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Rameau's
life and works
Books and treatises.
Musical works.
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Landmarks
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1683 |
Birth
of Jean-Philippe Rameau, in Dijon. He was christened on September
25, in the collegiate Saint-Etienne.
His parents were Jean Rameau and Claudine Demartinécourt. Jean
Rameau was the organist at several churches in Dijon. His wife was
the daughter of a notary and belonged to the lesser nobility.
Jean-Philippe was the seventh out of eleven children. The
first four were daughters, the fifth a son, then came another
daughter and then only boys. The last but one being Claude, the
organist and father of the famous "Rameau's Nephew".
Jean
Rameau taught music to all his children. Besides Jean-Philippe
and Claude who were musicians, Maret mentioned Catherine Rameau,
who was an excellent harpsichord player and teacher in Dijon.
As
regards Jean-Philippe's childhood, it is said that he knew his
notes before he could read.
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Louis XIV settled in Versailles.
Lully, Phaéton.
|
1684 |
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Birth of Watteau. Death of Corneille.
Lully, Amadis.
|
1685 |
|
Revocation of the Edict of Nantes.
Lully, Roland.
Birth of Bach, Händel & Domenico Scarlatti.
First sonatas in trio by Corelli.
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1687 |
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Death of Lully.
Charpentier, Te Deum.
|
1697 |
Rameau
studied in the Jesuit College des Godrans (now the city-library
- see picture). His parents wanted him
to become a lawyer.
"He
distinguished himself by a remarkable quick-wittedness, but during
the classes he used to sing or compose music."
This description by Père Gauthier, a schoolfellow
of Rameau, was collected by Maret. In fact, Rameau's performances
in school are so lame that the priests begged Jean Rameau
to take him away.
|
Campra, L'Europe Galante.
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1701 |
Jean-Philippe
had made up his mind that he wanted to become a musician. He went
and stayed three months in Milano. Later, he said
he regretted not to have spent more time in Italy "where
he could have improved his taste".
Little later he was "first fiddle" in a troupe
of travelling Milanese artists (Marseille, Lyon, Nîmes, Albi,
Montpellier).
In
Montpellier, a certain
Lacroix is
supposed to have taught him the "octave rule" for realizing
figured bass. According to Maret, Rameau was never taught composition,
except by his father.
|
Destouches, Omphale.
Marais, Premier livre de viole.
Beginning of the Succession war of Spain (the war lasted until
1713).
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1702 |
From
January to April, Rameau was engaged as a temporary organist
at Notre-Dame des Doms in Avignon, pending the arrival of the
appointee : Gilles.
In
May he was in Clermont where he signed a six-years agreement to
serve the cathedral chapter as organist.
Rameau composed his first cantatas.
|
Raguenet published Parallèle
des Italiens et des Français en ce qui regarde la Musique et les
Opéras (Parallele between the
Italian and French people as regards Music and operas)
Campra, Tancrède.
Louis Marchand, two Harpsichord Books.
|
1704 |
|
Galland translated The
Arabian Night to french.
Clérambault, Harpsichord Book.
|
1705 |
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Le Cerf de la Viéville,
Comparaison de la musique italienne et de la Musique française
|
1706 |
Apparently,
the full-term of the contract with Clermont was not reached because
Rameau was in Paris.
J.-Philippe was appointed organ-player at the Jesuit Collège
Louis-le-Grand, in rue Saint-Jacques, and at the Fathers of Mercy's,
rue du Chaume. Jean-Philippe was in touch with Louis Marchand,
the first French organist of his time.
In
September, J.-Philippe applied for the organ of La Madeleine en
Cité, he succeeded but didn't took up the position. Probably not
to have to give up his two other organs.
First
Book of Pieces for Harpsichord.
He
leaved Paris around 1708, and moved a lot : Dijon, Clermont,
Lyon, and Clermont again. We have little information about these
years.
|
Marin Marais, Alcyone.
Death of Pachelbel.
Händel's
first trip to Italy.
|
1707 |
A "Peasant
Duet" by Rameau was published in the collection of
Airs sérieux et à boire, by
Ballard.
|
Hotteterre, Principes
de la Flute Traversière / Principles of the Transversal Flute.
E. Jacquet de la Guerre, Suites.
|
1709 |
On
March 27, Rameau signed an agreement with the council of Notre-Dame
at Dijon, where he succeeded his father. He stayed in Dijon
until 1713. The contract was of six years, but once again, Jean-Philippe
left before the end.
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|
1712 |
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Birth of Jean-Jacques Rousseau.
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1713 |
Rameau
was "maitre-organiste" (Organ master) at Lyon, at the
Jacobins (Dominicans).
Several of the grands motets are dated from his stay in Lyon :
Deus Noster Refugium, Quam
dilecta, as well as the lost Exultet
Coelum laudibus. And possibly the lost cantatas Médée
& L'Absence.
|
Birth of Diderot.
Death of Corelli.
François Couperin, Premier livre de Pièces
de Clavecin.
Bach, French Suites (1713-1717).
Discovery of Herculanum.
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1714 |
In
December, death of Jean Rameau, the father. Jean-Philippe went
to Dijon and stayed in the city until his brother's wedding.
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Great Nights in Sceaux.
Birth of Gluck.
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1715 |
January :
Wedding of Claude Rameau, Jean-Philippe's young brother.
On
April
1st ,
Rameau was appointed again by the Chapter of the Cathedral of
Clermont. He stayed there until his departure to Paris in 1722.
He had signed a contract for 29 years.
Maret placed there a funny anecdote about how Rameau managed to
break off his contract. Rameau wanted to leave, but he has
signed and the Chapter wanted him to stay, so, in occasion of
a mass, he put all his skill in producing the most awful music
he could, pulling out the most unpleasing breaks and adding
all the possible discords. It was so unbearable that they asked
him to stop playing.
The chapter reproved him, but he said that he would not play otherwise.
And they let him go.
The same anecdote is reported about his brother Claude.
The
cantatas Aquilon et Orithie,
Téthis & L'Impatience
were probably composed during this time.
During
this stay in Clermont, Rameau deepened his theoretical knowledge
and his reflexions on music, and built up the theories he would
publish some years later in Paris.
|
Death of Louis XIV. Regency
of the Duke of Orléans .
Couperin, Les Goûts réunis.
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1716 |
Motet
Deus Noster Refugium. |
Couperin, Second
livre de clavecin.
Händel,
Brocke's Passion.
|
1717 |
|
Couperin, L'Art de
toucher au clavecin.
Marais, Quatrième livre de viole.
Birth of d'Alembert.
Watteau, Embarquement pour Cythère.
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1718 |
Motet
In Convertendo.
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Defoe, Robinson
Crusoe.
Watteau, Gilles.
Dandrieu, Principes de l'accompagnement
du clavecin.
|
1720 |
Quam
dilectat, motet. |
Benedetto Marcello, Il
Teatro alla Moda.
|
1721 |
Cantatas
Les Amants trahis &
Orphée. |
Peter the Great, tsar of Russia.
Death of Watteau.
Montesquieu, Lettres Persanes.
Les Eléments, Destouches &
Lalande.
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1722 |
Rameau
moved to Paris at the end of 1722 or at the beginning of 1723,
and would stay there until his death.
He earned his living by teaching harpsichord playing and composition.
He also worked for the Fair Theatre provinding music for
Piron's sketches.
Publication of the Treatise on Harmony
reduced to its natural Principles. This book
contains the score of Rameau's Laboravi,
a movement he probably extracted from a grand motet. This treatise
earned him the reputation of learned theoretician.
|
J.-S. Bach, The
well-tempered clavier.
Couperin, Troisième livre de clavecin.
Händel, Ottone.
|
1723 |
L'Endriague,
on a libretto by Piron, was given on February 8, with a "piece
composed in high music".
|
France : Death of the Regent.
Campra enters the Royal Chapel.
