November 28, 2016. Lully, Part I. Jean-Baptiste Lully was born on this day in 1632 in Florence, Tuscany. His family was of modest means and not musical. Giovanni Battista, as he was called in those days, probably studied music with local friars. Then his life changed overnight. How it happened that Roger de Lorraine, the chevalier de Guise, picked a 14-year old boy to become a tutor in Italian for his niece, we don’t know. What we do know is that the niece was none other than Anne-Marie-Louise d’Orléans, known as the “Grande Mademoiselle,” the eldest daughter of Gaston, the Duke of Orléans, a brother of Louis XIII and, therefore, the niece of King Louis XIV. The Grande Mademoiselle, then 19, was living in the Palais des Tuileries, and it was in the palace that Jean-Baptiste completed his musical education. One wonders whether Lully had any knowledge of Italian music before he was brought to France; it seems likely that he became familiar with it later on, when he was already employed by the court. In addition to music, Jean-Baptiste was taught to dance, and, apparently was very good at that – at least that was the capacity in which he started at the Royal court. The Second Fronde (the Fronde of the Nobles) compromised the position of the Grande Mademoiselle, and in 1653 she was forced to leave Paris. Soon after, Jean-Baptiste returned to the city and was brought to the court as a dancer in a Ballet royal de la nuit, a sumptuous production which called for a large number of performers. (The 14-year old King, who loved to dance, performed as Apollo – it was his debut). The performance went well and Lully was accepted to the corp. As Lully was already dabbling in composition, he was appointed a “composer of instrumental music,” but his duties were to combine dancing and composing, with an emphasis on dancing. Jean-Baptiste was so good at it that he got noticed by the King.
Soon he became the King’s favorite – first as a dancer and, later, as a composer. Back then, the traditions of French court music were rather unusual, at least by our standards. For example, several composers were supposed to create a single ballet. The ballets were complex affairs, not just with dances but also with different vocal parts and instrumental interludes. Some composers were considered to be especially good in writing vocal music, while others were famous as instrumentalists (the young Lully was known for his dance music). For example, Ballet de la Nuit, mentioned above, was written by at least three people. It wasn’t till 1656 that Lully would have a chance to create a complete ballet of his own, L'Amour malade; that happened partly because of the influence of the Italian musicians in the entourage of the King’s chief advisor, Cardinal Mazarin, himself an Italian. L'Amour malade, a vast production with mimes, dancers (Lully being one of them) and singers, was a huge success. From that point on, he was considered the greatest ballet composer in France. That would become his main preoccupation for the next several years: he would write ballets for the court and even add ballet scenes to operas of other composers. A rather scandalous story happened when the famous Italian opera composer, Francesco Cavalli, came to town with his fine opera, Ercole amante. Lully decided to add several ballet pieces to it. The entire production became a six-hour affair; the king, the queen and the court danced to the ballet music, which received all the praise, while the rest of the opera was panned. Cavalli left Paris soon after.
Here are several excerpts from an early ballet by Lully called Ballet des Plaisirs. It was composed in 1655; Lully danced several roles in the production. Aradia Baroque Ensemble, a Canadian group, is conducted by Kevin Mallon.
Jean-Baptiste Lully, 2016
November 28, 2016. Lully, Part I. Jean-Baptiste Lully was born on this day in 1632 in Florence, Tuscany. His family was of modest means and not musical. Giovanni Battista, as he was called in those days, probably studied
music with local friars. Then his life changed overnight. How it happened that Roger de Lorraine, the chevalier de Guise, picked a 14-year old boy to become a tutor in Italian for his niece, we don’t know. What we do know is that the niece was none other than Anne-Marie-Louise d’Orléans, known as the “Grande Mademoiselle,” the eldest daughter of Gaston, the Duke of Orléans, a brother of Louis XIII and, therefore, the niece of King Louis XIV. The Grande Mademoiselle, then 19, was living in the Palais des Tuileries, and it was in the palace that Jean-Baptiste completed his musical education. One wonders whether Lully had any knowledge of Italian music before he was brought to France; it seems likely that he became familiar with it later on, when he was already employed by the court. In addition to music, Jean-Baptiste was taught to dance, and, apparently was very good at that – at least that was the capacity in which he started at the Royal court. The Second Fronde (the Fronde of the Nobles) compromised the position of the Grande Mademoiselle, and in 1653 she was forced to leave Paris. Soon after, Jean-Baptiste returned to the city and was brought to the court as a dancer in a Ballet royal de la nuit, a sumptuous production which called for a large number of performers. (The 14-year old King, who loved to dance, performed as Apollo – it was his debut). The performance went well and Lully was accepted to the corp. As Lully was already dabbling in composition, he was appointed a “composer of instrumental music,” but his duties were to combine dancing and composing, with an emphasis on dancing. Jean-Baptiste was so good at it that he got noticed by the King.
Soon he became the King’s favorite – first as a dancer and, later, as a composer. Back then, the traditions of French court music were rather unusual, at least by our standards. For example, several composers were supposed to create a single ballet. The ballets were complex affairs, not just with dances but also with different vocal parts and instrumental interludes. Some composers were considered to be especially good in writing vocal music, while others were famous as instrumentalists (the young Lully was known for his dance music). For example, Ballet de la Nuit, mentioned above, was written by at least three people. It wasn’t till 1656 that Lully would have a chance to create a complete ballet of his own, L'Amour malade; that happened partly because of the influence of the Italian musicians in the entourage of the King’s chief advisor, Cardinal Mazarin, himself an Italian. L'Amour malade, a vast production with mimes, dancers (Lully being one of them) and singers, was a huge success. From that point on, he was considered the greatest ballet composer in France. That would become his main preoccupation for the next several years: he would write ballets for the court and even add ballet scenes to operas of other composers. A rather scandalous story happened when the famous Italian opera composer, Francesco Cavalli, came to town with his fine opera, Ercole amante. Lully decided to add several ballet pieces to it. The entire production became a six-hour affair; the king, the queen and the court danced to the ballet music, which received all the praise, while the rest of the opera was panned. Cavalli left Paris soon after.
Here are several excerpts from an early ballet by Lully called Ballet des Plaisirs. It was composed in 1655; Lully danced several roles in the production. Aradia Baroque Ensemble, a Canadian group, is conducted by Kevin Mallon.