Blaise le savetier
Encyclopedia
Blaise le savetier is a 1759 one-act opéra comique
, by the French composer François-André Danican Philidor
. The libretto
was by Michel-Jean Sedaine
, after a story by Jean de La Fontaine
entitled Conte d'une chose arrivée à Château-Thierry.
at the Foire St Germain
in Paris
, on 9 March 1759. Very successful in Paris, the work was also performed in French in Brussels
in January 1760, and The Hague
in 1760. It was revived at the Hôtel de Bourgogne
on 3 February 1762 in a double-bill with Monsigny's
On ne s'avise jamais de tout for the inaugural performance of the new company formed by the merger of the Opera-Comique with the Théâtre-Italien. Further performances in French were given in Amsterdam
beginning on 26 May 1762, Turin
in the spring of 1765, Hanover
on 17 July 1769, and Kassel
on 21 July 1784. A more recent revival, conducted by André Cluytens
, was given in the Salle Favart on 29 September 1949 with Lucienne Jourfier as Blaisine, Nadine Renaux as Mme Prince, Jean Giraudeau
as Blaise, Serge Rallier as M. Prince, Jean Michel as Babiche, Michel Forel as Mathurin, and Guy Saint-Clair as Jeannot (Nicaise).
in 1772 and Munich
on 19 May 1785. An adaptation in Swedish was prepared by C. Envallsson and performed in Stockholm
on 21 April 1797. A Dutch version by J. T. Neyts was also published (no date). A German adaptation called Der Dorfbarbier with text by C. F. Weisse and music by Johann Adam Hiller was first produced in Leipzig
in 1771. An English translation called The Landlord outwitted or The Cobler's Wife was performed Sadler's Wells on 23 June 1783 and 10 May 1784, and as Who pays the Rent, or The Landlord outwitted on 8 May 1787. An adaptation called The Cobler; or A Wife of Ten Thousand with text and music by Charles Didbin was first produced in London at Drury Lane
on 9 December 1774.
Opéra comique
Opéra comique is a genre of French opera that contains spoken dialogue and arias. It emerged out of the popular opéra comiques en vaudevilles of the Fair Theatres of St Germain and St Laurent , which combined existing popular tunes with spoken sections...
, by the French composer François-André Danican Philidor
François-André Danican Philidor
François-André Danican Philidor , often referred to as André Danican Philidor during his lifetime, was a French composer and chess player. He contributed to the early development of the opéra comique...
. The 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...
was by Michel-Jean Sedaine
Michel-Jean Sedaine
Michel-Jean Sedaine was a French dramatist, was born in Paris.- Biography :His father, who was an architect, died when Sedaine was quite young, leaving no fortune, and the boy began life as a mason's labourer...
, after a story by Jean de La Fontaine
Jean de La Fontaine
Jean de La Fontaine was the most famous French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known above all for his Fables, which provided a model for subsequent fabulists across Europe and numerous alternative versions in France, and in French regional...
entitled Conte d'une chose arrivée à Château-Thierry.
Performance history
The first complete opéra comique by the composer, it was premiered by the Opéra-ComiqueOpéra-Comique
The Opéra-Comique is a Parisian 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 at the Hôtel de Bourgogne, and was also called the...
at the Foire St Germain
Théâtre de la foire
Théâtre de la foire is the collective name given to the theatre put on at the annual fairs at Saint-Germain and Saint-Laurent in Paris.-Foire Saint-Germain:The earliest references to the annual fair date to 1176...
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...
, on 9 March 1759. Very successful in Paris, the work was also performed in French in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
in January 1760, and The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
in 1760. It was revived at the Hôtel de Bourgogne
Hôtel de Bourgogne
Until the 16th century, the Hôtel de Bourgogne was the name of the Paris residence of the Dukes of Burgundy. Today, the last vestige is the Tour Jean sans Peur, 20 rue Étienne Marcel, in the 2nd arrondissement.-Theatre:...
on 3 February 1762 in a double-bill with Monsigny's
Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny
Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny was a French composer and a member of the French Académie des Beaux-Arts .He is considered alongside André Grétry and François-André Danican Philidor to have been the founder of a new musical genre, the opéra comique, laying a path for other French composers such as...
