Jean-Nicolas Geoffroy (1633 – 11 March 1694) 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 ...

ist,

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 ...

and composer.The registration of baroque organ music Barbara Owen - 1997 "Jean-Nicolas Geoffrey (fl. 1633-94)" His birthplace is unknown; he died in

Perpignan Perpignan (, , ; ca, Perpinyà ; es, Perpiñán ; it, Perpignano ) is the prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the ...

. His life before 1690 is unknown; he was probably a pupil of

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 ...

and served as titular organist of the

Saint-Nicolas-du-Chardonnet Saint-Nicolas du Chardonnet () is a Catholic church in the centre of Paris, France, in the 5th arrondissement. It was constructed between 1656 and 1763. The facade was designed in the classical style by Charles Le Brun. It contains many notable ...

church 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 considered an expert in organ building and at some point in life settled in Perpignan where he played the organ of

Perpignan Cathedral Perpignan Cathedral (french: Basilique-Cathédrale de Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Perpignan; ca, Catedral de Sant Joan Baptista de Perpinyà) is a Roman Catholic cathedral, and a national monument of France, located in the town of Perpignan in Langu ...

(''Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste''). Geoffroy's harpsichord oeuvre is, along with those of

François Couperin François Couperin (; 10 November 1668 – 11 September 1733) was a French Baroque composer, organist and harpsichordist. He was known as ''Couperin le Grand'' ("Couperin the Great") to distinguish him from other members of the musically talented ...

and

Jean-François Dandrieu Jean-François Dandrieu, also spelled D'Andrieu (c. 168217 January 1738) was a French Baroque composer, harpsichordist and organist. Biography He was born in Paris into a family of artists and musicians. A gifted and precocious child, he gave hi ...

, one of the most important contributions to French music of the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

era. A single collection of his pieces survives in

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printing, printed or repr ...

. It contains 255 pieces and is unique for European music of the late 17th century because the pieces systematically explore all major and minor keys.

References

Bibliography

* J.-N. Geoffroy, ''Stabat Mater'' - A 4 voice A Cappella (or Organ Continuo) version. Paris, 1675 c.ca. Modern transcription by M.G. Genesi, Milan, Tip. Giusti, 2009, pp. 20.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Geoffroy, Jean-Nicolas People from Vitry-le-François 1633 births 1694 deaths French Baroque composers French male classical composers French harpsichordists 17th-century classical composers 17th-century male musicians