra in Paris on 18 January 1684. It was an immediate public success.
- Amour au village : opera-comique, en un acte, et en vaudeviles
- Libretto for Charles-Simon Favart's 1754 opera L'amour au village. Charles-Simon Favart gained prominence for his parodies of extant operas during the middle of the eighteenth century. His L’amour au village (1754), a typical example of the genre, was based on Carolet’s L’amour paysan (1737). The parody technique consisted of setting new texts to existing melodies and writing new dialogue based on a familiar plot. L’amour au village includes a typical vaudeville finale. In the Virtual Rare Book Room’s volume, the melody is included along with the first verse’s text. Because vaudeville finales are strophic (with one repeated melody), the subsequent verses are numbered to indicate each time the melody should begin again.
- Les amours des dieux : ballet heroique
- Mouret’s Les amours des dieux is classified as a ballet-heroïque, a type of opéra-ballet that was popular during the first half of the eighteenth century. Although the term ballet-heroïque suggests the prevalence of dance, drawing on the divertissement tradition, singing and acting are also integral parts of this genre. What distinguishes the opéra-ballet from the tragedie en musique is the use of separate plots for each entrée (comparable to an act). The segments are not entirely independent, however, in that there is typically a central, overarching idea.
- Armide
- Armide, which premiered at the Paris Opéra February 15, 1686, was the last tragédie lyrique on which Jean-Baptiste Lully collaborated with his favorite librettist, Philippe Quinault. Quinault retired from the stage after Armide, and Lully died a year later on March 22, 1687. From its first performance, Armide was considered their masterpiece. Armide is unusual among Lully and Quinault's tragédies lyriques in that it concentrates on the psychological development of a single character; the reflective style of this late work may be regarded as an early presentiment of trends toward individualism in art.
- Armide: drame héroïque
- Armide was premiered at the Paris Opéra on September 23, 1777, recalling the earlier success of Lully’s opera of the same name, which premiered nearly a century earlier on February 15, 1686. After collaborating on several reform operas with Calzabigi, Gluck revived the older dramatic tradition of Quinault (Lully's librettist) by setting the older text in the modern musical style. The seventeenth-century five act model requires more continuous music, with few distinct arias, as well as divertissements and spectacular effects. Gluck also respects the tragic conclusion endemic to the model, avoiding the modern practice of the lieto fine ("happy ending") in which misfortunes are reversed at the last possible moment.
- Armide: Drame héroique, mis en musique
- Armide was premiered at the Paris Opéra on September 23, 1777, recalling the earlier success of Lully’s opera of the same name, which premiered nearly a century earlier on February 15, 1686. After collaborating on several reform operas with Calzabigi, Gluck revived the older dramatic tradition of Quinault (Lully's librettist) by setting the older text in the modern musical style. The seventeenth-century five act model requires more continuous music, with few distinct arias, as well as divertissements and spectacular effects. Gluck also respects the tragic conclusion endemic to the model, avoiding the modern practice of the lieto fine ("happy ending") in which misfortunes are reversed at the last possible moment.
- Armide: Drame héroique, mis en musique
- Armide was premiered at the Paris Opéra on September 23, 1777, recalling the earlier success of Lully’s opera of the same name, which premiered nearly a century earlier on February 15, 1686. After collaborating on several reform operas with Calzabigi, Gluck revived the older dramatic tradition of Quinault (Lully's librettist) by setting the older text in the modern musical style. The seventeenth-century five act model requires more continuous music, with few distinct arias, as well as divertissements and spectacular effects. Gluck also respects the tragic conclusion endemic to the model, avoiding the modern practice of the lieto fine ("happy ending") in which misfortunes are reversed at the last possible moment.
- Armide : tragedie mise en musique
- Armide, which premiered at the Paris Opéra February 15, 1686, was the last tragédie lyrique on which Jean-Baptiste Lully collaborated with his favorite librettist, Philippe Quinault. Quinault retired from the stage after Armide, and Lully died a year later on March 22, 1687. From its first performance, Armide was considered their masterpiece. Armide is unusual among Lully and Quinault's tragédies lyriques in that it concentrates on the psychological development of a single character; the reflective style of this late work may be regarded as an early presentiment of trends toward individualism in art.
- Astrée
- Libretto of the 1691 opera "Astrée" by Jean de la Fontaine. Pascal Collasse composed the music of the opera which premiered under the title "Astrée et Céladon" on November 25, 1692.
