Jacques Champion de Chambonnières
Encyclopedia
Jacques Champion de Chambonnières (Jacques Champion, commonly referred to as Chambonnières) (c. 1601/2 – 1672) was a French
harpsichord
ist, dancer and composer
. Born into a musical family, Chambonnières made an illustrious career as court harpsichordist in Paris
and was considered by many of his contemporaries to be one of the greatest musicians in Europe. However, late in life Chambonnières gradually fell out of favor at the court and lost his position. He died in poverty, but at advanced age, and not before publishing a number of his works. Today Chambonnières is considered one of the greatest representatives of the early French harpsichord school.
, most probably in 1601 or 1602. Very little information survives concerning his childhood and early youth. The Champion family included many musicians, most notably Thomas Champion (also known as Mithou; not to be confused with his English namesake
), Chambonnières's grandfather, whom Marin Mersenne
described as "the greatest contrapuntist
of his time." Chambonnières's father, also named Jacques, was also keyboard player and a composer. Although he was not as highly regarded as Thomas, Mersenne still praised his keyboard skills, and John Bull
dedicated a work to him. The title Chambonnières originally belonged to Chambonnières's maternal grandfather: it was the name of a small manor in the commune
of Le Plessis-Feu-Aussoux
. Chambonnières must have received early music lessons from his father, but apart from that nothing is known about the young harpsichordist's education. What is known, however, is that Chambonnières was for a long time the only child of an aging father—Jacques Champion was around 50 when Chambonnières was born—and received much attention.
Already by 1611 Chambonnières must have been showing considerable musical talents, for in September of that year he received the reversion
of his father's court position. Some ten years later, in c.1621/22, Chambonnières married his first wife Marie Leclerc. He continued receiving generous financial support from his father until some time in mid-1620s, when Jacques Champion's wife unexpectedly gave birth to two more children: a daughter (Louise) and another son (Nicolas, or Jehan-Nicolas). Jacques, apparently mindful of both the diminishing family fortune and his elder son's selfish character, sought to distribute the remaining money and resources in a fair manner. In 1631 he completed and signed a document that has since became one of the most important sources of biographical information on the Champion family: a déclaration which detailed family circumstances and, among other things, ordered Chambonnières to pay 3000 livre
s to his mother, brother and sister as a repayment for the court position and other benefits provided to him by his father.
Chambonnières augmented his income also by teaching, eventually becoming an important influence on the subsequent development of the French harpsichord school, as well as composers abroad, such as Johann Jakob Froberger
. Among his pupils were Jacques Hardel
and Jean-Henri d'Anglebert
, but he was particularly important for his contribution to the establishment of the Couperin musical dynasty
. In c.1650/51 Louis Couperin
and his brothers gave a small private concert at Chambonnières's Le Plessis-Feu-Aussoux manor, to celebrate the older composer's name day
. Their playing and their music (which was composed by Louis) so impressed Chambonnières that he extended all kinds of support to the Couperins and the three soon had active careers in Paris.
Chambonnières's wife died in the early 1650s. He married his second wife Marguerite Ferret, daughter of a law court usher, on 16 December 1652. As the Fronde
civil war went on, Chambonnières's career was still on the rise. He continued augmenting his income by giving concerts and teaching, and at one point considered going on a tour of Brabant
. A series of concerts titled Assemblée des honnestes curieux was given in the mid-1650s; those given in autumn 1655, were attended by Christiaan Huygens. Chambonnières's dancing career continued, too: on 23 February 1653 he danced in the Ballet royal de la nuit, side by side with the young Louis XIV and Jean-Baptiste Lully
, and on 14 April 1654 he participated in the ballet inserted into Carlo Caproli's opera Le nozze di Peleo e di Theti. Chambonnières's harpsichord works were appear already in manuscript collections dating from the late 1650s, but he has not yet published any of his music.
region to waste. The first serious losses, however, must have occurred in 1657, when a lawsuit was brought that resulted in the sale of Chambonnières's manor and land at Le Plessis-Feu-Aussoux, for a comparatively small sum. In the summer his wife Marguerite obtained a decree of separate maintenance and sold some of the composer's property. The first serious blow to Chambonnières's career was landed also in 1657, by the King, who engaged Etienne Richard
as the royal harpsichord teacher, thereby injuring Chambonnières's pride and making his position at the court less secure. Many decades later Évrard Titon du Tillet
described a plot that existed at the court to remove Chambonnières from his position and replace him with Louis Couperin
. This failed, however, since Couperin refused to take up the post out of loyalty to his benefactor and friend.
