Guillaume Minoret (ca. April 1650 – 1717 or December 1720) was a French baroque composer.
He was of the generation of
Marc-Antoine Charpentier
Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'', ''Marche en rondeau''. This theme is still us ...
, but unlike him only a small part of his ''œuvre'' survives. Minoret famously won one of the four rotating annual positions for ''sous-maîtres'' at the Chapelle royale in 1683, organised by
Louis XIV
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of Vers ...
following the retirement of
Henry Du Mont
Henri Dumont (also Henry Du Mont, originally Henry de Thier) (1610 – 8 May 1684) was a baroque composer of the French school, born in the Southern Netherlands.
Life
Dumont was born to Henry de Thier and Elisabeth Orban in Looz (Borgloon). The ...
and Pierre Robert. Unfortunately compared to both de Lalande, who won the most prestigious Christmas turn of the four positions, and
Pascal Collasse
Pascal Collasse (or Colasse) (22 January 1649 (baptised) – 17 July 1709) was a French composer of the Baroque era. Born in Rheims, Collasse became a disciple of Jean-Baptiste Lully during the latter's domination of the French operatic stage ...
who in most opinions came second, Minoret and his colleague
Nicolas Goupillet
Nicolas Goupillet also Coupillet or Goupillier (Senlis, ca. 1650 - Paris, ca. 1713) was a French Baroque composer - albeit a composer who may not have himself composed all of his works.
In 1683 the then fifty-year-old "Sun King" Louis XIV commande ...
have been consigned by music historians to the roles of musical mediocrities. Prior to the competition he had been ''maître de chapelle'' at
Orléans Cathedral
Orléans Cathedral ( French: ''Basilique Cathédrale Sainte-Croix d'Orléans'') is a Roman Catholic church located in the city of Orléans, France. The cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Orléans.
It was originally built from 1278 to 1329. It ...
since 1679.
Life
Minoret was born in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. He was possibly trained by the school of
Notre-Dame de Paris
Notre-Dame de Paris (; meaning "Our Lady of Paris"), referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the Seine River), in the 4th arrondissement of Paris. The cathedral, dedicated to the ...
, under the composer Pierre Robert. At the age of about twenty, he became master of music (''
maître de chapelle
(, also , ) from German ''Kapelle'' (chapel) and ''Meister'' (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 ha ...
Étienne Moulinié
Étienne Moulinié (10 October 1599 – 1676) was a French Baroque composer. He was born in Languedoc, and when he was a child he sang at the Narbonne Cathedral. Through the influence of his brother Antoine (died 1655), Moulinié gained an app ...
. On 26 April 1679 he was made master of the music at the cathédrale Sainte-Croix d'Orléans, but did not stay there long and left around the start of September - his successor Pierre Tabart was installed on 9 November the same year. This provincial cathedral's music was of high quality - ten years earlier, on 14 September 1669, for the anniversary of the church's dedication,
Claude Perrault
Claude Perrault (25 September 1613 – 9 October 1688) was a French physician and an amateur architect, best known for his participation in the design of the east façade of the Louvre in Paris...we heard music that was very good and which, today, is second only to that at Notre-Dame de Paris". The master was then Philippe Martinot, who was retired as too old on 14 January 1679, thus allowing Minoret to succeed him.
Orléans Cathedral was still undergoing major rebuilding work in the 17th century, after its near-total destruction on 24 March 1568 during the
French Wars of Religion
The French Wars of Religion is the term which is used in reference to a period of civil war between French Catholic Church, Catholics and Protestantism, Protestants, commonly called Huguenots, which lasted from 1562 to 1598. According to estim ...
. It was possible to bring the apse and choir, which had survived in large part, back into use quite quickly. The slow rebuilding began under
Henry IV of France
Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarc ...
on 18 April 1601. In 1679, thanks to the generosity of
Louis XIV of France
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of Versa ...
, the transepts were inaugurated - the royal effigy features on their exterior. The musical officers were probably celebrated on this occasion.
On 5 September, after leaving Orléans, Minoret was employed at the church of
Saint-Germain-l'Auxerrois
The Church of Saint-Germain-l'Auxerrois is a Roman Catholic church in the First Arrondissement of Paris, situated at 2 Place du Louvre, directly across from the Louvre Palace. It was named for Germanus of Auxerre, the Bishop of Auxerre (378-4 ...
in Paris. In April 1683 he took part in a competition organised by
Louis XIV
, house = Bourbon
, father = Louis XIII
, mother = Anne of Austria
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
, death_date =
, death_place = Palace of Vers ...
with the aim of recruiting four ''sous-maîtres'' for the '' chapelle royale'' at the
Palace of Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 19 ...
