Dryden, John (EN)

Dryden John, *9 August 1631 Aldwinkle (Northamptonshire), †l May 1700 London, English poet and playwright. He was considered by his contemporaries, and is still regarded today as the most outstanding English playwright of his time. Dryden’s life coincided with years of turbulent political events in England, which influenced the nature of his work. Dryden wrote his first poem, Heroique Stanzas (1659) on the death of Cromwell. After the Stuart restoration, he became associated with the royal court: from 1668, he was poet laureate and historiographe royale; during the Restoration, theatres (which had previously been closed) began to flourish, so Dryden concentrated on writing for the stage. In 1685, after James II, who was a Catholic, ascended the throne, he converted to Catholicism, which resulted in him losing his distinguished position when Mary II and William III of Orange, who were supporters of Protestantism, came to power in 1689.

He practised various poetic forms: panegyric poems, political satires, lyrics, religious hymns, elegies and odes (including Song for St. Cecilia’s Day, music by G.B. Draghi, 1687; Ode for St. Cecilia’s Day, music by G.F. Handel, 1739; Alexander’s Feast, music by J. Clarke, 1697, T. Clayton, 1711, G.F. Handel, 1736; Ode on the Death of H. Purcell, music by J. Blow, 1696), and during the Restoration period – primarily dramas.

Drawing on the traditions of Elizabethan English drama (Shakespeare) and the models of contemporary French drama (Corneille, Racine), Dryden created a form of the English heroic play saturated with pathos and rhetoric, in which he extolled the extraordinary deeds of heroes and exalted the nobility of their emotions and conduct. Initially, he wrote these works in heroic verse typical of English epic poetry (10-syllable iambic verse with even rhymes, modelled on the French alexandrine), and later in blank verse. However, the artificiality of the plot and the pompous style contributed to the fact that, over time, the drama lost its position in the English theatre repertoire in favour of comedy, towards which Dryden himself began to lean; in his comedies, he was also inspired by French models (interesting plot twists, witty dialogues between lovers). In addition, Dryden translated Virgil’s works into English, as well as works by Ovid, Horace and Homer.

Dryden showed a keen interest in opera, adapting his poems into opera librettos or writing works he described as operas (e.g. King Arthur or The State of Innocent). Not all parts of these “operas” were set to music; both King Arthur and Indian Queen feature spoken dialogue. This practice was widespread in England, so drawing a line between a drama that was to some extent set to music and an opera with a tragic plot and spoken interludes poses classification difficulties; music historians often refer to such works as semi-operas. In 1685, the entirely recomposed opera Albion and Albanius was performed, with music by L. Grabu and libretto by Dryden, which was a paean in honour of Charles II and his brother James (according to Dryden himself, the work was created by expanding the prologue to King Arthur, which had already been written at that time).

In the history of music, Dryden is primarily remembered as the author of stage works, for which Purcell and other composers wrote music. These were works representing various literary genres: heroic tragedies — The Indian Emperor or The Conquest of Mexico by the Spaniards 1667, with Lord R. Howard, music by P. Humfrey 1675, H. Purcell 1691; Tyrannic Love or The Royal Martyr 1669, music by H. Purcell 1694; The Conquest of Grenada 1670–71, music by J. Banister 1670, A. Marsh senior 1670, N. Staggins 1671, P. Humfrey 1672; Aureng-Zebe 1676 (Dryden’s last rhymed play), music by H. Purcell 1692 (?), R. Courteville ca. 1695, J. Eccles ca. 1708; Oedipus 1678, with N. Lee, music by H. Purcell 1692; Troilus and Cressida 1678, music by T. Farmer 1679, J. Eccles 1695 (?); Cleomenes, the Spartan Hero (dedicated to Charles II), music by H. Purcell 1692; semi-operas — Indian Queen 1664, with R. Howard, music by H. Purcell 1695; King Arthur or The British Worthy 1685–91, music by H. Purcell 1691; tragicomedies — The Spanish Friar 1680, music by R. King 1680, H. Purcell 1695, J. Eccles 1695 (?); Love Triumphant or Nature Will Prevail 1693–94, music by H. Purcell 1694, J. Eccles 1694; comedies — Amphitryon 1690, music by H. Purcell 1690, C. Dibdin 1781.

In his preface to Albion and Albanus and King Arthur, Dryden addressed the issue of opera, particularly the verbal text in opera; he defined opera as “a poetical tale or fiction, represented by vocal and instrumental musick, adorn’d with scenes, machines and dancing”. In his opinion, the heroes of musical drama are almost superhuman characters who should express themselves in a “lofty, figurative and majestical” manner, yet the essence of opera is to “please the hearing”, hence why sensual values prevail over intellectual ones. Dryden distinguished between “recitative parts” and “songish parts” in opera, believing that English recitative was superior to French recitative. He highly valued the musicality of Italian speech. He also wrote several treatises on theatre theory: An Essay of Dramatic Poesie (1668), Essay of Heroic Plays (1672), On Comedy, Farce and Tragedy, and The Grounds of Criticism in Tragedy (1679). His work and views on the performing arts reflect the early stages of the development of English opera.

Literature: J. Mark Dryden and the Beginning of Opera in England, “Music and Letters” V, 1924; E.J. Dent Foundations of English Opera, Cambridge 1928; R. Sietz Henry Purcell. Zeit – Leben – Werk, Leipzig 1955; C.E. Ward The Life of John Dryden, Chapel Hill 1961; D.T. Mace Musical Humanism, the Doctrine of Rhythmus and the Saint Cecilia Odes of Dryden, “Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes” XXVII, 1964; The Letters of John Dryden, ed. C.E. Ward, Durham (North Carolina) 1942; J. Winn John Dryden and His World, New Haven 1987.