By the end of the year 1660 Chambonnières was calling himself a marquis
, but he still experienced financial problems. He and his wife were still living together despite her earlier activities; his court position was constantly under threat from what he called, in a letter, a "low and evil clique", and his pension was cut off, apparently by the same people. On 23 October 1662 Chambonnières retired and sold the reversion of his post to d'Anglebert for 2000 livres. The latter was to assume all duties immediately, but would receive none of the emoluments. According to violist Jean Rousseau, Chambonnières's contemporary, the composer was obliged to resign since he could not execute basso continuo accompaniment. Many of Chambonnières's misfortunes were almost certainly brought on by the appointment of Jean-Baptiste Lully
as Surintendant de la musique de la chambre: learning to perform basso continuo still would have diminished Chambonnières's status at the court, reducing him to a small part of Lully's orchestral force. After his retirement Chambonnières must have continued to perform in order to make a living, but only a single record of a concert survives, that for 1 November 1665 concert at the Duchess of Orleans' salon. He published two volumes of harpsichord pieces in 1670 and died two years later, in difficult financial circumstances. The posthumous inventory of his property survives, listing furniture, tapestries, etc. in mediocre condition, as well as four keyboard instruments: two harpsichords (one probably a two-manual instrument), a spinet
and a regal
.
and a manuscript in the collection of Guy Oldham in London. The Bauyn manuscript includes, among other pieces, alternative versions of almost all the published works. The Oldham manuscript contains 22 pieces by Chambonnières, 13 of which may be in Chambonnières's hand, and at least one (Allemande Le moutier) was apparently composed into the manuscript. Chambonnières's style formed under the influence of earlier and contemporary harpsichordists such as Etienne Richard
and Pierre de la Barre, and more importantly, lutenists such as René Mesangeau
, Germain Pinel, Ennemond Gaultier
, and Denis Gaultier
. Since the exact course of evolution of the classic French harpsichord style remains a mystery, it is impossible to ascertain the role Chambonnières played in establishing said style. He was obviously influenced by the French lute school, adapting its style brisé
to the harpsichord, and he may have been among the first to do so. Another important influence was a thorough grounding in counterpoint
, probably transmitted from his grandfather Thomas through his father.
The vast majority of Chambonnières's pieces are allemande
s, courante
s, sarabande
s, and gigue
s, standard dance types of the era. The courantes completely outnumber all other genres: there are more than 60 of them. Also extant are Chambonnières's forays into other dance types, the most important of which are four pavane
s and three or four chaconne
s. Interestingly, no prelude
s by Chambonnières exist, although the genre was very popular: indeed, he is the only major composer of the period who has none to his credit (although nine anonymous unmeasured prelude
s from the manuscript B-Bc 27220 may have been composed by him). Numerous pieces exist in several versions, which presents considerable problems for scholars and performers, since the versions may differ dramatically. The Bauyn manuscripts versions of the published works, for instance, are almost completely unornamented
, whereas the published versions abound in ornaments. One particularly striking example is the Pavane L'entretien des Dieux. It has a single trill
in the Bauyn version, while in the published version that very trill is omitted—but 62 other ornaments appear. Another example, Sarabande Jeunes zéphirs, is found in 11 sources, and no two versions are identical. Finally, the grouping of the pieces is another problem for scholars. Chambonnières chose to publish his works as suite
s defined by key
; frequently there are musical connections between the pieces of a single suite. However, such suites are absent from manuscript sources, where pieces appear grouped by key only and do not form suites.