(the post of ''maître'' was held by an ecclesiastic without any musical function). With
Michel Le Tellier
Michel Le Tellier, marquis de Barbezieux, seigneur de Chaville et de Viroflay (19 April 1603 – 30 October 1685) was a French statesman.
Biography
Le Tellier was born in Paris to a Parisian magistrate, Michel III Le Tellier, and his wife, Clau ...
's support, Minoret one of the four taken on (the other three were
Michel-Richard Delalande
Michel Richard Delalande e Lalande'' (; 15 December 1657 – 18 June 1726) was a French Baroque composer and organist who was in the service of King Louis XIV. He was one of the most important composers of grands motets. He also wrote ...
,
Pascal Colasse
Pascal Collasse (or Colasse) (22 January 1649 (baptised) – 17 July 1709) was a French composer of the Baroque era. Born in Rheims, Collasse became a disciple of Jean-Baptiste Lully during the latter's domination of the French operatic stage. ...
and
Nicolas Goupillet
Nicolas Goupillet also Coupillet or Goupillier (Senlis, ca. 1650 - Paris, ca. 1713) was a French Baroque composer - albeit a composer who may not have himself composed all of his works.
In 1683 the then fifty-year-old "Sun King" Louis XIV commande ...
). Minoret entered the role on the following 1 July. Because he was a priest, he and Nicolas Goupillet were put in charge of the education of the pages of the chapel (i.e., the young boys who sang in the choir, which was otherwise made up of professional adult men). He began by reorganising this musical chapel in summer 1683 and held the role until 1714, leaving it shortly before the king's death on 1 September 1715. Minoret himself died at
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
some time later (exact date uncertain).
Works, editions and recordings
* Six
grands 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 pre-eminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to Margare ...
s for double choir of which three are of
Psalm
The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...
s 12 (''Usquequo Domine''), 27 (''Ad te Domine levavi''), 94 (''Venite exultemus''), while the three others take the texts ''Currite populi'', ''Deus docuisti me'', and the ''Prope es'' of Ps. 118 (Paris, BnF. Copied by André Danican
Philidor
Philidor (''Filidor'') or Danican Philidor was a family of musicians that served as court musicians to the French kings. The original name of the family was Danican (D'Anican) and was of Scottish origin (Duncan). Philidor was a later addition to t ...
, king's librarian, dated 1697);
* Two petits motets : ''Sancti Spiritus'' and ''Misericordia Domine'' for two voices and
basso continuo
Basso continuo parts, almost universal in the Baroque era (1600–1750), provided the harmonic structure of the music by supplying a bassline and a chord progression. The phrase is often shortened to continuo, and the instrumentalists playing th ...
(
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
, Bibliothèque municipale) ;
* A mass for Christmastime (''Missa pro tempore Nativitatis''), for double choir, on Christmas themes, to which
Sébastien de Brossard
Sébastien de Brossard, pronounced e.bɑs.tjẽ də brɔ.saːr (12 September 1655 – 10 August 1730) was a French music theorist, composer and collector.
Life
Brossard was born in Dompierre, Orne. After studying philosophy and theology a ...
added two voices, in 1694 (Paris. BnF. Coll. S. de Brossard);
* A ''Domine salvum fac regem'' (''God save the King''), for double choir, which ended this mass
All these works are preserved in manuscript. Three of them (le Ps. 94, the ''Currite populi'' and the ''Prope es tu'') have so far been published by the Japanese musicologist Yuriko Baba, in the collection: Edition critique - Anthologies, du
Centre de musique baroque de Versailles The Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles (CMBV - ''Centre of Baroque Music Versailles'') is a centre for the study and performance of French Baroque music, based at the Menus-Plaisirs du Roi. It was founded by Philippe Beaussant and Vincent Ber ...
(
CMBV The Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles (CMBV - ''Centre of Baroque Music Versailles'') is a centre for the study and performance of French Baroque music, based at the Menus-Plaisirs du Roi. It was founded by Philippe Beaussant and Vincent B ...
).Cf. Yuriko Baba, ''Guillaume Minoret. Œuvres complètes. Les Motets, vol. 1'', CVIII-193 p., 2008 (CMBV-051).
For the musicologist Jean Duron, these motets give "a good idea of this composer's style, using an elegant style and a fine yet always simple theme". In his 18th century ''Parnasse français'',
Evrard Titon du Tillet Evrard or Évrard may refer to
People
* Évrard d'Espinques, French manuscript illuminator
* Ray Evrard (1895-1974), American lawyer
* St. Evrard, another name of St. Eberhard of Friuli
Eberhard (c. 815 – 16 December 867) was the Frankish D ...
they "prove very praiseful on Minoret and notably on his manner of writing for instruments supporting the voices" (cf. Bibliographie: Jean Duron).