Antoine-César Gautier de Montdorge (or Mondorge) (17 January 1701 or 1707 – 24 October 1768)[1] was a French man of letters, best known for writing the libretto for Rameau's opéra-ballet Les fêtes d'Hébé (1739). Born in Lyon, he moved to Paris, where he worked as a financier (with the title "maître à la Chambre aux deniers du Roi").[2] He was a friend and neighbour of Rameau's patron Alexandre Le Riche de La Pouplinière and probably met the composer at La Pouplinière's salon.[3] Montdorge was not identified as the author of Les fêtes d'Hébé on any of its printed editions.[4] It was first attributed to him by Antoine de Léris in the 1763 edition of his Dictionnaire portatif des théâtres.[5] Reviewers severely criticised the literary weakness of the work.[6] The only other opera libretto Montdorge wrote was the one-act comédie-ballet L'opéra de société for Jean-François Giraud in 1762.[7] He described his experience working as a librettist for Rameau in the anonymously published Réflections d'un peintre sur l'opéra (1743).[8]

Montdorge was also interested in the fine arts. He wrote three articles for the Encyclopédie on engraving[9] and published a work on colour printing, L'art d'imprimer les tableaux en trois couleurs, in 1755.[10]

Works

  • Les Fêtes d'Hébé, ou les talents lyriques, opéra-ballet in three acts (music by Rameau) presented in 1739, revived in 1747 and 1766 and printed in-4° ;
  • Réflexions d'un peintre sur l'opéra, 1741, in-12 ;
  • [Le Blon], L'Art d'imprimer les tableaux en trois couleurs, 1756, in-8° ;
  • L'Opéra de société, in one act ; music by Giraud, performed in 1762 ;
  • Conte oriental, Paris, 1767.

References

  1. ↑ Dates from CESAR Archived 2012-12-23 at archive.today. Girdlestone and Bouissou give 1707 as the year of birth, Sadler 1701.
  2. ↑ Girdlestone, p.352
  3. ↑ Bouissou (2014), p.459
  4. ↑ Sadler (2014), p.135
  5. ↑ Bouissou (2014), p.457
  6. ↑ Bouissou (2014), p.458
  7. ↑ Sadler (2014), p.135
  8. ↑ Bouissou (2014), p.459
  9. ↑ Sadler (2014), p.135
  10. ↑ Girdlestone, p.352

Sources

  • Bouissou, Sylvie Jean-Philippe Rameau (Fayard, 2014)
  • Girdlestone, Cuthbert, Jean-Philippe Rameau: His Life and Work (Cassell & Company Ltd, 1962; Dover paperback)
  • Sadler, Graham The Rameau Compendium (Boydell, 2014)
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