Mersenne justly praised Chambonnières for "lovely melodies and fine accompanying parts mingled together" and "beauty of rhythm", and indeed Chambonnières's strong sense of melodic line was one of the defining characteristics of his music. Broad, sweeping melodies frequently inform whole strains of his allemandes and courantes. However, beneath the pleasing melodic surface there frequently is a substantial degree of polyphonic complexity, and carefully concealed contrapuntal devices are quite common in Chambonnières's works even if most of the pieces are more homophonic rather than fully polyphonic. In Allemande La rare, for example, both strains have a canonic structure which is easy to miss: while the contours and pitches are subjected to canonic treatment, the durations are not. The following courante paraphrases the melody of the allemande. Such structural connections are not uncommon in Chambonnières's suites, and sometimes they define subgroups in manuscript collections: the three courantes of the third suite of livre premier are a prime example, linked by a scale motif both in the published versions and in the Oldham manuscript, where they too appear together, in the same sequence. The same suite has more examples of imitative counterpoint worked into the dance texture, e.g. in the final gigue and in the thematic importance of the tenor voice in the three- and four-part textures of the first few pieces.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
harpsichord
Harpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
ist, dancer and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
. Born into a musical family, Chambonnières made an illustrious career as court harpsichordist in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and was considered by many of his contemporaries to be one of the greatest musicians in Europe. However, late in life Chambonnières gradually fell out of favor at the court and lost his position. He died in poverty, but at advanced age, and not before publishing a number of his works. Today Chambonnières is considered one of the greatest representatives of the early French harpsichord school.
Life
1601–1631: Early years
Chambonnières was born in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, most probably in 1601 or 1602. Very little information survives concerning his childhood and early youth. The Champion family included many musicians, most notably Thomas Champion (also known as Mithou; not to be confused with his English namesake
Thomas Campion
Thomas Campion was an English composer, poet and physician. He wrote over a hundred lute songs; masques for dancing, and an authoritative technical treatise on music.-Life:...
), Chambonnières's grandfather, whom Marin Mersenne
Marin Mersenne
Marin Mersenne, Marin Mersennus or le Père Mersenne was a French theologian, philosopher, mathematician and music theorist, often referred to as the "father of acoustics"...
described as "the greatest contrapuntist
Counterpoint
In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...
of his time." Chambonnières's father, also named Jacques, was also keyboard player and a composer. Although he was not as highly regarded as Thomas, Mersenne still praised his keyboard skills, and John Bull
John Bull
John Bull is a national personification of Britain in general and England in particular, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged man, often wearing a Union Flag waistcoat.-Origin:...
dedicated a work to him. The title Chambonnières originally belonged to Chambonnières's maternal grandfather: it was the name of a small manor in the commune
Commune
Commune may refer to:In society:* Commune, a human community in which resources are shared* Commune , a township or municipality* One of the Communes of France* An Italian Comune...
of Le Plessis-Feu-Aussoux
Le Plessis-Feu-Aussoux
Le Plessis-Feu-Aussoux is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.-External links:* *...
. Chambonnières must have received early music lessons from his father, but apart from that nothing is known about the young harpsichordist's education. What is known, however, is that Chambonnières was for a long time the only child of an aging father—Jacques Champion was around 50 when Chambonnières was born—and received much attention.
Already by 1611 Chambonnières must have been showing considerable musical talents, for in September of that year he received the reversion
Reversion (law)
A reversion is a type of "remainder" interest created when incomplete ownership in property is alienated subject to a condition subsequent. Upon the fulfillment of the condition subsequent, the incomplete possessory rights cease to exist and exclusive ownership returns to the holder of the...
of his father's court position. Some ten years later, in c.1621/22, Chambonnières married his first wife Marie Leclerc. He continued receiving generous financial support from his father until some time in mid-1620s, when Jacques Champion's wife unexpectedly gave birth to two more children: a daughter (Louise) and another son (Nicolas, or Jehan-Nicolas). Jacques, apparently mindful of both the diminishing family fortune and his elder son's selfish character, sought to distribute the remaining money and resources in a fair manner. In 1631 he completed and signed a document that has since became one of the most important sources of biographical information on the Champion family: a déclaration which detailed family circumstances and, among other things, ordered Chambonnières to pay 3000 livre
French livre
The livre was the currency of France until 1795. Several different livres existed, some concurrently. The livre was the name of both units of account and coins.-Etymology:...
s to his mother, brother and sister as a repayment for the court position and other benefits provided to him by his father.