On ne s'avise jamais de tout for the inaugural performance of the new company formed by the merger of the Opera-Comique with the Théâtre-Italien. Further performances in French were given in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
beginning on 26 May 1762, Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
in the spring of 1765, Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
on 17 July 1769, and Kassel
Kassel
Kassel is a town located on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Kassel Regierungsbezirk and the Kreis of the same name and has approximately 195,000 inhabitants.- History :...
on 21 July 1784. A more recent revival, conducted by André Cluytens
André Cluytens
André Cluytens was a Belgian-born French conductor who was active in the concert hall, opera house and recording studio. His repertoire extended from Viennese classics through French composers to 20th century works...
, was given in the Salle Favart on 29 September 1949 with Lucienne Jourfier as Blaisine, Nadine Renaux as Mme Prince, Jean Giraudeau
Jean Giraudeau
Jean Giraudeau, born Toulon, 1 July 1916, died 7 February 1995, was a French tenor, and later theatre director, particularly associated with the Opéra-Comique in Paris, and described as having a “lyrical voice” as well as being “a superb character actor”....
as Blaise, Serge Rallier as M. Prince, Jean Michel as Babiche, Michel Forel as Mathurin, and Guy Saint-Clair as Jeannot (Nicaise).
Adaptations
It was translated into German by J. H. Faber and performed in FrankfurtFrankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
in 1772 and Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
on 19 May 1785. An adaptation in Swedish was prepared by C. Envallsson and performed in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
on 21 April 1797. A Dutch version by J. T. Neyts was also published (no date). A German adaptation called Der Dorfbarbier with text by C. F. Weisse and music by Johann Adam Hiller was first produced in Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
in 1771. An English translation called The Landlord outwitted or The Cobler's Wife was performed Sadler's Wells on 23 June 1783 and 10 May 1784, and as Who pays the Rent, or The Landlord outwitted on 8 May 1787. An adaptation called The Cobler; or A Wife of Ten Thousand with text and music by Charles Didbin was first produced in London at Drury Lane
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. The building faces Catherine Street and backs onto Drury Lane. The building standing today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same location dating back to 1663,...
on 9 December 1774.
Critical evaluation
Julian Rushton comments that the work "combines well-turned ariettes with [Philidor's] usual flair for ensemble writing, forming an excellent farce. Stylized laughter, sobbing and trembling anticipate later onomatopoeic effects, and the characterization, if simple, is already acute." Daniel Heartz has written that "the strengths of Philidor's art are already fully apparent in Blaise. His ability to characterize different personalities or actions simultaneously represents a breakthrough in opera, and not just in France."Heartz 2003, p. 748. André Grétry asserted that Philidor was the first to create ensembles with contrasting rhythms, and that nothing like it had been heard in Italian theatres (where Grétry had studied in the 1760s). He credited Philidor's ability to produce these complex amalgams to his mastery of chess, and ranked Philidor on a level with Gluck "from the strength of the harmonic expression".Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 9 March 1759 |
|---|---|---|
| Blaise | tenor Tenor The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2... |
Oudinot |
| Blaisine | soprano Soprano A 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... |
Deschamps |
| Mme Pince, the landlady | soprano | Vincent |
| M Pince, her husband | baritone Baritone Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or... |
Jean-Louis Laruette |
| Nicaise (Jeannot), Blaise's cousin | tenor | Bouret |
| Babiche, first bailiff | tenor | Vilmont |
| Mathurin, second bailiff | bass | De Lisle |
Synopsis
The story concerns an attractive, but penniless, young couple and a predatory landlady and her husband. The landlady tries to buy the favours of the young man, while her husband attempts to seduce his wife - with farcical results!Sources
- Amadeus Almanac, accessed 25 November 2010
- Brenner, Clarence D. (1961). The Theatre Italien: Its Repertory, 1716–1793. Berkeley: University of California Press.
- Heartz, Daniel (2003). Music in European Capitals: The Galant Style, 1720–1780. New York: W. W. Norton. ISBN 9780393050806.
- Loewenberg, Alfred (1978). Annals of Opera 1597–1940 (third edition, revised). Totowa, New Jersey: Rowman and Littlefield. ISBN 9780874718515.
- Rushton, Julian (1992), 'Blaise le savetier' in The New Grove Dictionary of OperaNew Grove Dictionary of OperaThe New Grove Dictionary of Opera is an encyclopedia of opera, considered to be one of the best general reference sources on the subject. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volumes....
, ed. Stanley Sadie (London) ISBN 0-333-73432-7 - Wild, Nicole; Charlton, David (2005). Théâtre de l'Opéra-Comique Paris: répertoire 1762-1972. Sprimont, Belgium: Editions Mardaga. ISBN 9782870098981.
- Wolff, Stéphane (1953). Un demi-siècle d'Opéra-Comique (1900-1950). Paris: André Bonne.