Honoré François Marie Langlé (1741–1807) was a French theorist of music of Monegasque origin, composer, and author of a ''Traité d'harmonie et de modulation'' (Paris: Boyer, 1795). Napoleon named him to the newly founded

Paris Conservatoire The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

. Born to a family originally from

Picardy Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France. Hi ...

that was established at Monaco in the 18th century, Langlé showed so much early promise in music that Honoré III of Monaco sent him with an endowment to Naples at the age of fifteen. There he studied harmony and counterpoint at the Conservatorio della Pietà dei Turchini under the direction of

Pasquale Cafaro Pasquale Cafaro (also known as Caffaro or Cafariello, 8 February 1715 or 1716 – 25 October 1787) was an Italian composer who was particularly known for his operas and the significant amount of sacred music he produced, including oratorios, ...

. He remained for more than eight years, composing Masses and

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 Margar ...

s that gained him a sufficient reputation in Italy that he was appointed to direct the city theatre of

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

. In 1768, Langlé left for France. In Paris he supported himself by giving

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 ...

and singing lessons and taught musical composition to private pupils, while he gained a reputation through participating in

Anne Danican Philidor Anne Danican Philidor (11 April 1681 – 8 October 1728) was a French woodwind player and composer of the Philidor family. Born in Paris on 11 April 1681, his grandfather and father were also professional woodwind players in the king's service. An ...

's Concerts spirituels, the most prominent venue for secular concert music in Paris. There several of his compositions premiered successfully, including a sung monologue, ''Alcide'' and a cantata ''Circé''. In the following decade his reputation spread from the Parisian musical world of

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 ...

, where as ''Langlois'', the spelling preferred by his son and grandson, he gave clavecin and

fortepiano A fortepiano , sometimes referred to as a pianoforte, is an early piano. In principle, the word "fortepiano" can designate any piano dating from the invention of the instrument by Bartolomeo Cristofori in 1698 up to the early 19th century. Mo ...

lessons to Queen

Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette Josèphe Jeanne (; ; née Maria Antonia Josepha Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last queen of France before the French Revolution. She was born an archduchess of Austria, and was the penultimate child a ...

. When the

baron de Breteuil Le Tonnelier de Breteuil was a French surname, held by: * Louis Nicolas Le Tonnelier de Breteuil (1648–1728), officer of the household of Louis XIV * François Victor Le Tonnelier de Breteuil (1686–1743), twice secretary of state for war * Émil ...

formed the École Royale de Chant et de Déclamations in 1784, Langlé was entrusted with teaching singing, a position he retained until the institutional changes that came with the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

. With the creation of the

in 1795, Langlé was instituted as librarian, a place he held until 1802. His theoretical ''Traité d'harmonie et de modulation'' was published at Paris in 1795. His success in the field of

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

was less than secure. In 1786 his opera ''Antiochus et Stratonice'' failed to please at Versailles. Five years later, during the Revolution, his three-act opera ''Corisandre'', presented at the Académie de musique, sank without a trace. Undeterred, though unable to get them publicly mounted, Langlé continued to compose operas in private for the rest of hid life. His songs achieved more success: his "Hymne à Bara et à Viala" (1794) continued to be taught in music schools through the 19th century. In retirement towards the end of his life at his property, Villiers le Bel, Langlé devoted himself passionately to gardening. His posthumous reputation has supported

François-Joseph Fétis François-Joseph Fétis (; 25 March 1784 – 26 March 1871) was a Belgian musicologist, composer, teacher, and one of the most influential music critics of the 19th century. His enormous compilation of biographical data in the ''Biographie univers ...

,Fétis, ''Biographie universelle des musiciens et bibliographie générale de la musique'', vol. V, 1868. who found his music lacked qualities of genius, but his ''Traité d’harmonie et de modulation'' long remained a staple in academic teaching.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Langle, Honore 1741 births 1807 deaths French music theorists French male non-fiction writers Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery