Guillaume Tell (Grétry)
| André Grétry |
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Operas
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Guillaume Tell (William Tell) is an opéra comique, described as a drame mise en musique, in three acts by André Grétry, The French text was by Michel-Jean Sedaine based on a play of the same name by Antoine-Marin Lemierre.
Performance history
It was first performed by the Comédie-Italienne at the first Salle Favart in Paris on 9 April 1791 and was revived on 24 May 1828 at the Salle Feydeau in a version much revised by Henri Montan Berton with music borrowed from other works of Grétry, including Amphitryon, Céphale et Procris, Aucassin et Nicolette, Callias, and Élisca, and a new libretto by Jean-Baptiste Pélissier.[1] Grétry's Guillaume Tell disappeared from the repertoire as Rossini's 1829 opera on the same subject gained preference.
An Opéra royal de Wallonie production at the Theatre Royal in Liege in July 2013 featured Marc Laho in the title role and was conducted by Claudio Scimone.[2]
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast,[3] 9 April 1791 (Conductor: – ) |
|---|---|---|
| Guesler | baritone | Simon Chénard |
| Guillaume Tell | tenor | Philippe Cauvy, 'Philippe' |
| Madame Tell | soprano | Desforges |
| Marie, Guillaume Tell's daughter | soprano | Rose Renaud |
| Melktal, the son | tenor | Elvion |
| Melktal, the father | baritone | Pierre-Marie Narbonne |
| An officer | Solier | |
| An old man | Favard | |
| Surlemann | Granger | |
| A traveller | Menier | |
| Traveller's wife | Lescaut | |
| Traveller's little girl | Chénard | |
| Chorus: Soldiers, village boys and girls, people | ||
Synopsis
The opera is set in 13th century Switzerland. Like Rossini's later work of the same name it portrays the heroic struggle of the liberty-aspiring Swiss patriots led by Tell against the evil and oppressive Austrians under Guesler, the local governor.
References
- ↑ Wild & Charlton 2005, pp. 54, 272.
- ↑ Grétry à l’Opéra royal de Wallonie : l’autre Guillaume Tell Retrieved 20 July 2013.
- ↑ Guillaume Tell, Drame en Trois Actes, en Prose et en Vers; par le Citoyen Sedaine, Musique de Citoyen Gretry. Maradan Libraire, Paris, 1793. Singers in Kutsch & Riemens (2003): Pierre-Marie Narbonne, Rose Renard, Simon Chenard.
Sources
- Casaglia, Gherardo (2005).[http://www.amadeusonline.net/almanacco?r=&alm_giorno=09&alm_mese=04&alm_anno=1791&alm_testo=Guillaume_Tell "Guillaume Tell, 9 April 1791"]. Almanacco Amadeus (Italian).
- Charlton, David (1992). Guillaume Tell in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, edited by Stanley Sadie. London: Macmillan. ISBN 0333734327
- Kutsch, K. J.; Riemens, Leo (2003). Grosses Sängerlexikon (fourth edition, in German). Munich: K. G. Saur. ISBN 9783598115981.
- Wild, Nicole; Charlton, David (2005). Théâtre de l'Opéra-Comique Paris: répertoire 1762-1972. Sprimont, Belgium: Editions Mardaga. ISBN 9782870098981.