Colin de Blamont, Les Fêtes Grecques
et romaines.
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1724 |
Deuxième
livre de pièces pour clavecin,
prefaced with Méthode de la Mécanique
des doigts.
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|
1725 |
The
Fair theatre gave dances by Louisiana Indians under the title
Les Sauvages. Rameau composed
the music.
|
Louis XV married Marie Leczinska.
Philidor established Le Concert Spirituel.
Death of d'Alessandro Scarlatti.
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1726 |
On
February 25, Rameau married Marie-Louise Mangot. Her father, Jacques,
was a King's musician ("Symphoniste du Roi") and her
mother a dancer. Marie-Louise was 19 and she was a
musician and singer. She had distinguished manners, a good upbringing,
a gift for music, a very pleasing voice and a good taste in singing.
(Their
marriage seems to have been a happy one. They had four children :
2 boys and 2 girls.)
Rameau's
family settled rue des Petits-Champs.
Rameau published Nouveau Système de Musique
théorique.
He composed L'Enrôlement
d'Arlequin, & La Robe
de Dissension, for the Fair Theatre, on librettos by
Piron.
In this years (at least before 1727), Rameau was introduced, probably
by Piron, to his future sponsor, Alexandre le Riche de La Pouplinière.
|
Death of Delalande.
Rebel & Francoeur, Pyrame et Thisbé.
Vivaldi, Four Seasons.
Swift,
Gulliver's travels.
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1727 |
Birth
of Rameau's first child, Claude-François, christened on
August 8 in the church St. Germain l'Auxerrois.
Rameau was organ-player at the Church Ste-Croix de la Bretonnerie.
He would keep the work at least until 1738.
He competed for the organ of Saint Paul but failed. They choose
Daquin.
October 25, Rameau, who wanted to compose operas, wrote a letter
to Houdar de la Motte, the most famous librettist of the time
in France, to ask him for a libretto (Lettre
à Houdar de la Motte). We don't know wether La Motte replied
or not, but he didn't provide any libretto.
Aquilon et Orithie,
Thétis, Le Berger fidèle,
cantatas.
Nouvelles
Suites de Pièces pour Clavecin
The
thesis by Tobias Westbladh from the University of Upsalla
was the first scholar work referring to Rameau's theories.
|
England ; Georges II became
King. Händel composed the Coronation
Anthem.
In Russia, Peter II succeeded
Catherine I.
|
1728 |
Cantata Le
Berger fidèle.
A
second thesis related to Rameau's theories was defended by
Antonius Löfgrön, of the Universtity of Upsalla.
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|
1730 |
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Couperin, Quatrième
livre de Pièces de Clavecin.
Marivaux, Le Jeu de l'Amour et du hasard.
Goldoni, Don Juan.
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1731 |
Rameau
was appointed conductor of La Pouplinière's private orchestra.
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Abbé Prévost, Manon Lescault.
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1732 |
Rameau
met the Abbé Joseph-Simon Pellegrin, future librettist of Hippolyte
et Aricie, at La Pouplinière's.
Dissertation sur les différentes méthodes
d'accompagnement.
Rameau was appointed organ-player at la Bretonnerie.
Birth of Rameau's second child, Marie-Louise, christened
on November 15.
The family had moved to rue du Chantre.
First
appearance of Rameau's name in a dictionary, the Musicalisches
Lexicon oder Musicalische Bibliothec by Johann Gottfried
Walther, Leipzig.
|
Death
of Louis Marchand.
Birth of Haydn.
Evrard
Titon du Tillet publishedLe Parnasse
François, a tribute to the musicians of Louis XIV's
time. It was completed in 1743 and 1755.
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1733 |
Hippolyte
et Aricie,
on a libretto by Pellegrin, was given privately by La Pouplinière's
orchestra and singers at his house in rue Neuve des Petits-Champs,
in March or April.
By July it was being rehearsed at the Royal Academy of Music
(the Opéra), and the first public performance was given on October
1.
Rameau was fifty.