1632–1657: Rise to fame and subsequent career
With support from his father, Chambonnières was probably working at the court since his late teens. By 1632 he had the title of gentilhomme ordinaire de la Chambre du Roy. His rose to great fame in the early 1630s, first as harpsichordist and then, a little later, as dancer. His first public performance was in the Ballet de la marine, on 25 February 1635, before the King himself. In 1637 Chambonnières's salary was the same as his father's, and soon after the latter's death in 1642 Chambonnières became the only harpsichordist. His activities were not limited to providing music for the court, however. In 1641 he organized a series of paying concerts—perhaps the very first of such kind in France—which probably continued well into the 1650s. The earliest relevant notarial act, from 17 October 1641, specifies that ten musicians were to perform every Wednesday and Saturday at noon for a year. Both vocal and instrumental works were performed, but no details survive on the nature of the music or the instruments used.Chambonnières augmented his income also by teaching, eventually becoming an important influence on the subsequent development of the French harpsichord school, as well as composers abroad, such as Johann Jakob Froberger
Johann Jakob Froberger
Johann Jakob Froberger was a German Baroque composer, keyboard virtuoso, and organist. He was among the most famous composers of the era and influenced practically every major composer in Europe by developing the genre of keyboard suite and contributing greatly to the exchange of musical...
. Among his pupils were Jacques Hardel
Jacques Hardel
Jacques Hardel was a French composer and harpsichordist. He came from family that included two noted instrument makers: his grandfather Gilles Hardel and his father Guillaume Hardel , who was a lute maker and a well-established harpsichordist—in 1673–4 he served as harpsichord teacher...
and Jean-Henri d'Anglebert
Jean-Henri d'Anglebert
Jean-Henri d'Anglebert was a French composer, harpsichordist and organist. He was one of the foremost keyboard composers of his day.-Life:...
, but he was particularly important for his contribution to the establishment of the Couperin musical dynasty
Couperin
The Couperin family were a musical dynasty of professional composers and performers. They were the most prolific family in French musical history, active during the Baroque era...
. In c.1650/51 Louis Couperin
Louis Couperin
Louis Couperin was a French Baroque composer and performer. He was born in Chaumes-en-Brie and moved to Paris in 1650–51 with the help of Jacques Champion de Chambonnières. Couperin worked as organist of the Church of St. Gervais in Paris and as musician at the court...
and his brothers gave a small private concert at Chambonnières's Le Plessis-Feu-Aussoux manor, to celebrate the older composer's name day
Calendar of saints
The calendar of saints is a traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the feast day of said saint...
. Their playing and their music (which was composed by Louis) so impressed Chambonnières that he extended all kinds of support to the Couperins and the three soon had active careers in Paris.
Chambonnières's wife died in the early 1650s. He married his second wife Marguerite Ferret, daughter of a law court usher, on 16 December 1652. As the Fronde
Fronde
The Fronde was a civil war in France, occurring in the midst of the Franco-Spanish War, which had begun in 1635. The word fronde means sling, which Parisian mobs used to smash the windows of supporters of Cardinal Mazarin....
civil war went on, Chambonnières's career was still on the rise. He continued augmenting his income by giving concerts and teaching, and at one point considered going on a tour of Brabant
Duchy of Brabant
The Duchy of Brabant was a historical region in the Low Countries. Its territory consisted essentially of the three modern-day Belgian provinces of Flemish Brabant, Walloon Brabant and Antwerp, the Brussels-Capital Region and most of the present-day Dutch province of North Brabant.The Flag of...
