Lirou, Jean-François Espic, chevalier de
(1740–1806)> LIBRETTIST
Lirou, Jean-François Espic, chevalier de (1740, ?; 1806, Paris), librettist, was a “gluckiste” in the Piccinni-Gluck dispute, but he displayed no personal animosity toward Niccolò Piccinni, whom he considered his friend. In fact, he did the libretto for Diane et Endymion, which the Italian composer set for representation at the Royal Academy of Music on 7 September 1784. This opera in three acts was not a success, and nothing else by Lirou was mounted on the stage of the Opéra, although he also…