This work started the great quarrel between the Lullists and the
Ramists (in other terms, between the Ancient and Modern) .
At the end of the year, Rameau and Voltaire began to work together
at the tragedy Samson
(libretto).
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Succession War of Poland.
Death of François Couperin.
Pergolesi, La Serva Padrona.
Bach, Bminor Mass.
Voltaire, Lettres Philosophiques,
Lettres anglaises.
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1734 |
Les
Courses de Tempé,
for the Fair Theatre. On a libretto by Piron.
Hippolyte
et Aricie was performed in Dijon.
|
Tartini, Violin Sonatas, op. 1.
Bach, Christmas Oratorio.
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1735 |
Les
Indes galantes,
ballet héroïque on a libretto by Louis Fuzelier.
Rameau
settled down at the Hôtel d'Effiat, rue des Bons Enfans,
n° 21 (near the Palais Royal), where he stayed until 1744
(the house was standing till recent time but was pulled down for
the opening of the rue du Colonel Driant).
|
Aubert, First French
book of Violin Concerti.
Pergolesi, Olimpiade.
Dom Calmet, Histoire naturelle.
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1736 |
Samson,
composed by Rameau on a libretto by Voltaire was censored (libretto).
Castor et
Pollux, tragédie lyrique, on a libretto by Bernard,
was performed at Versailles.
"Rameau, famous musician, who already
composed three operas, has just given the fourth one, called
Castor & Pollux. This opera had little success and
was pretext to the following verses, which were not written by
a poet, but by a gentleman :
Against moderne music
Here is my last reply :
If difficult is beautiful,
Rameau is a great man ;
But, if, by chance, beautiful
is only what is simply natural,
And depicted the same way,
Rameau is a stupid man.
Mémoires du duc de Luynes, 25 novembre 1736.
Rameau opened his School of Composition (Ecole
de Composition - cf.
document).
|
Cartaud de la Vilate, Essai
historique et philosophique sur le goust (Historical
and philosophical essay on Taste), Amsterdam.
Death of Pergolesi.
Death of Caldara.
|
1737 |
Castor
et Pollux,
tragédie lyrique, at the Académie Royale..
Rameau publishes La Génération Harmonique. |
Abbé Desfontaines
published Observations sur les Ecrit modernes
in which he condemned Rameau's Génération
Harmonique.
As a response to Desfontaines, Thérèse des
Hayes (Mrs La Pouplinière), Rameau's pupil, wrote "Etude
sur la Génération Harmonique de Rameau" (Study on
Rameau's Génération Harmonique), for Le
Pour et le Contre, a magazine run by the Abbé Prévost.
(see text in French).
Construction of the Theatre San Carlo in Naples.
Campra, Second livre de motets à grand choeur.
Linné published Classification des végétaux.
|
1738 |
Rameau
gave up the organ of La Bretonnerie. |
End of the Succession War of Poland.
|
1739 |
Les
Fêtes d'Hébé,
ballet in 3 acts.
Dardanus, tragédie lyrique.
|
Dupré was appointed maître
de ballet at the Opéra.
De Brosses, Lettres d'Italie.
|
1740 |
Birth
of Rameau's third child, Alexandre, who would die very young.
|
Opening of the Succession of Austria.
France broke with England.
Händel, Deidamia,
his last opera.
|
1741 |
Pièces de clavecin en
concert. |
Death of Vivaldi. |
1742 |
|
Händel, Messiah.
Bach, Variations Goldberg.
30 January 1742 - Les
Amours de Ragonde by Jean-Joseph Mouret, is revived by
Académie Royale de Musique, nearly 30 years after the creation
at Sceaux (1714).
|
1744 |
Rameau
and his family moved from the Hôtel d'Effiat, to rue Saint-Thomas
du Louvre.
Birth of Rameau's fourth child, a girl called Marie-Alexandrine.
Rameau composed Les Jardins de l'Hymen ou
La Rose, for the Fair.
|
Death of Campra.
