Adrian Le Roy (c.1520–1598) was an influential French music publisher,

lute A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck (music), neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lu ...

nist,

mandore Mandore is a suburb and historical town located 9 km north of Jodhpur city in the Jodhpur district of the north-western Indian state of Rajasthan. History Mandore is an ancient town, and was the seat of the Gurjar Pratiharas of Mandavy ...

player, guitarist, composer and music educator.

Life

Le Roy was born in the town of

Montreuil-sur-Mer Montreuil-sur-Mer (; or ; ), Montreuil-on-the-Sea, is a subprefecture in the Pas-de-Calais Department in northern France. Though commonly called by this name since at least the twelfth century, it was legally known as Montreuil until 31 Decemb ...

in northern France to a wealthy family. Very little is known about his formative years, but he was probably a chorister and studied the

, guitar and

cittern The cittern or cithren ( Fr. ''cistre'', It. ''cetra'', Ger. ''Cister,'' Sp. ''cistro, cedra, cítola'') is a stringed instrument dating from the Renaissance. Modern scholars debate its exact history, but it is generally accepted that it is d ...

with various teachers. He became an accomplished musician and entered the service of, first, Claude de Clermont, then, Jacques II (Baron de Semblançay and Viscount of Tours), both members of the aristocracy who had influence at

court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

. In 1546 he met the publisher Jean de Brouilly in Paris and married his daughter Denise de Brouilly. Le Roy and his cousin Robert Ballard (c.1525–1588) founded the printing firm "Le Roy & Ballard", and in August 1551 obtained a royal privilege from

Henry II Henry II may refer to: Kings * Saint Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor (972–1024), crowned King of Germany in 1002, of Italy in 1004 and Emperor in 1014 *Henry II of England (1133–89), reigned from 1154 *Henry II of Jerusalem and Cyprus (1271–1 ...

to print music. The music movable type was supplied by

Guillaume Le Bé Guillaume Le Bé (; 1525–1598) was a French punchcutter and engraver who specialised in Hebrew typefaces. He was born in Troyes to a notable family of paper merchants and apprenticed to Robert Estienne in Paris. After completing his apprentice ...

. In February 1553, the company was awarded the title of "Imprimeur du Roi en musique" (previously held by

Pierre Attaignant Pierre Attaingnant or Attaignant ( – late 1551 or 1552) was a French music publisher, active in Paris. He was one of the first to print music by single-impression printing, greatly reducing the labor involved, and he published music by more t ...

). This office, which was renewed by successive monarchs, gave the company legal protection against competitors and commercially valuable prestige.See Harr, p. 172. Royal patronage was a major factor in the company's success since it ensured both a ready supply of new music from the court musicians and a market for its publications. Over the following two decades other rival companies dropped out of the market and from the 1570s onwards Le Roy & Ballard enjoyed a virtual monopoly in music publishing. The publishing house lasted to the 19th century. While Robert Ballard looked after the business side, Le Roy assumed the role of an artistic director. He achieved renown as a composer and arranger of songs and instrumentals, his published work including at least six books of tablature for the lute, five volumes for the guitar and arrangements for the cittern. Le Roy also helped to ensure the success of composer

Orlande de Lassus Orlando di Lasso ( various other names; probably – 14 June 1594) was a composer of the late Renaissance. The chief representative of the mature polyphonic style in the Franco-Flemish school, Lassus stands with William Byrd, Giovanni Pierlui ...

, introducing him to court and publishing his music. Le Roy's book ''L'Instruction pour la mandore'' gives modern historians hints as to the instruments origins and design. Although lost now, Pierre Trichet commented on things he read in Le Roy's book that tell us the instrument came to France by way of Navarre and Biscay. Trichet also lets us know that Le Roy, the author of a mandore

method Method (, methodos, from μετά/meta "in pursuit or quest of" + ὁδός/hodos "a method, system; a way or manner" of doing, saying, etc.), literally means a pursuit of knowledge, investigation, mode of prosecuting such inquiry, or system. In re ...

book, did own the instrument which he wrote about.James Tyler: The Mandore in the 16th and 17th Centuries
Le Roy died in Paris in 1598.

Some Published Works

*''Premier Livre de Tablature de Luth'' (1551). *''Briefve et facile instruction'' (1551). *''Tiers Livre de Tablature de Luth'' (1552). *''Cinquiesme Livre de Guiterre'' (1554). *''Second Livre de Guiterre'' (1556). *''Instruction de Luth'' (1557). *''Sixiesme Livre de Luth'' (1559). *''A Briefe and Easye Instru ion to Learne the Tableture to Conducte and Dispose the Hande unto the Lute'' (1568; 2nd ed. 1574); English translation by Alford. *''Livre d'air de cours miz sur le Luth'' (1571): Solo songs with lute accompaniments.See George J. Buelow: ''A History of Baroque Music'' (Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, 2004), pp. 156 ff. *''Les Instructions pour le Luth'' (1574) *''L'Instruction pour la

'' (1585)

Bibliography

*Keith Calmes: ''Guitar Music of the 16th Century'' (Pacific, Missouri: Mel Bay, 2008), pp. 46 ff. *James Harr:
European Music, 1520-1640
' (Martlesham, Surrey: The Boydell Press, 2006)), p. 172 ff. *

François Lesure François Lesure (23 May 1923 – 21 June 2001) was a French musicologist and librarian. He specialized in the life and works of Claude Debussy, but also wrote numerous bibliographies, studies in the sociology of music, and historical French top ...

& Geneviève Thibault: ''Bibliographie des éditions musicales d'Adrian Le Roy et Robert Ballard, 1551–1598'' (Paris: Société française de musicologie / Heugel, 1955; reprint: Paris: Bibliothèque nationale de France, 2002). *James Tyler & Paul Sparks:
The Guitar and its Music: From the Renaissance to the Classical Era
' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007), p. 17 ff.

References

External links

Lute tablature

* *. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Le Roy, Adrian 1520s births 1598 deaths 16th-century classical composers 16th-century French composers French Baroque composers Composers for lute French classical musicians French guitarists French lutenists French male classical composers French male guitarists People from Montreuil, Pas-de-Calais Sheet music publishers (people) Year of birth uncertain 17th-century French male musicians