The explanation of fundamental methodological divergences in the practice of opera translation comes from several controversial 18th century texts (like the Querelle des Bouffons, Querelle des Gluckistes et des Piccinnistes°. On the one hand, there is a dichotomic notion - the 'French' - insisting upon the semantic aspect of the language and the formalism of the music. […]. On the other hand, there is an amalgamated notion - the 'Italian' - ignoring the distinction between language and speech. The singing is no longer considered as a hybrid, but as a natural mode of communicating feelings. Accent thus becomes identified with the beat marks, which is convincingly regular. Translators adopt either the first or the second method according to their logic. The 'French' logic leads to true respect of the declamated language while the 'Italian' logic, where the beat is respected, allows more flexibility in the use of emotional qualities of the text.