Bach, The well-tempered Clavier - second
book.
|
1745 |
Rameau
was appointed Compositeur de la Musique du Cabinet du Roi, and
given a pension of 2000 pounds.
From
this date, Rameau's address mentioned on various publications
was rue Saint Honoré, "in front of the caffé
Dupuis" or "near the Palais Royal".
Rameau began to work on more frivolous works, like opera-ballets
and pastorals.
La Princesse
de Navarre, divertissement composed by Rameau to accompany
Voltaire's play, performed in Versailles.
"After diner, at about five, the King came
at the Mr. Dauphins and Mrs Dauphine's. The ballet was to begin
at six. The lyrics are by Voltaire & the music by Rameau ;
the theme of the play is the Princess of Navarre... The ballet
ended only at 10 ; it is said the music was greatly approved."
Mémoires du Duc de Luynes, 24 February 1745.
Platée, comedy-ballet, Versailles.
Les Fêtes de Polymnie, ballet in 3 entrees and a prologue
on a libretto by Cahusac.
Le Temple
de la Gloire, an opera-ballet composed to celebrate
the victory of Fontenoy, was performed in Versailles, in the room
of the Small Stables.
"The
performance and staging seem to me to have been approved. The
music is by Rameau ; several pieces were enjoyed ; and
the King himself, at his Great Diner, spoked about it before Rameau
saying he was pleased. The words are by Voltaire and were criticised
a lot. Voltaire too was at the King's diner, but the King said
nothing to him. The theme is the Temple of the Glory, where the
conquerers are not admitted on the title of their victories
only ; Belus, Bacchus are outcasted from it, & Trajan
is received in it for combining the greatest virtues with
the greatest exploits".
Mémoires
du Duc de Luynes, 30 November 1745.
|
Louis XV declares war on England and Austria.
|
1746 |
Le
Temple de la Gloire,
reworked (3 entrees and a prologue) was performed at the Royal
Academy of Music.
Rameau and his family moved to rue de Richelieu, "in front
of the King's Library", which was La Pouplinière's
mansion.
|
|
1747 |
Les
Fêtes de l'Hymen et de l'Amour,
ballet in 3 acts and a prologue.
The
words are by M. Cahusac & the music by Rameau ;
it was titled The Gods of Egypt, but the name was changed
for Les Fêtes de l'Hymen et de l'Amour. Rameau's music
has generally a lot of supporters and one must admit that it is
full of harmonies. Lully lovers think that Rameau is sometimes
strange, and that several of his works are in the Italian manner :
this is how the criticisers judged his past operas ; nevertheless,
one cannot help to think that he is one of the greatest musicians
we have. The opera given on last Wednesday was rated according
to those opposite feelings ; all the connoisseurs, and Rameau
himself, agree that the overture is not good, and he has planned
to compose a new one. But, there are some wonderful pieces of
music in it, a musette, a chorus which is strange but produces
a beautiful effect. The King seemed to be happy about it ;
he stopped on his way to speak to Rameau. He said that maybe he'll
have this opera performed again after Eastern."
Mémoires
du Duc de Luynes, 18 March 1745.
La Dauphine, piece for harpsichord.
|
1748 |
Zaïs,
heroic pastoral in a prologue & 4 acts.
Pygmalion, ballet in one act.
Les Surprises
de l'Amour, ballet performed in Versailles.
"On
past Wednesday the King visited for the first time the new opera
built in the Ambassadors' Stairs... On this day was performed
an opera or divertissement in three acts, composed on three
different themes, a prologue & two ballets, which lyrics are
by Sir Bernard, secretary of M. Marshall de Coigny from the dragons
and librarian at Choisy, and the music by Rameau. The prologue
is Le Retour d'Astrée ; they pictured the forges
of Lemnos.
Madame Duchess of Brancas was Astrée ; Mr Duke d'Ayen,
Vulcain ; M. de la Salle, Time ; Mme Marchais, a Pleasure ;
The first ballet is entitled La Lyre enchantée. Madame
de Pompadour was Urania ; M. de la Salle, Linus, son of Apollo ;
Mme Marchais, Eros.