. A series of concerts titled Assemblée des honnestes curieux was given in the mid-1650s; those given in autumn 1655, were attended by Christiaan Huygens. Chambonnières's dancing career continued, too: on 23 February 1653 he danced in the Ballet royal de la nuit, side by side with the young Louis XIV and Jean-Baptiste Lully
Jean-Baptiste Lully
Jean-Baptiste de Lully was an Italian-born French composer who spent most of his life working in the court of Louis XIV of France. He is considered the chief master of the French Baroque style. Lully disavowed any Italian influence in French music of the period. He became a French subject in...
, and on 14 April 1654 he participated in the ballet inserted into Carlo Caproli's opera Le nozze di Peleo e di Theti. Chambonnières's harpsichord works were appear already in manuscript collections dating from the late 1650s, but he has not yet published any of his music.
1657–1672: Dwindling fortunes
Chambonnières's financial situation probably ceased to be stable already in the early 1650s, when the Fronde armies laid the BrieBrie
Brie is a historic region of France most famous for its dairy products, especially Brie cheese. It was once divided into two sections ruled by different feudal lords: the western Brie française, corresponding roughly to the modern department of Seine-et-Marne in the Île-de-France region; the...
region to waste. The first serious losses, however, must have occurred in 1657, when a lawsuit was brought that resulted in the sale of Chambonnières's manor and land at Le Plessis-Feu-Aussoux, for a comparatively small sum. In the summer his wife Marguerite obtained a decree of separate maintenance and sold some of the composer's property. The first serious blow to Chambonnières's career was landed also in 1657, by the King, who engaged Etienne Richard
Etienne Richard
Étienne Richard was a French composer, organist and harpsichordist. Very little is known about his life and work. He was born in Paris and came from a family of organists; apparently he lived and worked in Paris all his life. From 1645 he and his brother Charles were organists to Chancellor Séguier...
as the royal harpsichord teacher, thereby injuring Chambonnières's pride and making his position at the court less secure. Many decades later Évrard Titon du Tillet
Évrard Titon du Tillet
Évrard Titon du Tillet is best known for his important biographical chronicle, Le Parnasse françois, composed of brief anecdotal vite of famous French poets and musicians of his time, under the reign of Louis XIV and the Régence.- Biography :Of Scottish origin, Évrard Titon du Tillet was the son...
described a plot that existed at the court to remove Chambonnières from his position and replace him with Louis Couperin
Louis Couperin
Louis Couperin was a French Baroque composer and performer. He was born in Chaumes-en-Brie and moved to Paris in 1650–51 with the help of Jacques Champion de Chambonnières. Couperin worked as organist of the Church of St. Gervais in Paris and as musician at the court...
. This failed, however, since Couperin refused to take up the post out of loyalty to his benefactor and friend.
By the end of the year 1660 Chambonnières was calling himself a marquis
Marquis
Marquis is a French and Scottish title of nobility. The English equivalent is Marquess, while in German, it is Markgraf.It may also refer to:Persons:...
, but he still experienced financial problems. He and his wife were still living together despite her earlier activities; his court position was constantly under threat from what he called, in a letter, a "low and evil clique", and his pension was cut off, apparently by the same people. On 23 October 1662 Chambonnières retired and sold the reversion of his post to d'Anglebert for 2000 livres. The latter was to assume all duties immediately, but would receive none of the emoluments. According to violist Jean Rousseau, Chambonnières's contemporary, the composer was obliged to resign since he could not execute basso continuo accompaniment. Many of Chambonnières's misfortunes were almost certainly brought on by the appointment of Jean-Baptiste Lully
Jean-Baptiste Lully
Jean-Baptiste de Lully was an Italian-born French composer who spent most of his life working in the court of Louis XIV of France. He is considered the chief master of the French Baroque style. Lully disavowed any Italian influence in French music of the period. He became a French subject in...
