Claude Mercier-Ythier (19313 July 2020) was a French

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

maker who ran a shop and workshop in Paris dedicated exclusively to harpsichords. Instruments that he built and restored have been played in many concerts and recordings, including a recording of Bach's complete keyboard works by

Zuzana Růžičková Zuzana Růžičková () (14 January 1927 – 27 September 2017) was a Czech harpsichordist. An interpreter of classical and baroque music, Růžičková was the first harpsichordist to record Johann Sebastian Bach's complete works for keyboard, ...

. He wrote a standard book on the topic, ''Les clavecins'', published in 1990.

Life

Mercier-Ythier was born into a family of cabinetmakers and engineers. He was passionate about music from a young age and at the age of 18 built his first harpsichord in his garage alongside his friends. After studies at the Conservatoire de Toulon, he went to

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

to work with Kurt Wittmayer, where he perfected his skills. He also worked for Neupert and

Pleyel et Cie Pleyel et Cie. ("Pleyel and Company") was a French piano manufacturing firm founded by the composer Ignace Pleyel in 1807. In 1815, Pleyel's son Camille joined him as a business partner. The firm provided pianos to Frédéric Chopin, who consi ...

In 1962, Mercier-Ythier opened his first workshop in Paris, specializing in the production of harpsichords. He was the first Frenchman since the reign of

Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...

to specialize solely in harpsichord production. Mercier-Ythier diversified his business, catering his harpsichords to businesses, theatres, and concert halls. The instruments have also appeared in over 50 films, including ''L'Allée du Roi'' and ''

Brotherhood of the Wolf ''Brotherhood of the Wolf'' (french: Le Pacte des loups) is a 2001 French period action horror film directed by Christophe Gans, co-written by Gans and Stéphane Cabel, and starring Samuel Le Bihan, Mark Dacascos, Émilie Dequenne, Monica Bel ...

''. After a 45-year career, Mercier-Ythier's harpsichords had appeared in over 9000 concerts and 700 recordings. The historic instruments that he had restored were used in concert and for recordings, such as a 2-manual harpsichord by Jean-Henri Hemsch built in Paris in 1755/56, played for Bach's ''

The Well-Tempered Clavier ''The Well-Tempered Clavier'', BWV 846–893, consists of two sets of preludes and fugues in all 24 major and minor keys for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach. In the composer's time, ''clavier'', meaning keyboard, referred to a variety of in ...

'', Book II, by

Helmut Walcha Arthur Emil Helmut Walcha (27 October 1907 – 11 August 1991) was a German organist, harpsichordist, music teacher and composer who specialized in the works of the Dutch and German baroque masters. Blind since his teenage years, he is known f ...

in 1974. He prepared the instrument for Bach's complete keyboard works played by

. In 1990, he published a book about harpsichord making history and technique, ''Les Clavecins'', which is cited in other books about the topic such as ''The Historical Harpsichord'' and ''The Harpsichord and Clavichord: An Encyclopedia'' edited by

Igor Kipnis Igor Kipnis (September 27, 1930January 23, 2002) was a German-born American harpsichordist, pianist and conductor. Biography The son of Metropolitan Opera bass Alexander Kipnis, he was born in Berlin, where his father was singing with the Berlin S ...

. The book is also referenced in Howard Schott's overview "Early Keyboard Instruments" published in ''Revue de Musicologie'' in 1993. Mercier-Ythier died on 3 July 2020.

Publication

*''Les clavecins'', Editions Vecteurs, 1990, 978-0-94-519375-3

References

External links

MERCIER YTHIER CLAUDE
(company profile) dnb.com
Cast of the Mère Folle shoot in France
crazymothermovie.com * *
Death of Claude Mercier-Ythier
https://wildkatpr.com 3 July 2020 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mercier-Ythier, Claude 1931 births 2020 deaths People from Cannes French musical instrument makers Harpsichord makers Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres