Le congrès des rois
Encyclopedia
Le congrès des rois was a 3-act French Revolution
ary opera
of the genre comédie mêlée d'ariettes
with a libretto
by De Maillot, a stage name used by Antoine-François Ève early in his career, and music by a collaborative of twelve composers (see below). It was a satire
directed against the "enemies of France".
The composition of the opera was ordered by the Comité du Salut public (Committee of Public Safety
) to be completed in two days. The opera was first performed on 26 February 1794 [8 vent II] by the Opéra-Comique
in the first Salle Favart and was presented a total of 2 times. At the premiere, "the length of the work and its couplets' lack of charm tired the audience, which took out its bad feelings on the ballet. Sharp whistles grew louder still, and the authors were not acknowledged." When the second performance met a similar reception, the management ended its run.
The opera tells the story of an imagined meeting of monarchs at the court of Prussia to discuss the partition of France. Participants include the kings of England, Spain, Sardinia
, and Naples, the Austrian emperor
, and the English minister Pitt
. Catherine II of Russia
has sent a representative and the pope
has delegated Cagliostro
to speak on his behalf. Madame Cagliostro engages six women, enemies of tyranny, to employ their charms to arouse the passions of these notables and have fun at their expense. Cagliostro is secretly a French patriot who plans to manipulate the others. He stages an elaborate show of ghosts who predict a revolution in which reason triumphs over error. The crowned heads are frightened, but one consoles the others: "Fortunately these are only ghosts." When the Congress finally meets, the assembly decides to partition France province by province. With a sudden burst of canons, a group of French patriots arrive and force their way into the palace. The royals flee, return in disguise as sans-culottes
crying "Vive La Republique!", and then escape. The French, having planted a liberty tree and made a bonfire of symbols of the ancien régime, dance and sing in praise of the awakening of the people and the downfall of tyranny.
The opera was later denounced in the Conseil général of the Commune de Paris
on the grounds that it espoused anti-revolutionary ideas. Its representation of Cagliostro as a virtuous republican was thought scandalous, and the presentation of "the immortal Marat" in the procession of ghosts was deemed disrespectful. Aristocrats had been seen applauding. A police report was ordered and it confirmed the charges. Further performances were banned on 17 March 1794.
The libretto has not been found. A piano-vocal score in manuscript form of the music by Henri Montan Berton
is located at the Bibliothèque nationale de France
(Départements des Imprimés, des Manuscrits et de la Musique, manuscript no. 3649).
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
ary opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
of the genre comédie mêlée d'ariettes
Comédie mêlée d'ariettes
Comédie mêlée d'ariettes is a form of French opéra comique that developed in the mid 18th century following the Querelle des Bouffons dispute over the respective merits of the French and Italian styles, between serious drama and comedy in opera.The best-known ones are Christoph Willibald Gluck's...
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 De Maillot, a stage name used by Antoine-François Ève early in his career, and music by a collaborative of twelve composers (see below). It was a satire
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
directed against the "enemies of France".
The composition of the opera was ordered by the Comité du Salut public (Committee of Public Safety
Committee of Public Safety
The Committee of Public Safety , created in April 1793 by the National Convention and then restructured in July 1793, formed the de facto executive government in France during the Reign of Terror , a stage of the French Revolution...
) to be completed in two days. The opera was first performed on 26 February 1794 [8 vent II] by the Opéra-Comique
Opéra-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...
in the first Salle Favart and was presented a total of 2 times. At the premiere, "the length of the work and its couplets' lack of charm tired the audience, which took out its bad feelings on the ballet. Sharp whistles grew louder still, and the authors were not acknowledged." When the second performance met a similar reception, the management ended its run.
The opera tells the story of an imagined meeting of monarchs at the court of Prussia to discuss the partition of France. Participants include the kings of England, Spain, Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
, and Naples, the Austrian emperor
Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor
Francis II was the last Holy Roman Emperor, ruling from 1792 until 6 August 1806, when he dissolved the Empire after the disastrous defeat of the Third Coalition by Napoleon at the Battle of Austerlitz...
, and the English minister Pitt
William Pitt the Younger
William Pitt the Younger was a British politician of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He became the youngest Prime Minister in 1783 at the age of 24 . He left office in 1801, but was Prime Minister again from 1804 until his death in 1806...