as Surintendant de la musique de la chambre: learning to perform basso continuo still would have diminished Chambonnières's status at the court, reducing him to a small part of Lully's orchestral force. After his retirement Chambonnières must have continued to perform in order to make a living, but only a single record of a concert survives, that for 1 November 1665 concert at the Duchess of Orleans' salon. He published two volumes of harpsichord pieces in 1670 and died two years later, in difficult financial circumstances. The posthumous inventory of his property survives, listing furniture, tapestries, etc. in mediocre condition, as well as four keyboard instruments: two harpsichords (one probably a two-manual instrument), a spinet
Spinet
A spinet is a smaller type of harpsichord or other keyboard instrument, such as a piano or organ.-Spinets as harpsichords:While the term spinet is used to designate a harpsichord, typically what is meant is the bentside spinet, described in this section...
and a regal
Regal (musical instrument)
The regal was a small portable organ, furnished with beating reeds and having two bellows. The instrument enjoyed its greatest popularity during the Renaissance. The name was also sometimes given to the reed stops of a pipe organ, and more especially the vox humana stop.The sound of the regal was...
.
Work
Due to lack of manuscript sources, little is known about French harpsichord music of the first half of the 17th century, and Chambonnières emerges as the sole major composer of the time with a large surviving oeuvre. Some 150 pieces are extant, almost of them dances. Sixty were published by the composer himself in 1670 in two volumes of Les pièces de clavessin, and the rest are known through some 20 manuscript sources, most of which were discovered only in mid- and late 20th century. Two of these are of particular importance: the famous Bauyn manuscriptBauyn manuscript
The Bauyn manuscript is a manuscript currently in possession of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France in Paris...
and a manuscript in the collection of Guy Oldham in London. The Bauyn manuscript includes, among other pieces, alternative versions of almost all the published works. The Oldham manuscript contains 22 pieces by Chambonnières, 13 of which may be in Chambonnières's hand, and at least one (Allemande Le moutier) was apparently composed into the manuscript. Chambonnières's style formed under the influence of earlier and contemporary harpsichordists such as Etienne Richard
Etienne Richard
Étienne Richard was a French composer, organist and harpsichordist. Very little is known about his life and work. He was born in Paris and came from a family of organists; apparently he lived and worked in Paris all his life. From 1645 he and his brother Charles were organists to Chancellor Séguier...
and Pierre de la Barre, and more importantly, lutenists such as René Mesangeau
René Mesangeau
René Mésangeau was a French composer and lutenist. He is considered to be one of the finest lutenists of the 17th century.In 1619, he settled in France and married the daughter of the spinet maker Jean Jacquet...
, Germain Pinel, Ennemond Gaultier
Ennemond Gaultier
Ennemond Gaultier was a French lutenist and composer. He was one of the masters of the 17th century French lute school....
, and Denis Gaultier
Denis Gaultier
Denis Gaultier was a French lutenist and composer. He was a cousin of Ennemond Gaultier.-Life:...
. Since the exact course of evolution of the classic French harpsichord style remains a mystery, it is impossible to ascertain the role Chambonnières played in establishing said style. He was obviously influenced by the French lute school, adapting its style brisé
Style brisé
Style brisé is a term for broken, arpeggiated texture in instrumental music. It usually refers to French Baroque music for lute, keyboard instruments or the viol. French Baroque musicians referred to this type of texture as style luthé , since it originated in lute music...
to the harpsichord, and he may have been among the first to do so. Another important influence was a thorough grounding in counterpoint
Counterpoint
In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...
, probably transmitted from his grandfather Thomas through his father.
The vast majority of Chambonnières's pieces are allemande
Allemande
An allemande is one of the most popular instrumental dance forms in Baroque music, and a standard element of a suite...
s, courante
Courante
The courante, corrente, coranto and corant are some of the names given to a family of triple metre dances from the late Renaissance and the Baroque era....
s, sarabande
Sarabande
In music, the sarabande is a dance in triple metre. The second and third beats of each measure are often tied, giving the dance a distinctive rhythm of quarter notes and eighth notes in alternation...
s, and gigue
Gigue
The gigue or giga is a lively baroque dance originating from the British jig. It was imported into France in the mid-17th century and usually appears at the end of a suite...
