Jacques Boyvin (c. 1649 – 30 June 1706) was a French
Baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and def ...
and
organist
An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...
.
He was probably born in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, and studied there. One of his first jobs was that of organist of the Parisian church ''des Quinze-Vingts'', and in 1674 he was appointed titular organist of the
Rouen Cathedral
Rouen Cathedral () is a Catholic church architecture, church in Rouen, Normandy, France. It is the Episcopal see, see of the Archbishop of Rouen, Primate of Normandy. It is famous for its three towers, each in a different style. The cathedral, b ...
, where
Jean Titelouze
Jean (''Jehan'') Titelouze (c. 1562/63 – 24 October 1633) was a French Catholic priest, composer, poet and organist of the late Renaissance and early Baroque periods. He was a canon and organist at Rouen Cathedral. His style was firmly rooted ...
served as organist some 40 years earlier. Other jobs included playing the organ of
Rouen
Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...
's Saint Herbland Church and supervising the rebuilding of the giant four-manual
Clicquot cathedral organ. Boyvin was also an organ teacher:
François d'Agincourt
François d'Agincourt (also d'Agincour, Dagincourt, Dagincour) (1684 – 30 April 1758) was a French harpsichordist, organist, and composer. He spent most of his life in Rouen, his native city, where he worked as organist of the Rouen Cathedra ...
was one of his pupils and succeeded him as organist of the Rouen Cathedral. Like Titelouze, Boyvin remained the organist of the cathedral until his death on 30 June 1706.
Boyvin published two collections of organ works, in 1689 and in 1700, both featuring pieces spanning all
church modes
A Gregorian mode (or church mode) is one of the eight systems of pitch organization used in Gregorian chant.
History
The name of Pope Gregory I was attached to the variety of chant that was to become the dominant variety in medieval western and ...
. The books contain 16
suites, no less than 120 individual pieces total. The second book contains the ''Traité abrégé de l'accompagnement'', a treatise on
accompaniment
Accompaniment is the musical part which provides the rhythmic and/or harmonic support for the melody or main themes of a song or instrumental piece. There are many different styles and types of accompaniment in different genres and styles of m ...
. The pieces are liturgical in nature and exhibit a brilliant style which makes use of forms and discoveries by
Nicolas Lebègue
Nicolas-Antoine Lebègue (also ''Le Bègue''; c. 16316 July 1702) was a French Baroque composer, organist and harpsichordist. He was born in Laon and in the 1650s settled in Paris, quickly establishing himself as one of the best organists of the c ...
and
Guillaume-Gabriel Nivers
Guillaume-Gabriel Nivers (c. 1632, Paris – 13 November 1714) was a French organist, composer and theorist. His first ''livre d'orgue'' is the earliest surviving published collection with traditional French organ school forms (a collection by Lou ...
.
See also
*
French organ school The French organ school formed in the first half of the 17th century. It progressed from the strict polyphonic music of Jean Titelouze (c. 1563–1633) to a unique, richly ornamented style with its own characteristic forms that made full use of ...
References
External links
Recordings of several pieces composed by Boyvin*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boyvin, Jacques
1640s births
1706 deaths
French classical organists
French Baroque composers
French male classical composers
17th-century French male musicians
French male classical organists