The second ballet was entitled Adonis.
Madame de Pompadour was Venus, and performed and sang everything
the best way ; Mme Marchais was Eros : Mme Duchess
of Brancas, Diana ; M. Duke of Ayen, Adonis ; M. vicount
of Rohan, a servant of Diana...
Between the grade and the stage is the orchestra, which is bigger
than the one of the small gallery, and can hold up to 40 persons.
The musicians and the public are comfortable, and one can hear
clearly the actor's voices from any place......"
Mémoires
du duc de Luynes, 29 November 1748.
|
Treaty of d'Aix-la-Chapelle, ending
the Succession war of Austria (28 October).
Denis Diderot, Mémoire
sur différents sujets de mathématique, & Principes
généraux de la science des sons.
Monsieur & madame La Pouplinière separate. The concerts are
stopped. The performances will start again only in 1751.
Montesquieu, L'Esprit des lois.
David Hume, Essays on Philosophy.
Finding of the ruins of Pompei.
|
1749 |
Naïs,
heroic pastoral, a work to celebrate the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle.
Zoroastre, lyric tragedy - December 5, Royal Academy
of Music.
July, Rameau's Letter to M. de Ste Albine
on Platée.
Rameau gave to the Academy of Sciences his Mémoire
où l'on expose les fondements d'un système de Musique théorique
et pratique/Memoire
where one explains the fundaments of theoretical and practical
music.
He published it the following year under the title Démonstration
du Principe de l'Harmonie/Demonstration
of the principles of Harmony.
|
Händel, Royal
Fireworks, to celebrate the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle.
Birth of Goethe.
Bach, The Art of Fugue.
Buffon, Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme.
Diderot, Lettre sur les Aveugles - Letter
on the Blind.
Arrival of Baron Melchior Grimm
in Paris.
|
1750 |
Rameau,
Démonstration du principe de l'harmonie.
Platée was performed again.
|
Death of Bach & Albinoni
Rousseau, Discours sur les Lettres et les
Arts - Speech on the Letters & Arts.
Release by Diderot of the prospectus to herald the appearance
of the Encyclopédie.
|
1751 |
Acanthe
et Céphise, heroic
pastoral in 3 acts, on a libretto by Marmontel. Performed onNovember
18 at the Académie Royale de Musique in occasion of the birth
the Duke of Burgundy.
La Guirlande ou Les Fleurs enchantées, opera-ballet in
one act, on a libretto by Marmontel, performed on September 21
at the Académie Royale de Musique.
Revival of Les Indes Galantes,
in a production by Servandoni.
Rameau reworked his motet In Convertendo.
Marie-Louise, Rameau's second daughter, took the veil at the Visitandines'
in Montargis. Rameau didn't attend the ceremony.
|
Diderot, Letter
on the Deaf and the Dumb.
Voltaire, Le Siècle de Louis XIV -Louis
XIV's Century.
Hume, An Inquiry Concerning Moral Understanding.
Publication of the first volume of the Encyclopaedia
& of the Discours préliminaire - Preliminary
Speech by d'Alembert.
|
1752 |
Rameau
entered the Querelle des Bouffons.
Daphnis et Eglé, ballet in one act.
Linus. This opera by Rameau was never performed. During
the rehearsals at the marquise de Villeroi's the score mysteriously
disappeared.
Foundation of a Literary Society in Dijon, which Rameau was invited
to join.
Second
edition of the Pièces en Concerts,.
The address mentioned on the book is rue des Bons-Enfans where
Rameau remained till his death.
|
14 January : revival of
Omphale by Destouches, at the Académie
Royale de Musique. It was the starting point of the quarrel known
as Querelle des Bouffons (Quarrel of the Buffoons), in which the
Philosophers showed they determination in judging French opera
seria on the criteria of the Italian Opera Buffa.
17 January : Zoroastre, is performed
in Dresden in an Italian translation by Casanova.
Février : Melchior Grimm publishes his Letter
on Omphale.
1st August : The Italian performed Pergolesi's
Serva Padrona. It was not the first performance in France
but the previous one, six years before, had fallen flat.
D'Alembert, Elements de Musique théorique
et pratique selon les Principes de M. Rameau - Elements of theoreticcal
and practical music according to M. Rameau's Principles.
Rousseau, Le Devin de village. The
work was performed at the Court in Fontainebleau on October 18
& 24, and at the Opera on March
1st 1753.
Quantz, Method for the Transversal Flute.
|
1753 |
Lysis
et Délie, pastoral.
Les Sybarites, ballet in one act on a libretto by
Marmontel. Performed at the Court in Fontainebleau on November
13.
Rameau broke off with his sponsor La Pouplinière.
Rameau, Réflexions sur la manière de former
la voix - Reflections on the manner
to form the voivce.
Rameau, Reply to Euler.
|
Janvier : Grimm published
Le Petit Prophète de Boemischbroda.
November : J.-J.Rousseau attacked Rameau, in his Letter
on French Music.
Diderot, De l'Interprétation de la Nature
- On the Interpretation of Nature.
Third volume of the Encyclopédie.
Dauvergne, Les Troqueurs.
Buffon, Discours sur le style - Speech
on the style.
|
1754 |
Rameau
published Observations sur notre instinct
pour la musique et sur ses principes - Observations on our instinct
for music and on its principles.
La naissance d'Osiris, ballet in one act.
Anacréon.
A
ballet in one act called Anacreon was then given, which words
are by M. Cahusac and music by Rameau ; the opinions about
this work are divided ...
Mémoires
du duc de Luynes, Fontainebleau, 27 octobre 1754.
The performance of last Saturday was the second
one of Anacréon ; as this act was not successful
for the musician and for the poet as well, here is what one says :
this is not Rameau's anymore, but this is still Cahusac's.
Mémoires
du duc de Luynes, Dampierre, 30 octobre 1754.
Castor et Pollux was performed in a reworked version. It's
a fabulous success which temporarily puts an end to the Querelle
des Bouffons.
"Never
a success was equal to this one, for it had no detractors,
and because more than hundred performances couldn't diminish the
pleasure that the whole Paris had in hearing that beautiful Opera,
which pleases at the same time the soul, the heart, and the mind,
the eyes, the ears and the imagination".
La
Borde, Essai sur la musique.
|
Cahusac, Traité
histoique sur la danse - Historical treatise on Dance.
Tartini, Trattato di musica secondo la vera
scienza dell'Armonia.
Rousseau, Discours sur l'origine et les
bases de l'inégalité - Speech on the origins and bases
of inequality.
|
1755 |
Rameau
publishes Erreurs sur la musique dans
l'Encyclopédies - Mistakes about music in the Encyclopaedia.
|
|
1756 |
Rameau
publishes Suite des erreurs sur la musique
dans l'Encyclopédie - Continuation of the Mistakes about music
in the Encyclopaedia.
January 20 : performance of Zoroastre,
in a widely modified version.
|
Beginning of the Seven Years' War.
Birth of Mozart.
|
1757 |
Anacréon
was added to Les Surprises de l'Amour.
Rameau published : Réponse de M. Rameau
à MM. les éditeurs de l'Encyclopédie sur leur dernier avertissement/M.
Rameau's reply to the publishers of the Encyclopaedia regarding
their ultimate acknowledgement (see text
in French).
The Royal Academy of Music, directed by Rebel et
Francœur, signed with Rameau an exclusive contract, with appointments
of 1500 pounds per year for the composer.
July 12 : Revival of Les Sybarites
at the Royal Academy of Music.
|
Diderot, Le
Fils Naturel.
In order to save money the great performances of Fontainebleu
were cancelled.
Death of D. Scarlatti.
