The Paris Opera Encyclopaedia

Written in French.

In 1669, Louis XIV decided to create a "Royal Opera Academy" which has never ceased to evolve to become the Paris Opera as we know it... and which celebrates its 350th anniversary this year!

To retrace this long and rich history, Henri Loyrette and Sarah Barbedette have brought together...

Written in French.

In 1669, Louis XIV decided to create a "Royal Opera Academy" which has never ceased to evolve to become the Paris Opera as we know it... and which celebrates its 350th anniversary this year!

To retrace this long and rich history, Henri Loyrette and Sarah Barbedette have brought together some forty authors who invite us on a fascinating encyclopaedic walk.

You will meet Lully and Rameau, discover the beginnings of ballet and the "quarrel of the Buffoons", relive Mozart's first Parisian creations and the development of the décor in the 19th century, attend the inauguration of the Palais Garnier and then the staging of Wagner's works, Berlioz and Strauss, we learn all the secrets of the Opera under the Occupation and we plunge with enchantment into the modern period marked by figures such as Messiaen, Nureyev or even Chagall!
This encyclopaedic summation retracing several centuries of lyrical and choreographic history is a reference work that will captivate the specialist as well as the amateur.

French language
272 pages / 150 illustrations

Rmn-Grand Palais Publishing