Robert de Févin
Encyclopedia
Robert de Févin was a French
composer of the Renaissance
. He was the brother of Antoine de Févin
, a considerably more famous composer at the court of Louis XII of France
. Whether he was older or younger than Antoine is not known.
Little is known about his life, except that either he was born in Cambrai
or Arras, the birthplace of his brother, and his father was an alderman in Arras in 1474. He held the post of maître de chapelle (chorus master) in Cambrai, to the dukes of Savoy
, sometime around 1500; he may even have been born there. References to the "brothers Févin" as composers can be found from the time. Robert may have died before about 1518, as evidenced by a memorial note written on a copy of his Missa la sol mi fa re, which was probably copied around that year.
He wrote masses
, motet
s and lamentation
s, though little of his work has survived. Three masses, a four-voice credo from a mass (the rest of which has been lost), two settings of the Lamentations of Jeremiah, one five-voice Marian antiphon (Alma Redemptoris mater), and the music of a six-voice motet (with the text absent) are all that survives of his work. Stylistically it is similar enough to his brother Antoine's music that several of Robert's pieces have been misattributed to Antoine. Robert evidently emulated the style of Josquin
, copying not only the smooth polyphony of the more famous composer but basing two of his masses directly on works by him.
Some of Févin's music can be found in the Medici Codex
of 1518.
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 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...
. He was the brother of Antoine de Févin
Antoine de Févin
Antoine de Févin was a French composer of the Renaissance. He was active at the same time as Josquin des Prez, and shares many traits with his more famous contemporary.-Life:...
, a considerably more famous composer at the court of Louis XII of France
Louis XII of France
Louis proved to be a popular king. At the end of his reign the crown deficit was no greater than it had been when he succeeded Charles VIII in 1498, despite several expensive military campaigns in Italy. His fiscal reforms of 1504 and 1508 tightened and improved procedures for the collection of taxes...
. Whether he was older or younger than Antoine is not known.
Little is known about his life, except that either he was born in Cambrai
Cambrai
Cambrai is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.Cambrai is the seat of an archdiocese whose jurisdiction was immense during the Middle Ages. The territory of the Bishopric of Cambrai, roughly coinciding with the shire of Brabant, included...
or Arras, the birthplace of his brother, and his father was an alderman in Arras in 1474. He held the post of maître de chapelle (chorus master) in Cambrai, to the dukes of Savoy
Savoy
Savoy is a region of France. It comprises roughly the territory of the Western Alps situated between Lake Geneva in the north and Monaco and the Mediterranean coast in the south....
, sometime around 1500; he may even have been born there. References to the "brothers Févin" as composers can be found from the time. Robert may have died before about 1518, as evidenced by a memorial note written on a copy of his Missa la sol mi fa re, which was probably copied around that year.
He wrote masses
Mass (music)
The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a choral composition that sets the invariable portions of the Eucharistic liturgy to music...
, motet
Motet
In classical music, motet is a word that is applied to a number of highly varied choral musical compositions.-Etymology:The name comes either from the Latin movere, or a Latinized version of Old French mot, "word" or "verbal utterance." The Medieval Latin for "motet" is motectum, and the Italian...
s and lamentation
Lamentations (music)
The Lamentations of Jeremiah the Prophet have been set by various composers.-England:Thomas Tallis made two famous sets of the Lamentations. Scored for five voices , they show a sophisticated use of imitation, and are noted for their expressiveness. The settings are of the first two lessons for...
s, though little of his work has survived. Three masses, a four-voice credo from a mass (the rest of which has been lost), two settings of the Lamentations of Jeremiah, one five-voice Marian antiphon (Alma Redemptoris mater), and the music of a six-voice motet (with the text absent) are all that survives of his work. Stylistically it is similar enough to his brother Antoine's music that several of Robert's pieces have been misattributed to Antoine. Robert evidently emulated the style of Josquin
Josquin Des Prez
Josquin des Prez [Josquin Lebloitte dit Desprez] , often referred to simply as Josquin, was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance...
, copying not only the smooth polyphony of the more famous composer but basing two of his masses directly on works by him.
Some of Févin's music can be found in the Medici Codex
Medici Codex
The Medici Codex of 1518 is a music book prepared for the Pope Leo X, the second son of Lorenzo the Magnificent of the Medici family who was pope from 1513 to 1521....
of 1518.