François-Louis Gand Le Bland Du Roullet

François-Louis Gand Le Bland Du Roullet (1716–1786) was a French diplomat, librettist, and man of letters best known for his contributions to 18th-century opera. Though not a prolific librettist, Du Roullet played a key role in the development of serious opera during the Enlightenment, particularly through his collaborations with major composers like Christoph Willibald Gluck and Antonio Sacchini.

Du Roullet was born into a well-connected French family and pursued a career in diplomacy, serving in various governmental roles under the Ancien Régime. His refined education and literary sensibility made him a natural contributor to the arts, and he became involved in the world of opera at a time when dramatic reform was sweeping through European music.

He is most famously known for co-writing the French libretto for Gluck’s Iphigénie en Aulide (1774) and for authoring the libretto of Gluck’s Alceste (French version, 1776), both of which were key works in Gluck’s reformist campaign to simplify and dramatize opera, emphasizing dramatic truth and emotional expression over vocal ornamentation. Du Roullet’s texts were praised for their classical dignity and structural clarity, which aligned well with Gluck’s musical ideals.

Du Roullet also collaborated with composer Antonio Sacchini, providing the libretto for Œdipe à Colone (1786), one of Sacchini’s most important tragédies lyriques. His libretti helped bridge French classical drama and Italian operatic traditions, contributing to a more integrated and expressive operatic form.

Though not widely known today outside of academic and operatic circles, François-Louis Gand Le Bland Du Roullet remains a significant figure in the history of opera for his role in the French operatic reform movement of the late 18th century. His collaborations helped pave the way for later composers like Berlioz and Wagner, who built on the foundation of drama-driven musical storytelling.