C.P.E. Bach, Essai sur la véritable manière
de toucher le clavecin.
|
1758 |
Rameau
composed music for a little comic opera (comédie mêlée de vaudevilles)
entitled Le Procureur dupé
- a private work. The music is lost.
|
|
1759 |
Revival
of Dardanus. It was huge success.
The
public lately, gave his (Rameau) talents their due
in a brilliant way ; it was in occasion of a performance of Dardanus.
They saw him in the amphitheatre ; they all turned toward
him and applauded him for a quarter of an hour ; after the Opera
ended, the applause followed him up to the Stairs ".
Fréron,
Année littéraire, 30 octobre, 1760.
Rameau
submited to the Accademia delle Scienze dell'Instituto di Bologna
a manuscript entitled Nouvelles Réflexions
sur le Principe sonore - New Reflections on the sound Principles.
He published it the year after with many changes.
Rameau
started to correspond with Padre Martini.
Ippolito,
ed Aricia, italian version of Rameau's opera by Treatta.
The libretto was translated from the French one by a priest, Frugoni.
Traetta kept part of the original music. The work was performed
in Parma.
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Death of Händel. |
1760 |
Les
Paladins, comédie-ballet.
Rameau : Code de la Musique Pratique
ou méthode pour apprendre la musique même à des aveugles, pour
former la voix et l'oreille, pour la position de la main, avec
une mécanique des doigts sur le clavecin et l'orgue, pour l'accompagnement...
avec de nouvelles réflexions sur le principe sonore.
Rameau published Nouvelles réflexions
sur le principe sonore.
Rameau : Lettre à M. d'Alembert.
Rameau moved back to rue des Bons-Enfans.
|
Noverre, Lettre
sur la danse et sur les ballets.
Death of Georges II ; Georges III became King.
|
1761 |
Rameau
was elected member of the Academy of Dijon.
Mail exchange with d'Alembert.
|
Rousseau, La Nouvelle Héloïse.
|
1762 |
Rameau
published his Lettre aux Philosophes - Letter
to the Philosophers, in Journal de Trévoux.
In
a letter Padre Martini begged Rameau to help Goldoni who was settling
in Paris.
|
Orfeo,
by Gluck.
D'Alembert, Eléments de Musique théorique
et pratique suivant les principes de M. Rameau, éclaircis, développés
et simplifiés.
Rousseau, The Social Contract et
Emile.
|
1763 |
Les
Boréades. Rameau's
last work. It was reahearsed, on April 25 in Paris, in the scene
dock of the opera, rue Saint-Nicaize, and on April 27 in
Versailles, but for various reasons it was never performed in
public.
|
February 10, a Treaty of Peace
ending the Seven Years' War.
April 6 : Paris Opera house was destroyed by a fire.
Mozart arrived in Paris.
|
1764 |
In
the beginning of the year Rameau was ennobled by the King,
and named Chevalier de l'Ordre de Saint-Michel (Knight of the
Order of Saint-Michael). He chosed his arms : "azure
field with a silver colombe holding a golden olive branch (rameau)
in its beak ".
Rameau published Vérités également ignorées
et intéressantes tirées du sein de la nature.
Rameau died on September 12.
He was burried in Saint-Eustache church, in Paris, on September
13.

Medal of the Order of Saint-Michel
|
Death of Marquise
de Pompadour.
Jean-Marie Leclair, violinist & composer died in Paris.
Death of Locatelli in Amsterdam, & of Mattheson in Hambourg.
Opening of the new opera house of the Tuileries (salle des Machines,
set by Soufflot) with the revival of Castor
et Pollux.
The opera was revived four more times until 1784, and still
with great success.
In October, Dardanus & Castor
et Pollux were performed at the court in Fontainebleau.
Gluck's first stay in Paris.
Voltaire published his Dictionnaire philosophique.
|
1766 |
|
Dr Hugues Maret, Eloge
historique de M. Rameau, Dijon.
|
1770 |
|
Zoroastre was performed
at the Opéra de Paris for the Opening of the new venue.
The 1756 version was performed, with cuts and parts added to the
score by Berton, the conductor.
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