Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Man of Music and Gentleman-at-Arms: The Life and Times of an Eighteenth-Century Prodigy

Abstract

When Catherine de Medici introduced the violin to the court of Henri II of France, Parisians developed a strong liking for that Italian import. popularity of the violin grew steadily through the generations that followed. King Louis XIII assembled the Grand Bande or Les 24 violons du Roy. Louis XIV, the Sun King, continued its patronage and endowed his protege Lully with great power and an even better orchestra, Les Petits Violons. It was a highly disciplined group whose members dressed in resplendent fashion and enjoyed respect and acclaim. According to a contemporary newspaper, The violin has been ennobled in our times (Mercure de France June 1738, vol. 1, 1113). By the middle of the eighteenth century, the violin had become so popular that Parisians considered it the most perfect of all the instruments. Audiences followed with ever-increasing interest the succession of violin virtuosos, many of them composers performing their own works, in the French capital's public and private concert halls. Though Jean-Baptiste Lully and Jean-Baptiste Viotti were both Italians, they represented the cornerstones of the classic French school of violin playing (La Laurencie 1923). During the century between their lifetimes, many more of their colleagues emigrated from Italy to seek their fortunes in Paris, answering the steady demand for new talent. After the Florentine Lully, whose original name was Lolli, others like Guignon (Ghignone) and Deplanes (Piani) adapted to France to the point of exchanging their Italian names for French ones. Of course, once the violin was established, France produced its own virtuosos. Of the French-born violinists, Guillemain was a Parisian, while many others like Mondonville and Vachon came from the provinces to conquer the