Philippe Beaussant (6 May 1930 – 8 May 2016) was a French
musicologist
Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...
and
novelist
A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...
, an expert on French
baroque music
Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Classical period after a short transiti ...
, on which he has published widely. He was the founder of the
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 ...
, of which he was the artistic adviser of 1987 to 1996. He has also been a producer of musical programs for
Radio France
Radio France is the French national public radio broadcaster.
Stations
Radio France offers seven national networks:
*France Inter — Radio France's "generalist" station, featuring entertaining and informative talk mixed with a wide variety of ...
since 1974. His biography of
Jean-Baptiste Lully
Jean-Baptiste Lully ( , , ; born Giovanni Battista Lulli, ; – 22 March 1687) was an Italian-born French composer, guitarist, violinist, and dancer who is considered a master of the French Baroque music style. Best known for his operas, he ...
, ''Lully ou le musicien du soleil'' (
Éditions Gallimard
Éditions Gallimard (), formerly Éditions de la Nouvelle Revue Française (1911–1919) and Librairie Gallimard (1919–1961), is one of the leading French book publishers. In 2003 it and its subsidiaries published 1,418 titles.
Founded by Ga ...
, 1992), was the basis of the film ''
Le Roi Danse
''The King is Dancing'' (''Le Roi danse'') is a 2000 costume drama by Belgian filmmaker Gérard Corbiau based on Philippe Beaussant's biography of Jean-Baptiste Lully, ''Lully ou le musicien du soleil'' (1992). The film, presenting libertine and ...
'' (
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
).
Beaussant won the 1993
Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française
Le Grand Prix du Roman is a French literary award, created in 1914, and given each year by the Académie française. Along with the Prix Goncourt
The Prix Goncourt (french: Le prix Goncourt, , ''The Goncourt Prize'') is a prize in French litera ...
for his novel ''Héloïse''.
He was elected to seat 36 of the
Académie française
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...
on 15 November 2007.
References
External links
Biography of Beaussant at the French-language publisher Librairie Arthème Fayard
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beaussant, Philippe
1930 births
2016 deaths
Writers from Bordeaux
20th-century French novelists
20th-century French male writers
20th-century French musicologists
21st-century French musicologists
Members of the Académie Française
Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française winners
Prix Goncourt de la Biographie winners
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
Knights of the Ordre national du Mérite
Officiers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
French male novelists