''Issé'' is an

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

tic ''

pastorale héroïque Pastorale refers to something of a pastoral nature in music, whether in form or in mood. In Baroque music, a pastorale is a movement of a melody in thirds over a drone bass, recalling the Christmas music of ''pifferari'', players of the trad ...

'' by the French composer André Cardinal Destouches. Initially it was in three acts. The definitive revised version consists of a prologue and five acts. The

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

was by Antoine Houdar de la Motte.Wood 1992. Although Destouches was only 25 at the time of its premiere, it is considered his best score.Pitou, vol. 1, pp. 241–242.

Performance history

''Issé'' was first performed in a concert version without a prologue in the Salle de la Belle-Cheminée at the

Palace of Fontainebleau Palace of Fontainebleau ( , ; ), located southeast of the center of Paris, in the commune of Fontainebleau, is one of the largest French royal châteaux. It served as a hunting lodge and summer residence for many of the List of French monarchs ...

on 7 October 1697. At the request of

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

, a prologue was added for the official premiere, a concert performance on 17 December at the Trianon (

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

) for the festivities surrounding the marriage of Princess Marie Adélaïde of Savoy to Louis' grandson, the

Duke of Burgundy Duke of Burgundy () was a title used by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, from its establishment in 843 to its annexation by the Crown lands of France, French crown in 1477, and later by members of the House of Habsburg, including Holy Roman E ...

, to whom ''Issé'' was dedicated.Jean-Claude Brenac
''Issé''
/ref> Louis XIV was so pleased with the work after its performance at the Trianon, that he gave Destouches a purse containing 200 ''louis''. The first full staging by the

Paris Opera 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 ...

(with the prologue and three acts) was on 30 December 1697 at the

Théâtre du Palais-Royal The Théâtre du Palais-Royal () is a 750-seat Parisian theatre at 38 rue de Montpensier, located at the northwest corner of the Palais-Royal in the Galerie de Montpensier at its intersection with the Galerie de Beaujolais. Brief history O ...

in Paris.. The cast was the same as on 17 December. Destouches revised it in a grander five-act form for its revival at the Palais-Royal on 14 October 1708. ''Issé'' was so successful, it remained in the repertory there until 1757. It was also given again a number of times at the court up to 1773.

Madame de Pompadour Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour (, ; 29 December 1721 – 15 April 1764), commonly known as Madame de Pompadour, was a member of the French court. She was the official chief mistress of King Louis XV from 1745 to 1751, and rema ...

sang the title role for a production in the Théâtre des Petits Cabinets at the Palace of Versailles in 1749.

Roles

Synopsis

Apollon (

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

), disguised as a shepherd called Philémon, pursues the nymph Issé, while Pan takes an interest in Doris.

Discography

Judith van Wanroij, ''Issé,'' Chantal Santon-Jeffery, ''Doris,'' Eugénie Lefebvre, (''La première Hespéride, une Nymphe, une Dryade),'' Mathias Vidal, ''Apollon (sous les traits du berger Philémon),'' Thomas Dolié, ''Hylas,'' Matthieu Lécroart, ''Jupiter, Pan,'' Etienne Bazola, ''Hercule, le Grand Prêtre,'' Stéphen Collardelle, ''un Berger, (Sommeil, Oracle),'' Les Chantres du Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles, Ensemble Les Surprises, conducted by . 2 CD Ambronay éditions 2019

References

Notes References Sources * Pitou, Spire (1983–1990). ''The Paris Opéra: An Encyclopedia of Operas, Ballets, Composers, and Performers'' (3 volumes). Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. . * Wood, Caroline (1992), "''Issé''" in ''

The New Grove Dictionary of Opera ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'' is an encyclopedia of opera. It is the largest work on opera in English, and in its printed form, amounts to 5,448 pages in four volumes. The dictionary was first published in 1992 by Macmillan Reference, L ...

'', vol. 2, p. 833, ed.

Stanley Sadie Stanley John Sadie (; 30 October 1930 – 21 March 2005) was a British musicologist, music critic, and editor. He was editor of the sixth edition of the '' Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' (1980), which was published as the first edition ...

(London)

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Isse (opera) French-language operas Opéras-ballets 1697 operas Operas by André Cardinal Destouches Music dedicated to nobility or royalty Operas