Joseph Michel (1679–1736) was an 18th-century

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

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 ...

chorister A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

, composer and music teacher of the Sainte Chapelle of Dijon, demolished in 1802. A contemporary of

Jean-Philippe Rameau Jean-Philippe Rameau (; ; – ) was a French composer and music theory, music theorist. Regarded as one of the most important French composers and music theorists of the 18th century, he replaced Jean-Baptiste Lully as the dominant composer of ...

, his reputation extended far beyond the boundaries of the city of

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

and

Burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...

. Born at Bay-sur-Aube, and educated at the Jesuit college of Godrans, Michel was a pupil of Pierre Menault and also for a few years, of Jean-Philippe Rameau, organist at the

Church of Notre-Dame of Dijon The Church of Notre-Dame of Dijon is a Roman Catholic church architecture, church in Dijon. Considered a masterpiece of 13th-century Gothic architecture, it is situated at the heart of the preserved old centre of the city. It is located in Place ...

. Michel became priest in 1705 and, by an agreement between him and the Chapter on 28 December 1709,

choirmaster A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

to the Sainte-Chapelle du Roi in

Dijon Dijon (, ; ; in Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Digion'') is a city in and the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Côte-d'Or Departments of France, department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region in eas ...

, where he became a

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

in 1717.

Compositional style

Michel's grand

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the preeminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to the Eng ...

s like ''Dominus regnavit exultet terra,'' which came into the repertoire of the "Chapelle du Roi" in

and remained there until 1792, are characteristic of the second half of the reign of

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

. They cover a large instrumental ensemble consisting of flute, bassoon and a five-part string orchestra (''

violon The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

,'' ''

haute-contre The ''haute-contre'' (plural ''hautes-contre'') was the primary French operatic tenor voice, predominant in French Baroque and Classical opera, from the middle of the seventeenth century until the latter part of the eighteenth century. History ...

,'' ''

taille The ''taille'' () was a direct land tax on the French peasantry and non-nobles in ''Ancien Régime'' France. The tax was imposed on each household and was based on how much land it held, and was paid directly to the state. History Originally ...

,'' '' quinte'' and ''

basses Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the b ...

de violon''). The upper voices consisted of two ''

dessus A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to A5 in choral music, or to ...

,'' ''hautes-contres,'' ''tailles,'' and ''

basse-taille ''Basse-taille'' (bahss-tah-ee) is an enamelling technique in which the artist creates a low-relief pattern in metal, usually silver or gold, by engraving or chasing. The entire pattern is created in such a way that its highest point is lower th ...

'' for the soloists, and ''dessus,'' ''hautes-contre,'' ''tailles,'' ''basses-tailles'' and ''

'' for the choir. His ''

Leçons de ténèbres Leçons de ténèbres ( 'lessons of darkness'; sometimes spelled Leçons des ténèbres) is a genre of French Baroque music which developed from the polyphonic lamentations settings for the tenebrae service of Renaissance composers such as Sermi ...

'' (Lessons of Darkness) were the last examples to be printed during the first half of the 18th century, although the bulk of his compositions were destroyed in a fire at his printer in 1735, the year before his death. In his later works, one can clearly see the emerging galant style in his music. From a letter in the archives of Versailles, it is clear that Michel intended to become ''

kapellmeister ( , , ), from German (chapel) and (master), literally "master of the chapel choir", designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term has evolved considerably in i ...

'' for the royal court, but his premature death prevented this.

Works, editions and recordings

* ''Domine in virtute tua'' * ''Miserere'' * ''Leçons de Jérémie'' (1935) * ''Dominus regnavit exultet terra'' * ''Quid retribuam tibi'' * ''Leçons de ténèbres'' - recorded by (1)

Hervé Niquet Hervé Niquet (born 28 October 1957) is a French conductor, harpsichordist, tenor, and the director of Le Concert Spirituel, specializing in French Baroque music. Biography Born on 28 October 1957, Hervé Niquet was raised at Abbeville in ...

and Le Concert Spirituel for Naxos in 1997, (2) Hervé Lamy, Mundo Corde 2012.

Additional informations

Sources

References

;Attribution *''This article is based on the translation of the corresponding article of the German Wikipedia. A list of contributors can be found there at the'
History
''section.'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Michel, Joseph 1679 births 1736 deaths French musicians French Baroque composers Jesuit education 18th-century French classical composers French male classical composers 18th-century French composers 18th-century French male musicians 17th-century French male musicians

Compositional style

Works, editions and recordings

See also

Additional informations

Sources

References