Claude Gervaise
Encyclopedia
Claude Gervaise was a French
composer, editor and arranger of the Renaissance
, who is mainly remembered both for his association with renowned printer Pierre Attaingnant
, as well as for his instrumental music.
as an assistant to Attaingnant. He first appears around 1540, mentioned as an editor on the title pages for several of Attaingnant's books of instrumental dances. After Attaingnant died in late 1551 or 1552, Gervaise continued to assist Attaingnant's widow, Marie Lescallopier-Attaingnant, in carrying on their publishing business. Where Gervaise went after the last publication under the Attaingnant name in 1558 is not known.
s, mostly for three or four voices, and instrumental music, mostly dances. He appears to have written no sacred music at all, an unusual omission for a composer of the time. In addition to being a composer, he appears to have been an innovator in notation of instrumental music: in an instruction manual for the viol
(1548, now lost), he is known to have produced the first viol tablature
in France.
His chansons are freely composed, and mostly are settings of long poems (for example huitan
s). He published a collection of twenty chansons for four voices in 1541. The remaining chansons, for three voices, are arrangements of his previous pieces for four; this collection came out in 1550. Stylistically, all are typical of French chanson composition of the 1540s: polyphonic but concise.
His instrumental music is the most famous portion of his output. Most of his music is in four parts, and is intended for dancing. The principal forms employed are the pavane
, galliarde, and branle
; and the varieties of the branle are the courant
, gay and simple. One of his pavanes, the Pavane passemaize, incorporates the famous, indeed ubiquitous, passamezzo antico
bass line.
The melodies are simple in his instrumental music, and the texture is almost always homophonic
, making the music ideal for dancing.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
composer, editor and arranger of the Renaissance
Renaissance music
Renaissance music is European music written during the Renaissance. Defining the beginning of the musical era is difficult, given that its defining characteristics were adopted only gradually; musicologists have placed its beginnings from as early as 1300 to as late as the 1470s.Literally meaning...
, who is mainly remembered both for his association with renowned printer Pierre Attaingnant
Pierre Attaingnant
Pierre Attaingnant was a French music printer, active in Paris.-Life:Attaingnant is considered to be first large-scale publisher of single-impression movable type for music-printing, thus making it possible to print faster and cheaper than predecessors such as Ottaviano Petrucci...
, as well as for his instrumental music.
Life
Little research has yet been done into his life, and details are only known of the period in which he was active in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
as an assistant to Attaingnant. He first appears around 1540, mentioned as an editor on the title pages for several of Attaingnant's books of instrumental dances. After Attaingnant died in late 1551 or 1552, Gervaise continued to assist Attaingnant's widow, Marie Lescallopier-Attaingnant, in carrying on their publishing business. Where Gervaise went after the last publication under the Attaingnant name in 1558 is not known.
Music
Gervaise's extant output consists of chansonChanson
A chanson is in general any lyric-driven French song, usually polyphonic and secular. A singer specialising in chansons is known as a "chanteur" or "chanteuse" ; a collection of chansons, especially from the late Middle Ages and Renaissance, is also known as a chansonnier.-Chanson de geste:The...
s, mostly for three or four voices, and instrumental music, mostly dances. He appears to have written no sacred music at all, an unusual omission for a composer of the time. In addition to being a composer, he appears to have been an innovator in notation of instrumental music: in an instruction manual for the viol
Viol
The viol is any one of a family of bowed, fretted and stringed musical instruments developed in the mid-late 15th century and used primarily in the Renaissance and Baroque periods. The family is related to and descends primarily from the Renaissance vihuela, a plucked instrument that preceded the...
(1548, now lost), he is known to have produced the first viol tablature
Tablature
Tablature is a form of musical notation indicating instrument fingering rather than musical pitches....
in France.
His chansons are freely composed, and mostly are settings of long poems (for example huitan
Huitán
Huitán is a municipality in the Quetzaltenango department of Guatemala.,situated on 16 km2 at 2600 m altitude, North-West from Quetzaltenango.-External links:*...
s). He published a collection of twenty chansons for four voices in 1541. The remaining chansons, for three voices, are arrangements of his previous pieces for four; this collection came out in 1550. Stylistically, all are typical of French chanson composition of the 1540s: polyphonic but concise.
His instrumental music is the most famous portion of his output. Most of his music is in four parts, and is intended for dancing. The principal forms employed are the pavane
Pavane
The pavane, pavan, paven, pavin, pavian, pavine, or pavyn is a slow processional dance common in Europe during the 16th century .A pavane is a slow piece of music which is danced to in pairs....
, galliarde, and branle
Branle
A branle l)—also bransle, brangle, brawl, brawle, brall, braul, or brantle —or brainle—is a 16th-century French dance style which moves mainly from side to side, and is performed by couples in either a line or a circle.The word is derived from the French verb branler , possibly related to brander...
; and the varieties of the branle are the courant
Courant
Courant may mean several things.* Courant is a common word for "newspaper". In 1618 the first periodical news sheets, called "corantos", went on sale in Amsterdam. This idea - for regular news updates - was adopted by publishers in London and on Sept 24, 1621, the first issue of an English weekly...
, gay and simple. One of his pavanes, the Pavane passemaize, incorporates the famous, indeed ubiquitous, passamezzo antico
Passamezzo antico
The passamezzo antico was a ground bass or chord progression popular during the Italian Renaissance and known throughout Europe in the 16th century...
bass line.
The melodies are simple in his instrumental music, and the texture is almost always homophonic
Texture (music)
In music, texture is the way the melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic materials are combined in a composition , thus determining the overall quality of sound of a piece...
, making the music ideal for dancing.
See also
- Ensemble Claude-Gervaise, an early music ensemble based in Quebec, specialising in music of the period
- Francis PoulencFrancis PoulencFrancis Jean Marcel Poulenc was a French composer and a member of the French group Les six. He composed solo piano music, chamber music, oratorio, choral music, opera, ballet music, and orchestral music...