Tom Jones (Philidor)
Tom Jones is a comédie mêlée d'ariettes, a kind of opéra comique, by the French composer François-André Danican Philidor which first appeared at the Comédie-Italienne, Paris, on 27 February 1765. Its French libretto, by Antoine-Alexandre-Henri Poisenet and Bertin Davesne, is loosely based on the novel by Henry Fielding.
The piece was initially a failure but Philidor had the libretto revised by Michel-Jean Sedaine and this new version, first performed on 30 January 1766, proved one of the most popular opéras comiques of the late 18th century. It was produced in a number of other countries, and translated into German, Swedish and Russian.
Roles
| Role | Voice type | Premiere Cast, 27 February 1765 (Conductor:) |
|---|---|---|
| Monsieur Western | bass | Joseph Caillot |
| Madame Western, his sister | mezzo-soprano | Bérard |
| Sophie, his daughter | soprano | Desglands |
| Honora, her companion | soprano | Marie-Thérèse Laruette-Villette |
| Allworthy, their neighbour | baritone | Antoine Trial |
| Tom Jones, his ward | tenor | Jean-Baptiste Guignard, 'Clairval' |
| Blifil, Allworthy's nephew | tenor | Jean-Louis Laruette |
| Quaker Dowling | spoken |
Recordings
François-André Danican Philidor: Tom Jones, Lausanne Opera & Le Sinfonietta de Lausanne
- Conductor: Jean-Claude Malgoire
- Principal singers: Sébastien Droy, Sophie Marin-Degor, Marc Barrard, Sibyl Zanganelli, Carine Séchehaye, Rodolphe Briand, Léonard Pezzino & Guillaume Michel
- Recording date: staged in 2005; recorded on 17, 18 and 20 janvier, 2006
- Label: Dynamic 33509 (DVD), CDS509 (CD)
Sources
- Casaglia, Gherardo (2005). "Tom Jones". L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia (in Italian).
- Rushton, Julian (1992), 'Tom Jones (i)' in The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, ed. Stanley Sadie (London) ISBN 0-333-73432-7
- The Viking Opera Guide ed. Holden (1993)