Personne : André Danican Philidor

  • Sujet Grove Music Online
    Objet [extrait de:] Rebecca HARRIS-WARRICK: 'André Danican Philidor', Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed 15 June 2004), http://www.grovemusic.com :
    "André Danican Philidor [l’aîné; le père after 1709] (b ?Paris, c1652; d Dreux, 11 Aug 1730). Music librarian, composer and instrumentalist, son of Jean Danican. […] In 1659 he was named to the position formerly held by Michel Danican in the Cromornes et Trompettes Marines and from 1667 to 1677 he served as hautbois in the royal musketeers. From 1670 his name appears in librettos of Lully’s ballets and operas as a performer on a number of woodwind and percussion instruments (as of 1714 he owned 33 instruments including obœs, flutes, recorders, bassoons, musette and drums). In 1678 he was named a drummer in the Fifres et Tambours and he was appointed to the prestigious 12 Grands Hautbois du Roi in 1681; from 1682 he served as ordinaire de la musique de la chapelle and in 1690 he and three other wind players officially joined the Petits Violons. As a member of these ensembles Philidor played for military ceremonies, balls, theatrical works and services in the royal chapel, and also took part in military campaigns.
    Although Philidor l’aîné probably composed occasional pieces (marches, signal airs, dances etc.) throughout his career, he did not begin to compose for the stage until after Lully’s death in 1687. […] During the carnival season of 1700, Philidor, his nephew Pierre and his son Anne composed a number of divertissements for performance at Marly, largely for the entertainment of the Duchess of Burgundy, wife of the king’s eldest grandson.
    Philidor l’aîné married twice; by his first marriage in 1672 to Marguerite Mouginot he had 17 children, among whom were Alexandre Danican Philidor […]; Anne Danican Philidor; Michel Danican Philidor (b Versailles, 12 Sept 1683; d Paris, 19 May 1723), a timpanist to the king and godson of Michel-Richard de Lalande; and François Danican Philidor (b Versailles, 17 March 1689; d Paris, 13 March 1717), a flautist […]. By his second marriage in 1719 to Elisabeth Leroy he had six children, including François-André Danican Philidor.
    Philidor l’aîné is best remembered for his work as the king’s music librarian, in which capacity he presided over an enormous effort to collect and preserve music not only from Louis XIV’s reign, but as far back as that of Henri IV. 1684 is often cited (without documentation) as the year of his appointment, but in 1694 Philidor himself claimed that he had been working as music librarian for 30 years. (The earliest known score he copied for the royal library is dated 1681.) Philidor shared the post with the violinist François Fossard until the latter’s death in 1702 and thereafter occupied it alone. […]"
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