. Catherine II of Russia
Catherine II of Russia
Catherine II, also known as Catherine the Great , Empress of Russia, was born in Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia on as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg...
has sent a representative and the pope
Pope Pius VI
Pope Pius VI , born Count Giovanni Angelo Braschi, was Pope from 1775 to 1799.-Early years:Braschi was born in Cesena...
has delegated Cagliostro
Alessandro Cagliostro
Count Alessandro di Cagliostro was the alias of the occultist Giuseppe Balsamo , an Italian adventurer.-Origin:The history of Cagliostro is shrouded in rumour, propaganda and mysticism...
to speak on his behalf. Madame Cagliostro engages six women, enemies of tyranny, to employ their charms to arouse the passions of these notables and have fun at their expense. Cagliostro is secretly a French patriot who plans to manipulate the others. He stages an elaborate show of ghosts who predict a revolution in which reason triumphs over error. The crowned heads are frightened, but one consoles the others: "Fortunately these are only ghosts." When the Congress finally meets, the assembly decides to partition France province by province. With a sudden burst of canons, a group of French patriots arrive and force their way into the palace. The royals flee, return in disguise as sans-culottes
Sans-culottes
In the French Revolution, the sans-culottes were the radical militants of the lower classes, typically urban laborers. Though ill-clad and ill-equipped, they made up the bulk of the Revolutionary army during the early years of the French Revolutionary Wars...
crying "Vive La Republique!", and then escape. The French, having planted a liberty tree and made a bonfire of symbols of the ancien régime, dance and sing in praise of the awakening of the people and the downfall of tyranny.
The opera was later denounced in the Conseil général of the Commune de Paris
Paris Commune (French Revolution)
The Paris Commune during the French Revolution was the government of Paris from 1789 until 1795. Established in the Hôtel de Ville just after the storming of the Bastille, the Commune became insurrectionary in the summer of 1792, essentially refusing to take orders from the central French...
on the grounds that it espoused anti-revolutionary ideas. Its representation of Cagliostro as a virtuous republican was thought scandalous, and the presentation of "the immortal Marat" in the procession of ghosts was deemed disrespectful. Aristocrats had been seen applauding. A police report was ordered and it confirmed the charges. Further performances were banned on 17 March 1794.
The libretto has not been found. A piano-vocal score in manuscript form of the music by Henri Montan Berton
Henri Montan Berton
Henri Montan Berton was a French composer, teacher, and writer, and the son of Pierre Montan Berton.-Career:...
is located at the Bibliothèque nationale de France
Bibliothèque nationale de France
The is the National Library of France, located in Paris. It is intended to be the repository of all that is published in France. The current president of the library is Bruno Racine.-History:...
(Départements des Imprimés, des Manuscrits et de la Musique, manuscript no. 3649).
List of composers
- Henri Montan BertonHenri Montan BertonHenri Montan Berton was a French composer, teacher, and writer, and the son of Pierre Montan Berton.-Career:...
- Frédéric BlasiusFrédéric BlasiusFrédéric Blasius was a French violinist, clarinetist, conductor, and composer. Born Matthäus Blasius, he used Frédéric as his pen name on his publications in Paris.- Life and career :Blasius was born in Lauterbourg, a town in the far north-west corner of France on the Rhineland...
- Luigi CherubiniLuigi CherubiniLuigi Cherubini was an Italian composer who spent most of his working life in France. His most significant compositions are operas and sacred music. Beethoven regarded Cherubini as the greatest of his contemporaries....
- Nicolas DalayracNicolas DalayracNicolas-Marie d'Alayrac, known as Nicolas Dalayrac , was a French composer, best known for his opéras-comiques.- Biography :...
- François DevienneFrançois DevienneFrançois Devienne was a French composer and professor for flute at the Paris Conservatory.François Devienne was born in Joinville , as the youngest of fourteen children of a saddlemaker...
- Prosper-Didier DeshayesProsper-Didier DeshayesProsper-Didier Deshayes was an opera composer and dancer who lived and worked in France. In 1764 he was a balletmaster at the Comédie-Française. By 1774 he had become an assistant at the Paris Opéra...
- André Grétry
- Louis Emmanuel Jadin
- Rodolphe KreutzerRodolphe KreutzerRodolphe Kreutzer was a German violinist, teacher, conductor, and composer of forty French operas.-Biography:...
- Étienne MéhulÉtienne MéhulEtienne Nicolas Méhul was a French composer, "the most important opera composer in France during the Revolution." He was also the first composer to be called a "Romantic".-Life:...
- Jean-Pierre SoliéJean-Pierre SoliéJean-Pierre Solié was a French cellist and operatic singer. He began as a tenor, but switched and became well-known as a baritone. He sang most often at the Paris Opéra-Comique...
- Armand-Emmanuel Trial (Trial fils)
Sources
- Pougin, Arthur (1891). L'Opéra-Comique pendant la Révolution de 1788 à 1801: d'après des documents inédits et les sources les plus authentiques. Paris: Albert Savine. View at Google Books.
- Sadie, Stanley, ed. (1992). The New Grove Dictionary of Opera (4 volumes). London: Macmillan. ISBN 9781561592289.
- Wild, Nicole; Charlton, David (2005). Théâtre de l'Opéra-Comique Paris: répertoire 1762-1972. Sprimont, Belgium: Editions Mardaga. ISBN 9782870098981.