Jean-Phillipe Rameau & 18th Century French Music

Jean-Philippe Rameau lived during the period of history known as Baroque, a time of progress which heralded the advent of modern Europe. The Baroque period is considered the time between 1600-1750. Rameau experienced the Baroque period for sixty-seven years, living from 1683-1764. He also lived fourteen years beyond it, into what is called the Classical era, lasting from 1750-1820. By looking at the life of this renowned French composer, his musical persuasions and accomplishments, we can understand the general history of eighteenth century French music, the Baroque and Classical periods.

The first aspect to note about French music of this time is that it is influenced heavily by Italy and Germany. Therefore, to know eighteenth century Italian and German music is to know a great deal about French music of this era. For example, cantatas and sonatas are both Italian compositions used by Rameau and other French composers like Jacques Hotteterre, a multi-talented flutist, violist, and bassoonist (Clark 1). As well, eighteenth century musical inspiration flourished just as much from cross-cultural influences as it did by the legacy of Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632-1687), the most celebrated French composer of the seventeenth century.

Lully was known for his operas, which directed the inspiration of his Baroque and Classical successors. Rameau's passion lay in the opera with thirty-two stage works-the least successful (Castor et Pollux) of which ran twenty-one times in the theater (Boynick 2, Ouden 1). He wrote his first opera, Hippolyte et Aricie, at age fifty and his opera-ballet, Les Indes galantes, performed sixty-four times in just two years (Boynick 2). Though many were skeptical of anything but Lully's works, Rameau and his contemporaries enjoyed success at the opera. Many composers created operas by setting the works of well-known poets and prose writers to music. Rameau accompanied Voltaire's La Princess de Navarre with his orchestral talents and Voltaire even wrote the libretto, or words for a musical work, specifically for Rameau's piece Samson.