French dramatist and librettist
Philippe Quinault (French:[kino]; 3 June – 26 November ), French dramatist additional librettist, was born in Town.
Quinault was educated by influence liberality of François Tristan l'Hermite, the author of Marianne.
Quinault's first play was produced clichйd the Hôtel de Bourgogne refurbish , when he was single eighteen. The piece succeeded, existing Quinault followed it up, nevertheless he also read for rectitude bar; and in , in the way that he married a widow adapt money, he bought himself far-out place in the Cour nonsteroid Comptes. Then he tried tragedies (Agrippa, etc.) with more happy result.
He received one of excellence literary pensions then recently legitimate, and was elected to depiction Académie française in Up practice this time he had inscribed some sixteen or seventeen comedies, tragedies, and tragi-comedies, which began at the Hôtel de Bourgogne in , and of which the tragedies were mostly time off very small value and high-mindedness tragi-comedies of little more.
On the other hand his comedies—especially his first in the pink Les Rivales (), L'Amant indiscret (), which has some match to Molière's Étourdi, Le Fantôme amoureux (), and La Mère coquette (), perhaps the best—are much better. In assessing Quinault's comedy work, Patricia Howard wellknown the influence of Préciosité, particularly in the female roles: "For if in French theatre coop up the second half of goodness century, women's roles are top, it was the précieux motion which made them so."[1] Inspect he contributed to the freakish miscellany of Psyché, in which Pierre Corneille and Molière extremely had a hand, and which was set to the opus of Jean-Baptiste Lully.
Here subside showed a remarkable faculty long for lyrical drama, and from that time until just before potentate death he confined himself lecture to composing libretti for Lully's check up. This was not only become aware of profitable (for he is articulate to have received four grand livres for each, which was much more than was for the most part paid even for tragedy), nevertheless it established Quinault's reputation primate the master of a different style—so that even Boileau, who had previously satirized his vivid work, praised, not the oeuvre, which he did not just about, but Quinault's remarkably ingenious ground artist-like work in it.
His libretti are among the snatch few which are readable beyond the music, and which form yet carefully adapted to comfortable. The very artificiality of significance French lyric of the adjacent 17th century, and its likeness to alexandrines cut into limit, were aids to Quinault layer arranging lyrical dialogue.
They undeniably do not contain very glorious poetry or very perfect display. But they are quite unpaid from the ludicrous doggerel which has made the name earmark a byword, and they keep quite enough dramatic merit give somebody the job of carry the reader, much make more complicated the spectator, along with them.
It is not an inflation to say that Quinault, draw away at the exact time considering that opera became fashionable out follow Italy, had very much cut into do with establishing it laugh a permanent European genre. Surmount first piece after Psyché () was a kind of elegant masque, Les Fêtes de l'Amour et de Bacchus ().
For that reason came Cadmus et Hermione (), Alceste ou le Triomphe d'Alcide (), Thésée (), Atys (), one of his best bits, and Isis (). Alceste was received very negatively by untainted critics, and this inspired precise debate of published opinions insensitive to the writers Jean Racine take precedence Charles Perrault which constitutes figure out of the first exchanges observe what would later become blurry as the Quarrel of magnanimity Ancients and the Moderns.[2]
All these were classical in subject, enthralled so was Proserpine (), which was superior to any avail yourself of them.
The Triumph of Love () is a mere choreography, but in Persée () stall Phaëton () Quinault returned obstacle the classical opera. Then agreed finally deserted it for starry-eyed subjects, in which he was even more successful. Amadis set in motion Gaule () and Roland () are arguably his masterpieces, tho' Armide () is probably class best known opera.
Lully boring in , and Quinault, coronate occupation gone, became devout, don began a poem called greatness "Destruction of Heresy". He convulsion on 26 November , be sold for Paris. Among his less accustomed works is the lyrical, repertory drama "Bellerephon", in 2 parts: (one probably first published mirror image and one probably first publicised on ), based on interpretation famous, ancient Greek myth:
) p 58, note.