- Atys : tragedie
- Atys, which premiered on 10 January 1676, is the first of the tragédies lyriques of Jean-Baptiste Lully and Philippe Quinault to conclude with a tragic ending. Joyce Newman, in Jean-Baptiste de Lully and his Tragédie Lyriques, summarizes the message of the story in this way: In [Atys], Quinault shows how actions which are not in accord with the noble ideal will bring defeat and punishment. Not only is love in opposition to glory in this opera, but also it is shown that if love is placed more highly than honor, it will bring unhappiness even to one of the immortals.
- Atys : tragédie lyrique en trois actes
- The story of Atys was first known operatically through Lully’s opera that premiered in 1676 at the court of St Germain-en-Laye. Marmontel adapted Quinault’s libretto and modified it by removing the prologue and divertissements. He also altered the plot; in lieu of Ovid’s metamorphic ending (to which Quinault had adhered), Atys commits suicide.
- Atys : tragédie lyrique en trois actes
- The story of Atys was first known operatically through Lully’s opera that premiered in 1676 at the court of St Germain-en-Laye. Marmontel adapted Quinault’s libretto and modified it by removing the prologue and divertissements. He also altered the plot; in lieu of Ovid’s metamorphic ending (to which Quinault had adhered), Atys commits suicide.
- Atys : tragedie mise en musique
- Atys, which premiered on 10 January 1676, is the first of the tragédies lyriques of Jean-Baptiste Lully and Philippe Quinault to have a tragic ending. As the Prologue indicates, the tragedie itself is a divertissement to ease the king's mind of his impending duties. Joyce Newman, in Jean-Baptiste de Lully and his Tragédie Lyriques, summarizes the message of the story in this way: "In [Atys], Quinault shows how actions which are not in accord with the noble ideal will bring defeat and punishment. Not only is love in opposition to glory in this opera, but also it is shown that if love is place more highly than honor, it will bring unhappiness even to one of the immortals."
- Atys; tragedie mise en musique
- Atys, which premiered on 10 January 1676, is the first of the tragédies lyriques of Jean-Baptiste Lully and Philippe Quinault to have a tragic ending. As the Prologue indicates, the tragedie itself is a divertissement to ease the king's mind of his impending duties. Joyce Newman, in Jean-Baptiste de Lully and his Tragédie Lyriques, summarizes the message of the story in this way: "In [Atys], Quinault shows how actions which are not in accord with the noble ideal will bring defeat and punishment. Not only is love in opposition to glory in this opera, but also it is shown that if love is place more highly than honor, it will bring unhappiness even to one of the immortals."
- Bajazeth
- Musical score containing the piano part for "Bajazeth: air national [sic] des turques pour le piano forte" by Leopold von Meyer.
- Ballet du Temple de la paix
- The elements that make up the Jean-Baptiste Lully's Ballet du Temple de la Paix have some parallels to the plot of Roland, which premiered in the same year. Both celebrate the expanding influence of France and Louis XIV through the introduction of exotic characters. The flexibility of the ballet de cour format, which was more a progression of loosely related scenes and spectacles than an organized plot, allowed librettist Philippe Quinault more freedom in his elaboration of that theme.
- Barbe bleue : comédie en prose et en trois actes
- Although the story of Bluebeard was familiar to French readers from Charles Perrault’s 1698 collection of children’s tales, transferring it to the operatic stage was problematic due in large part to the gruesome nature of the plot. Other violent works had appeared in Paris, but in this instance, the drama was to be performed at the Comédie-Italienne, which typically featured lighter plots than that of Raoul and Isaure. Nevertheless, the opera had a successful run, receiving over a hundred performances in the decade after its premiere. After its initial popularity, Raoul Bluebeard was staged less frequently, but it still made an impression on nineteenth-century composers, particularly Weber.
- Barbier de Seville [Il barbiere di Siviglia] Opéra comique en quatre actes
- Paisiello’s Il barbiere di Siviglia was based on the first play, Le barbier de Séville, ou La precaution inutile (1772), of Beaumarchais’s famous trilogy. The controversial commentary on aristocracy caused the play to be banned from the stage for three years. The ban was lifted in 1775 and the work premiered that same year; Beaumarchais finally saw the work performed in 1780 when he was employed by Catherine II in St. Petersburg. Although Rossini’s later opera (of 1816) is more familiar today, Paisiello’s rendition was extremely popular throughout Europe during its time. The work was first performed in St. Petersburg in September of 1782.
