Nicolas Vallet (also ''Valet''; c. 1583 – c. 1642) was a French lutenist and composer who emigrated to the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

. Vallet, a

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

, was born at

Corbeny Corbeny (; in the Middle Ages: Corbunei) is a Communes of France, commune in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography The river Ailette (river), Ailette flows south through the northwestern pa ...

Aisne Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

he worked as a self-supporting musician, lute teacher, and as the owner of a dance school. His primary work, ''Le Secret des Muses,'' contains compositions and instruction for the 10-course Renaissance lute. It was published in two parts in 1615 and 1616. It was among the last compositions to appear for this instrument, before it was supplanted by the Baroque lute. He also wrote a ''Psalms of David'' (in 1615) and ''Regia Pietas'' (in 1622). According to Frederick Neumann,Neumann, Frederick (1983). . Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. p. 66. . Vallet may have been among the first to introduce

ornaments An ornament is something used for decoration. Ornament may also refer to: Decoration *Ornament (art), any purely decorative element in architecture and the decorative arts *Biological ornament, a characteristic of animals that appear to serve on ...

to the lute

tablature Tablature (or tabulature, or tab for short) is a form of musical notation indicating instrument fingering rather than musical pitches. Tablature is common for fretted stringed instruments such as the guitar, lute or vihuela, as well as many fr ...

References

* * * 1580s births 1640s deaths 17th-century classical composers French Baroque composers Dutch male classical composers Dutch classical composers Dutch lutenists French lutenists French classical composers French male classical composers People from Aisne 17th-century male musicians {{Netherlands-composer-stub