Librettist (Noun)
Meaning
Author of words to be set to music in an opera or operetta.
Classification
Nouns denoting people.
Examples
- The renowned librettist, Lorenzo Da Ponte, wrote the words for many of Mozart's most famous operas, including The Marriage of Figaro.
- As a librettist, Oscar Hammerstein II is perhaps best known for his collaborations with Richard Rodgers on musicals such as Oklahoma! and South Pacific.
- In his later years, the famous poet and librettist W.H. Auden turned his attention to writing the words for operas, working with composers such as Stravinsky and Britten.
- Emanuel Schikaneder was a talented librettist, playwright, and composer who wrote the text for Mozart's opera The Magic Flute.
- As a librettist, Amy Tan's adaptation of her novel The Joy Luck Club into an opera was widely praised for its powerful and poignant words.