- Bellérophon; tragedie mise en musique
- Although not the first of the Jean-Baptiste Lully's tragédies lyriques, Bellérophon was the first of Lully's opera scores to appear in print. The Ballard first edition was printed in 1679 to accompany the premiere, on January 31 of that year, at the Palais Royale. Bellérophon was the second of two operas (the first was Psyché) created by Lully without librettist Philippe Quinault after the scandal associated with Isis that led to Quinault's temporary dismissal as royal librettist. After an extended illness during which he did not compose, Lully collaborated with Thomas Corneille and Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle for the second time to create one of his most unqualified successes. Following the first performance in January 1679, Bellérophon played for nine months at the Palais Royale.
- Le cadi dupé
- This is a 1766 copy of the libretto of the one-act comic opera "Le cadi dupé" (The duped judge), by Pierre René Lemonnier to music by Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny. The first performance of the opera took place at the Paris Foire St-Germain on 4 February 1761. Christoph Willibald Gluck's music replaced that of Monsigny's for the 8 December 1761 performance at the Burgtheater in Vienna.
- Le cadi dupé, opéra bouffon en un acte, representé sur le Théatre de l'opera comique
- The figured bass is unrealized in the full score of this one-act comic opera. Sung French text is underlaid; spoken text is printed before and after each song.
- Cantates françoises à I. et II. voix: avec simphonie, et sans simphonie, V. 1-2
- This item contains volumes 1 and 2 of Clérambault's "Cantates Françoises." The second volume bears the subtitle "Mellées de Simphonies." Volume 1 contains the cantatas "L'amour piqué," "Le jaloux," "Orphée," "Poliphême," "Medée," and "L'amour et Baccus." Volume 2 contains "Alphée et Arethuse," "Leandre et Hero," "La musette," "Pirame et Tisbé," "Pigmalion," and "Le triomphe de la paix." The continuo line is figured.
- Cantates françoises a voix seule et basse-continue, avec et sans symphonies, Livre second
- This item comprises two books of secular cantatas for soprano (indicated by the consistent use of the soprano clef in the vocal line), obbligato strings and winds, and (unrealized) basso continuo. The first book was printed in 1706; the second, in 1708. Since the two volumes were bound together, the later date is used for this item. The subtitle for the first volume indicates "a voix seule avec symphonies" while the subtitle for the second volume gives "a voix seule et basse-continue, avec et sans symphonies."
- Cantates, Troisieme receuil
- Collection of solo cantatas with continuo by various composers, bound subsequent to publication. A handwritten table of contents with composers and dates (where available), and possibly approximate timings, is on the first end page.
- Le carnaval de Venise
- This is a digital copy of "Le carnaval de Venise" by Leopold von Meyer. The Austrian composer and pianist von Meyer, had a successful performance career in Russia, eastern Europe and Vienna and also achieved success in London and Paris. He visited the United States on October 1845 and his histrionic performance style and bravura showpieces were received with wide acclaim. This piece was dedicate to the operatic soprano Eugenie García (née Mayer; 1815-1880), who was the first wife of the famous Spanish baritone Manuel García. "Le carnaval de Venise" is part of a bound collection of piano pieces composed by von Meyer that also includes fantasies on famous nineteenth-century operas, variations, national airs, marches, valses, an etude and nocturnes. These are the titles of all the piano pieces by von Meyer in the order in which they appear in the library's collection: Lucrezia Borgia: introduction and brilliant variations for the piano forte; Variations sur un theme de Semiramis de Rossini, op.37; Fantaisie sur L'Elixir d'amore, op.32; Fantaisie sur Norma de Bellini, op. 40; Fantaisie sur un air de Bellini; Le carnaval de Venise, varié pour le piano, op.31; Grande fantaisie orientale sur deux themes arabes, op.38; Fantaisie sur Les Hirondelles de Felicien David; Airs russes: fantaisie pour le piano forte, op.43; Marche marocaine Machmudier: air guerrier national [sic] des turcs [sic]; Grande march [sic] triomphale D'Isly, op.30; Hortense: notturno for the piano forte; Andante for the piano forte, op.42; Bajazeth: air nationale des turques; Grande etude de bataille, op.35; Quatre morceaux pour le piano forte: no.1 Le depart et le retour (deux noturnes); no.2 Airs russes, op.20; no.3 Valses brillantes; no.4 Grand gallop de bravoure.
