Jacques Duphly facts for kids

Jacques Duphly (born January 12, 1715 – died July 15, 1789) was a talented French musician. He was known as a great harpsichord player and a composer of music.

Early Life and Musical Start

Jacques Duphly was born in Rouen, France. His parents were Jacques-Agathe Duphly and Marie-Louise Boivin. From a young age, Jacques studied music. He learned to play both the harpsichord and the organ.

When he was just 19, he got his first job. He became the organist at a cathedral in Évreux. In 1740, he took on a second organist job. This was at the church of Notre Dame de la Ronde. His sister, Marie-Anne-Agathe, often helped him by playing for him. Jacques learned from famous teachers like François d'Agincourt. Another teacher, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, later asked Duphly for help. Rousseau wanted him to write articles for his dictionary. These articles were about how to play the harpsichord.

Becoming a Harpsichord Master

In 1742, Jacques Duphly's father passed away. After this, Duphly decided to move to Paris. In Paris, he stopped playing the organ completely. He chose to focus only on the harpsichord. He quickly became very famous as a performer and a teacher.

Another musician, Louis-Claude Daquin, said good things about him. Daquin noted that Duphly had a "lightness of touch." He also had a "certain softness" in his playing. These qualities made his music sound wonderful. Friedrich Wilhelm Marpurg also mentioned Duphly's choice. He said Duphly focused on the harpsichord "not to spoil his hand with the organ."

Duphly published four books of harpsichord music. These came out in 1744, 1748, 1756, and 1768. His last book included a piece called La Pothouin. Pascal Taskin, a famous harpsichord maker, thought Duphly was one of the best teachers in Paris.

Later Years and Musical Legacy

After publishing his fourth music book, Duphly mostly stopped appearing in public. No one knows exactly why he disappeared from the music scene. In 1788, a newspaper asked about him. They wanted to know what happened to "M. du Phly."

Jacques Duphly died on July 15, 1789. This was just one day after the storming of the Bastille. He passed away in an apartment in Paris. He did not even own a harpsichord at the time. Duphly left all his belongings to his servant. This servant had been with him for 30 years.

We know of only 52 pieces of music by Duphly. Most of these were in his four published books. Many of his pieces were named after important people. For example, La Victoire was named after a princess. la de Sartine was named after a government official. Some pieces were named after other composers, like La Forqueray.

Duphly's later music had new sounds. It showed parts of the early classical music style. For example, he used something called Alberti bass. This was different from older composers like Jean-Philippe Rameau or François Couperin.

See also

In Spanish: Jacques Duphly para niños

• French baroque harpsichordists