''Canente'' (English: ''Canens'') is an opera by the French composer

Pascal Collasse Pascal Collasse (or Colasse) (22 January 1649 (baptism, baptised) – 17 July 1709) was a French composer of the Baroque era. Born in Rheims, Collasse became a disciple of Jean-Baptiste Lully during the latter's domination of the French operati ...

, first performed at the Académie Royale de Musique (the

Paris Opéra The Paris Opera ( ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be kn ...

) on 4 November 1700. It takes the form of a ''

tragédie lyrique This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names. "Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most co ...

'' in a prologue and five acts. The libretto is by Antoine Houdar de la Motte. A new setting by the composer

Antoine Dauvergne Antoine Dauvergne (3 October 1713 – 11 February 1797) was a French composer and violinist. Dauvergne was born in Moulins, Allier. He served as master of the ''Chambre du roi'', director of the Concert Spirituel from 1762 to 1771, and direc ...

appeared in 1760.

Roles

Synopsis

The enchantress

Circe In Greek mythology, Circe (; ) is an enchantress, sometimes considered a goddess or a nymph. In most accounts, Circe is described as the daughter of the sun god Helios and the Oceanid Perse (mythology), Perse. Circe was renowned for her vast kn ...

has helped

Picus Picus was a figure in Roman mythology, the first king of Latium. He was the son of Saturn (mythology), Saturn, also known as Stercutus. He was the founder of the first Latin tribe and settlement, Laurentum, located a few miles to the Southeast o ...

become King of

Latium Latium ( , ; ) is the region of central western Italy in which the city of Rome was founded and grew to be the capital city of the Roman Empire. Definition Latium was originally a small triangle of fertile, volcanic soil (Old Latium) on whic ...

because she is in love with him. But Picus is in love with the nymph Canens. However, the River Tiber is also in love with Canens and threatens to flood Latium if she marries Picus. Circe abducts the nymph and orders her demons to torment Canens, but she manages to win them over and is rescued by a group of

Cupid In classical mythology, Cupid ( , meaning "passionate desire") is the god of desire, erotic love, attraction and affection. He is often portrayed as the son of the love goddess Venus and the god of war Mars. He is also known as Amor (Latin: ...

s. Circe tells Picus that Canens is going to marry Tiber, but all her magic cannot alter his love for the nymph. Circe resorts to revenge and sends the

Furies The Erinyes ( ; , ), also known as the Eumenides (, the "Gracious ones"), are chthonic goddesses of vengeance in ancient Greek religion and mythology. A formulaic oath in the ''Iliad'' invokes them as "the Erinyes, that under earth take v ...

to destroy the wedding of Picus and Canens. But the Furies are thwarted by Cupid, Circe admits defeat and the lovers are finally married.

Sources

* Félix Clément and Pierre Larousse ''Dictionnaire des Opéras'', Paris, 1881, page 134. *
Libretto at "Livrets baroques"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canente (Collasse) Operas Tragédies en musique French-language operas 1700 operas Operas by Pascal Collasse