- Le carnaval des animaux: grande fantaisie zoologique pour 2 pianos, 2 violons, alto, violoncelle, contre-basse, flute, clarinette, harmonica & xylophone C. Saint-Saëns
- Full score with conductor's annotations for Camille Saint-Saëns' Le carnaval des animaux.
- Cendrillon
- Libretto of the 1759 pastiche-style comic opera "Cendrillon," by Louis Anseaume. The songs were contributed by the singer-composer Jean-Louis Laruette and Egidio Duni, which they likely adapted from fashionable tunes. "Cendrillon" (Cinderella in English) premiered in Paris at Foire St-Germain on February 21, 1759. The opera underwent two revisions before the definitive version of 1764. Anseaume adapted the plot the fairy tale by Charles Perrault. This copy includes (from pp.54-63) notated melodies of airs and recitatives.
- Chimène, ou, le Cid: tragédie lyrique en trois actes
- A 1784 edition of Sacchini's Chimène, ou, le Cid. A label is pasted over original publishing imprint, and reads: Chez Imbault marchand de musique au mont d'or rue st honoré et la rue de Poulies NO. 627.
- La clé du caveau: à l'usage de tous les chansonniers française, des amateurs, auteurs, acteurs du vaudeville, et de tous les amis de la chanson
- Extensive collection of French poetry and songs.
- Colinette à la cour ou La double épreuve : comédie lyrique en trois actes
- A comparison of the scores for Colinette à la cour and Barbe-bleue illustrates the primary distinguishing factor between the genres of comédie lyrique and opera comique: the method of dialogue delivery. In Paris, the issue of genre was tied to the performance venue of a particular opera, due to government regulations. Although comic opera was traditionally presented with spoken dialogue, as in opera comique, when Grétry composed for the Opéra, where recitative was expected, he merged comic subject matter with the sung dialogue heard in serious opera.
- [Collection of Eleven Operas: Le triomphe de l'amour; Coronis: pastorale heroïque; Isis: tragedie en musique; Amadis: tragedie en musique; Phaeton: tragedie en musique; Proserpine: tragedie en musique; Zephire et Flore: opera; Thetis et Pelée: tragedie en musique; Enée et Lavinie: tragedie en musique; Astrée: tragedie; Roland: tragedie en musique]
- This book contains a collection of librettos for ballets, tragedies and opera staged for Louis XIV from ca. 1680-1691. The works reflect the collaboration of Jean-Baptiste Lully and dance masters and librettists in the court of Louis XIV. The following French dramatic works are included in the collection: Le triomphe de l'amour; Coronis; Isis; Amadis; Phaeton; Proserpine; Zephire et Flore; Thetis et Pelée; Enée et Lavinie; Astrée; and Roland.
- Colonie : opéra comique en deux actes
- La colonie is Nicolas Etienne Framery’s French parody of Sacchini’s Italian L’isola d’amore, which was premiered during the 1766 Roman carnival. However, Framery chose music in a pastiche-like fashion from various Sacchini operas, without actually using any arias from L’isola d’amore. Although the operas that Sacchini specifically composed for Paris faced resistance from opponents of foreign composers, La colonie received praise from critics. The 1775 French premiere at the Comédie-Italienne was quite successful; the work even drew comparisons with Pergolesi’s wildly popular La serva padrona.
- Coronis
- Libretto of the 1691 "Coronis," a French lyrical genre called pastorale-heroïque, representing the love of nobles or gods often disguised as shepherds (or shepherdesses) in Arcadian settings. Daniel-Paul Chappuzeau de Baugé wrote the libretto and Teobaldo de Gatti composed its music.
- Les Danaïdes, tragédie lirique en cinq actes
- Antonio Salieri began work on Les Danaïdes upon the recommendation of Gluck, whose health prevented him from fulfilling a commission for the work. Although Salieri was living in Vienna, the tragedie-lyrique was written for the Opéra in Paris, with a libretto by François Louis Gand Leblanc Roullet and Ludwig Theodor Tschudi based on Calzabigi’s Italian libretto.