s, standard dance types of the era. The courantes completely outnumber all other genres: there are more than 60 of them. Also extant are Chambonnières's forays into other dance types, the most important of which are four pavane
Pavane
The pavane, pavan, paven, pavin, pavian, pavine, or pavyn is a slow processional dance common in Europe during the 16th century .A pavane is a slow piece of music which is danced to in pairs....
s and three or four chaconne
Chaconne
A chaconne ; is a type of musical composition popular in the baroque era when it was much used as a vehicle for variation on a repeated short harmonic progression, often involving a fairly short repetitive bass-line which offered a compositional outline for variation, decoration, figuration and...
s. Interestingly, no prelude
Prelude
Prelude may refer to:*Sheaffer Prelude, a series of fountain pens, ballpoints and rollerball pens made by the Sheaffer Pen company*Prelude , a musical form*Prelude , an English based folk band...
s by Chambonnières exist, although the genre was very popular: indeed, he is the only major composer of the period who has none to his credit (although nine anonymous unmeasured prelude
Unmeasured prelude
Unmeasured or non-measured prelude is a prelude in which the duration of each note is left to the performer. Typically the term is used for 17th century harpsichord compositions that are written without rhythm or metre indications, although various composers of the Classical music era were...
s from the manuscript B-Bc 27220 may have been composed by him). Numerous pieces exist in several versions, which presents considerable problems for scholars and performers, since the versions may differ dramatically. The Bauyn manuscripts versions of the published works, for instance, are almost completely unornamented
Ornament (music)
In music, ornaments or embellishments are musical flourishes that are not necessary to carry the overall line of the melody , but serve instead to decorate or "ornament" that line. Many ornaments are performed as "fast notes" around a central note...
, whereas the published versions abound in ornaments. One particularly striking example is the Pavane L'entretien des Dieux. It has a single trill
Trill (music)
The trill is a musical ornament consisting of a rapid alternation between two adjacent notes, usually a semitone or tone apart, which can be identified with the context of the trill....
in the Bauyn version, while in the published version that very trill is omitted—but 62 other ornaments appear. Another example, Sarabande Jeunes zéphirs, is found in 11 sources, and no two versions are identical. Finally, the grouping of the pieces is another problem for scholars. Chambonnières chose to publish his works as suite
Suite
In music, a suite is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral pieces normally performed in a concert setting rather than as accompaniment; they may be extracts from an opera, ballet , or incidental music to a play or film , or they may be entirely original movements .In the...
s defined by key
Key (music)
In music theory, the term key is used in many different and sometimes contradictory ways. A common use is to speak of music as being "in" a specific key, such as in the key of C major or in the key of F-sharp. Sometimes the terms "major" or "minor" are appended, as in the key of A minor or in the...
; frequently there are musical connections between the pieces of a single suite. However, such suites are absent from manuscript sources, where pieces appear grouped by key only and do not form suites.
Mersenne justly praised Chambonnières for "lovely melodies and fine accompanying parts mingled together" and "beauty of rhythm", and indeed Chambonnières's strong sense of melodic line was one of the defining characteristics of his music. Broad, sweeping melodies frequently inform whole strains of his allemandes and courantes. However, beneath the pleasing melodic surface there frequently is a substantial degree of polyphonic complexity, and carefully concealed contrapuntal devices are quite common in Chambonnières's works even if most of the pieces are more homophonic rather than fully polyphonic. In Allemande La rare, for example, both strains have a canonic structure which is easy to miss: while the contours and pitches are subjected to canonic treatment, the durations are not. The following courante paraphrases the melody of the allemande. Such structural connections are not uncommon in Chambonnières's suites, and sometimes they define subgroups in manuscript collections: the three courantes of the third suite of livre premier are a prime example, linked by a scale motif both in the published versions and in the Oldham manuscript, where they too appear together, in the same sequence. The same suite has more examples of imitative counterpoint worked into the dance texture, e.g. in the final gigue and in the thematic importance of the tenor voice in the three- and four-part textures of the first few pieces.