Nationality:
French
Born:
Dijon,
Baptized 25th
September 1683
Died:
Paris,
September 12th
1764
Type
of music: Opera,
opera-ballet
Main
works: Castor
et Pollux (1737), Pieces de clavecin (1741)
Like
Scarlatti, Rameau began his musical career as an organist and held
several posts in various towns and cities in France, until he moved
to Paris in 1722. In the same year he released his famous treatise on
theory and harmony in music, 'Traite de L'harmonie'.
He
then started to work as a harpsichord teacher, and during this time
he composed numerous volumes of character pieces for keyboard,
influenced by the style of François Couperin.
In
1733, Rameau's first opera 'Hippolyte et Aricie' had it's debut at
the Paris opera after he became acquainted with the playwright Abbe
Simon-Joseph Pellegrin, who wrote the libretto. He went on to write
approximately 30 more stage works, including the ballet 'Pygmalion'.
Rameau's
opera work became overshadowed by the Italian opera that had found
it's way into the musical culture in France, and he was no longer
popular. His work became popular again in the mid 20th
Century.
"The
expression of thought, of sentiment, of the passions, must be the
true aim of music” - Rameau
Spotify
link for the Classical Cafe playlist:
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