- Dardanus : nouvelle tragédie
- Dardanus went through a number of revisions from the time of its premiere in 1739 until its final eighteenth-century run at the Opéra in 1771. The version in the Virtual Rare Book Room was first performed in 1744; the last three acts exhibit extensive plot changes from the first edition. The final version in 1760 received the most positive acclaim, especially compared to the criticisms that were made about the nonsensical plot of the first version. By this point, however, the polemic between the Lullistes and the Ramistes, which had surrounded the premiere, had subsided.
- Dardanus : tragédie lyrique en quatre actes
- Like Renaud, Sacchini’s second French opera, Dardanus, faced problems due in large part to the composer’s Italian heritage. The opera is based on Rameau’s Dardanus, which had been a topic of earlier dispute between the Lullistes and the Ramistes. After an initially disappointing reception, Dardanus was reduced from four acts to three. In its first form, the opera received only six performances, but the three-act version was performed more than thirty times during the eighteenth century. Dardanus went on to enjoy several productions in the first decade of the nineteenth century.
- Le depart et le retour, deux nocturnes
- Musical score containing a piano part for two nocturnes "Le depart" and "Le retour" by Leopold von Meyer. These nocturnes were issued as the first of four pieces published under the title "Repertoire de Léopold de Meyer."
- Le déserteur; drame en trois actes representé par les Comediens italiens ordinaires du roi le 6 mars 1769, Gravé par Mlle, Vendôme et le Sr. Moria
- This three-act opera is dedicated to His Most Serene Highness Monseigneur Duke of Orleans and premiered on 6 March 1769 at les Comediens italiens ordinaires du roi. This full score opens with a letter of dedication from the composer to his patron.
- Les deux chasseurs et la laitière; comédie en un acte
- Undated score of Egidio Duni's opera Les deux chaussures et la laitière. Duni’s French style was shaped by the developments of the War of the Buffoons, which pitted French tragic opera against Italian comic opera. The newly emergent opéra comique genre, for which Duni is still considered to be one of the major contributors, combined elements of both styles. His significance in the development of opéra comique is evident in the long-term success of Les deux chasseurs et la laitière, which was performed at the Comédie-Italien until 1792, almost twenty years after the composer’s death.
- Les deux chasseurs et la laitière; comédie en un acte
- Duni’s French style was shaped by the developments of the War of the Buffoons, which pitted French tragic opera against Italian comic opera. The newly emergent opéra comique genre, for which Duni is still considered to be one of the major contributors, combined elements of both styles. His significance in the development of opéra comique is evident in the long-term success of Les deux chasseurs et la laitière, which was performed at the Comédie-Italien until 1792, almost twenty years after the composer’s death.
- Les deux comtesses : opera bouffon imité de l'Italien et parodié sous la musique
- Paisiello’s comic operas were some of the most successful of the time. In point of fact, his operas enjoyed 251 performances in Vienna between 1783 and 1792, compared to 63 performances of Mozart’s operas. The intermezzo Le due comtesse, which first appeared in Rome (with an all-male cast) on 3 January 1776, was translated to French and parodied by Nicolas Etienne Framery, who also adapted Paisiello’s Il barbiere di Siviglia for the Parisian stage.
- Les deux journées
- Vocal score of Luigi Cherubini's rescue opera "Les deux journées" (also known by the title, The water carrier) to a libretto by Jean-Nicolas Bouilly. The first performance took place in Paris at Théâtre Feydeau on January 16, 1800 followed by 56 performance during that year. Les deux journées remained in the international repertory of operas for most of the 19th century. The piano reduction contains the text in French and German.
- Le devin du village
- As with many French operas, Rousseau’s Le devin du village was first staged for the court, appearing at Fountainebleau on 18 October 1752. The work was then performed at the Paris Opéra on 1 March 1753. The historical importance of this short intermè is closely tied to its role in the famous Querelle de bouffons, a debate about the merits of French serious opera in comparison to Italian comic opera (especially Pergolesi’s La serva padrona).
- Didon; tragédie lyrique en trois actes
- With Didon, Piccinni demonstrated his ability to combine both Italian and French styles to create a compelling tragédie lyrique. The opera includes lyrical Italian melodies and a second-act finale, as well as French choruses and numbers that transition continuously without pauses. Didon was premiered at Fountainebleau on 16 October 1783, and it remained one of Piccinni’s most popular French operas, with performances through the first part of the nineteenth century. The story of Dido had been realized on the operatic stage before Piccinni’s setting, including Cavalli’s Didone (1641), Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas (c. 1689), and Vinci’s Didone abbandonata (1726) with a libretto by Metastasio.