Jean-Xavier Lefèvre (

Lausanne Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...

Cressis, 6 March 1763 – Paris Neuilly, 9 November 1829) was a Swiss-born French clarinettist and composer. In 1778, at the age of 15, Lefèvre became a member of the French Guards band. When the National Guard was formed in the year of the Revolution he played in this and from 1790 was its deputy conductor. In 1814 he was made a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor. He had many famous pupils at the Paris Conservatoire who included Janssen 1795/6, Péchignier 1797, Crusell 1803, Buteux 1814 to 1819, Crépin 1816 to 1821, Adolphe Hugot 1817 to 1822 and Pierre Hugot 1820 to 1824. He may also have taught Dacosta in 1797 and 1798, but some authorities say Duvernoy did. Very many of Lefèvre's pupils gained First Prizes. Up to the year 1817 a First Prize carried with it the award of a pair of French-made clarinets in B flat and C. From 1818 to 1892 the Prize was of music worth 100 francs. During Lefèvre's term of office the contest piece had always to be the composition of the professor and Sainsbury mentions that in 1799 Lefèvre set his Concerto no.5. Early Conservatoire records are unfortunately incomplete and the only year listed in these is 1824, Lefèvre's last year as professor, when he set Ms Concerto no.3. Compuso 12 sonatas.

Works for band

* 1795: ''Hymn'' for mixed choir and band * 1796: ''Hymne à l'agriculture pour la fête de l'agriculture célébrée le 28 juin'' for mixed choir and band Conductor and musicologist Sir

John Eliot Gardiner Sir John Eliot Gardiner (born 20 April 1943) is an English conductor, particularly known for his performances of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, especially the Bach Cantata Pilgrimage of 2000, performing Church cantata (Bach), Bach's church ...

suggested, in ITV's South Bank Show, May 12th, 1996, that this hymn could have inspired the last movement of Beethoven's

Pastoral The pastoral genre of literature, art, or music depicts an idealised form of the shepherd's lifestyle – herding livestock around open areas of land according to the seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. The target au ...

symphony.

Pedagogical works

* 1802: ''Méthode de clarinette'' * ''Soixante exercices pour clarinette''

Discography

* Eduard Brunner; Tudor 7098; © 2002, (p) 2002 ** Concerto for clarinet and orchestra no.3 in E-flat major ** Concerto for clarinet and orchestra no.4 in B-flat major ** Concerto for clarinet and orchestra no.6 in B-flat major * Jacques Lancelot; King Records Firebird KICC 66 © 1992 (p) 1976 ** Rondo from the Sonata for clarinet and Piano (ciphered bass)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lefevre, Jean-Xavier 1763 births 1829 deaths 18th-century French composers 18th-century male musicians 19th-century French composers French Classical-period composers French classical clarinetists Swiss clarinetists Swiss male musicians Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery Knights of the Legion of Honour 19th-century male musicians Composers for clarinet