Personalities | Antoine Danchet | Late Baroque | Opera

1671–1748, French

Librettist Danchet was born on 7 September 1671 at Riom in Auvergne. His first theatrical text, Vénus (1698), was privately performed at Paris. This was also his first collaboration with composer André Campra (1660–1744). Between 1698 and 1735 Danchet and Campra produced several pastorals, ballets and opéra ballets, and 11 tragedies lyriques including Hésione (1700), Cariselli (1702, using fragments of music by Lully), Tancrède (1702), Télémaque (1704) and Idomonée (1712). From 1727, Danchet was director of the Académie Française. Voltaire commented that Danchet’s operas were less bad than his spoken plays. He is best known for having written the French libretto upon which Mozart’s Idomeneo is based, although his original contained a much stronger supernatural element.

Introduction | Late Baroque | Opera
Personalities | Margherita Durastanti | Late Baroque | Opera

AUTHORITATIVE

An extensive music information resource, bringing together the talents and expertise of a wide range of editors and musicologists, including Stanley Sadie, Charles Wilson, Paul Du Noyer, Tony Byworth, Bob Allen, Howard Mandel, Cliff Douse, William Schafer, John Wilson...

CURATED

Classical, Rock, Blues, Jazz, Country and more. Flame Tree has been making encyclopaedias and guides about music for over 20 years. Now Flame Tree Pro brings together a huge canon of carefully curated information on genres, styles, artists and instruments. It's a perfect tool for study, and entertaining too, a great companion to our music books.

Rock, A Life Story

Rock, A Life Story

The ultimate story of a life of rock music, from the 1950s to the present day.

David Bowie

David Bowie

Fantastic new, unofficial biography covers his life, music, art and movies, with a sweep of incredible photographs.