The ''Livre d'orgue de Montréal'' is a

music manuscript Music manuscripts are handwritten sources of music. Generally speaking, they can be written on paper or parchment. If the manuscript contains the composer's handwriting it is called an autograph. Music manuscripts can contain musical notation a ...

dating from the 18th century, which contains about 400 organ pieces. It is one of the largest surviving manuscripts of works by the

French organ school The French organ school formed in the first half of the 17th century. It progressed from the strict polyphonic music of Jean Titelouze (c. 1563–1633) to a unique, richly ornamented style with its own characteristic forms that made full use of ...

from the reign of

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 ...

. It was brought to North America by

Jean Girard Jean Girard (8 August 1696 – 23 February 1765) was a French organist, serpent player, and schoolmaster who was primarily active in Canada. He was one of the first professional musicians living and working in the city of Montreal. Born in Bourg ...

, a French Sulpician clerk born in Bourges, appointed organist and teacher at the Notre-Dame parish in Montreal. Most of the music is anonymous, although a few pieces have been positively identified as works 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 cou ...

External links

* {{Baroque music manuscript sources Baroque music manuscript sources