André Grétry

André- Ernest- Modeste Grétry ( born February 8, 1741 Liège, † September 24, 1813 in Montmorency (Val -d'Oise ) in Paris) was a Belgian- French composer.

Life

André Grétry received his first music lessons from his father, a violinist at the churches of St. Martin and St. Denis in Liege, where he was a choir boy at the age of nine years. In his memoirs, he mentions the severity of the conductor Georges- Henri Wenick. First, he took harpsichord and composition lessons with Nicolas Rennekin, and later with Henri Moreau, director of music at St. Paul. Grétry had already composed several pieces when he was in Rome in 1760 a scholarship on " Liege College Darcis ". From 1762, he studied under Giovanni Battista Casali, Kapellmeister of the Lateran Basilica. Here in Rome he composed a Confitebor, which he sent to Liege, and for the Roman Carnival 1765 Intermezzo La Vendemmiatrice. He passed an examination before the prestigious Accademia dei Filarmonici in Bologna, hereupon he prepared himself with Padre Martini. Even in Italy, he composed six string quartets, which he later published in Paris as his Opus 3.

In 1766 he settled in Geneva, where he lived by giving music and composition lessons. Here he had the first contact with French music. 1767 came to pass on the advice of Rousseau and Voltaire to Paris. In his memoirs ( Mémoires ou Essais sur la Musique ) mentioned Grétry that Voltaire advised him: "Go to Paris, where you will hasten to immortality ." There, he scored with his comic operas: Le Huron ( 1768) and Lucile (1769 ) immediately a great success.

He later their follow even more, including: Le tableau parlant, Zémire et et Azor, L'ami de la maison, Raoul ( " Bluebeard " ) and Richard Coeur -de -Lion, the latter of which has remained popular even to the present day.

1795 Grétry was appointed inspector of the Conservatory and the following year a member of the Institut de France. Later he also received a pension of Napoleon I., which put him in a position to retire to the country by Montmorency (Val -d'Oise ) in Paris. Here, where he acquired villa Jean -Jacques Rousseau, called the Hermitage, he died on 24 September 1813.

1842 established his birth city of Liege in his honor on the square in front of the Opéra Royal de Wallonie a statue by the sculptor Guillaume Geefs. Honored him in 1785 the city of Paris, she named a location at the Italian theater street after him. His birth house in the Rue des Récollets in Liege is today a museum.

In the film drama The Red Violin (1998), in addition to the original music by John Corigliano, who won an Oscar to hear compositions by Grétry.

Work

Grétry usually written for the Opéra Comique compositions are characterized by truth of musical expression and wealth of melody advantageous and have practiced a great influence on the formation of musical taste. Even as a writer, he has made advantageous known for his Mémoires, ou Essais sur la musique.

A complete edition of his operas, published by the Commission for publication of works of older Belgian composer, appeared from 1883. Edouard Gregoir (Brussels 1883) and Michel Brenet (Brussels 1884) wrote biographies Grétry.

Operas

• La Vendemmiatrice ( 1765 )
• Isabelle et Gertrude ou Les Sylphes Supposes (1766)
• Les Mariage Samnites ( 1768)
• Le Connaisseur ( 1768)
• Le Huron ( 1768)
• Lucile (1769, this opera the song that were found Où peut être mieux on qu'au be de sa famille served after the Restoration of 1815 as the unofficial anthem of the Bourbon king )
• Le Tableau parlant (1769 )
• Momus sur la terre (1769 )
• Silvain (1770 )
• Les Deux Avares (1770 )
• L' Amitié à l' épreuve (1770 )
• L' Ami de la maison (1771 )
• Zémire et et Azor (1771 )
• Le Magnifique (1773 )
• La Rosière de Salency (1773 )
• Cephalic et Procris ou L' amour conjugal (1773 )
• La Fausse Magic ( 1775)
• Les Mariage Samnites [ rev ] (1776 )
• Pygmalion (1776 )
• Amour pour amour (1777 )
• Matroco (1777 )
• Le Jugement de Midas ( 1778)
• Les Trois AGES de l' opéra ( 1778)
• Les Fausses apparences ou L' Amant jaloux ( 1778)
• Les Statues ( 1778)
• Les Événements imprévus (1779 )
• Aucassin et Nicolette ou Les vieux temps du bon Moeurs (1779 )
• Andromaque (1780; Libretto: Pitra, based on the drama of Racine's Andromache )
• Emilie ou La Belle Esclave (1781 )
• Colinette à la cour ou La Double Épreuve ( 1782 )
• L' Embarras of richesses ( 1782 )
• Électre ( 1782 )
• Les Colonnes d' Alcide ( 1782 )
• Thalie au nouveau théâtre (1783 )
• La Caravan du Caire (1783 )
• Théodore et Paulin (1784 )
• Richard Cœur de Lion (1784 )
• Panurge dans l' île des lanternes ( 1785 )
• Œedipe à Colonne ( 1785 )
• Amphitryon (1786 )
• Le Mariage d' Antonio ( 1786)
• Les Méprises par ressemblance (1786, in collaboration with Angélique - Dorothée -Lucie Grétry )

• Le Comte d' Albert ( 1786)
• Toinette et Louis (1787, in collaboration with Angélique - Dorothée -Lucie Grétry )
• Le Prisonnier anglais (1787 )
• Le Rival confident (1788 )
• Raoul Barbe- bleue (1789 )
• Aspasia (1789 )
• Pierre le Grand (1790)
• Roger et Olivier ( 1790)
• Guillaume Tell ( 1791)
• Cécile et Ermancé ou Les Deux couvents (1792 )
• Basile ou à trompeur, trompeur et demi (1792 )
• Séraphine ou Absente et présente (1792 )
• Le Congrès des rois (1794 )
• Joseph Barra (1794 )
• Denys le tyran, maître d' école à Corinthe (1794 )
• La fête de la raison (1794 )
• Callias ou Nature et patrie (1794 )
• Diogène et Alexandre ( 1794)
• Lisbeth (1797 )
• Anacréon chez Polycrate (1797 )
• Le Barbier du village ou Le Revenant (1797 )
• Elisca ou L' Amour maternel (1799 )
• Le Casque et les colombes (1801 )
• Zelmar ou L' Asile (1801 )
• Le Ménage (1803 )
• Les Filles pourvues (1803 )

Works for wind

• Céphal et Procris suite in four movements, Gigue, Minuet, Gavotte, Tambourin
• Pour la Ronde Plantation de l' Arbre de la Liberté.

Other works

• String Quartet Op 3 No 1 in G major ( Andantino - Allegro - Fuga )
• String Quartet op 3 No. 2 in E flat major ( Allegro - Larghetto - Allegro)
• String Quartet op 3 No. 3 in F major ( Allegro - Minuetto - Allegro - Allegro assai )
• String Quartet op 3 No. 4 in D major (Allegro assai - Andantino - Tempo di minuetto )
• String Quartet op 3 No. 5 in G major (Andante - Allegro - Allegro)
• String Quartet op 3 No. 6 in C minor ( Larghetto - Allegro moderato - Allegro fuga )
• Instrumental Music ( ballets, prologues )
• Vowels works (chants révolutionnaires, romances )
• Sacred Music ( Great Mass ( 1758), De Profundis, Requiem)