Michel Blavet facts for kids
Michel Blavet (born March 13, 1700 – died October 28, 1768) was a French composer and a very skilled flute player. He taught himself to play many instruments. But he was best at the bassoon and the flute. He held his flute to the left, which is different from how most flute players hold it today.
A famous musician named Quantz once wrote about Blavet. He said that Blavet was a kind and friendly person. Quantz felt very grateful for all the nice things Blavet did for him.
Blavet's Life Story
Michel Blavet was born in Besançon, France, on March 13, 1700. His father, Jean-Baptiste Blavet, was a wood turner. Michel even worked in this job for a while. One day, he got a flute and quickly became the best flute player in France.
Blavet was known for playing perfectly in tune, even when the music was in difficult keys. These are musical scales that are harder to play. People also loved the beautiful sound he made. A famous writer named Voltaire admired his playing. Another musician, Marpurg, called him a top-notch player. Blavet stayed humble even though he was very popular.
In 1726, Blavet joined the Duke of Carignan. He also started playing in a famous public concert series called the Concert Spirituel. In 1728, King Louis XV gave Blavet special permission to publish his flute music for six years. By 1731, Blavet began working for Louis, Count of Clermont. He became the Count's music manager. In 1728, he published his first book of flute music. It had six sonatas for two flutes without a bass instrument. From 1731 to 1735, he performed at the Concert Spirituel with other famous musicians like Jean-Marie Leclair.
In 1738, Blavet became the main flute player for King Louis XV's own music group, called the "Musique du Roi." In 1740, he also joined the orchestra at the Paris Opera. He played in the first performance of the "Paris quartets" by Georg Philipp Telemann. These were musical pieces for four instruments. Blavet was offered a job in the court of Frederick the Great, a king who loved music. But Blavet turned it down. Another musician, Quantz, took the job later when the pay was much higher.
In 1752, Blavet wrote the first French comic opera, called Le Jaloux corrigé. A comic opera is a funny opera. He also wrote a march for a group called the Masons, which he joined. Blavet's three collections of music for two flutes do not have dates. But they seem to be from the early 1750s. These collections, along with his other works, show special breathing marks. These marks help us understand how French music was played in the 1700s. Blavet passed away in Paris in 1768.
Blavet's Musical Works
Blavet mostly wrote music for the transverse flute. This is the type of flute played horizontally. He wrote in both the Italian and French styles. His music that we still have today includes a concerto and three books of sonatas from 1740.
A concerto is a piece for a solo instrument with an orchestra. Sonatas are pieces for one or two instruments. Blavet wrote his surviving works in easy keys. This was so that people who played music for fun, not professionally, could enjoy them.
Blavet's Compositions
- Six sonatas for two flutes without bass, Opus 1 (1728)
- Six sonatas for flute and continuo, Op 2 (1732)
- Nr. 1 in G major L'Henriette
- Nr. 2 in D minor La Vibray
- Nr. 3 in e minor La Dherouville
- Nr. 4 in g minor La Lumagne
- Nr. 5 in D major La Chauvet
- Nr. 6 in a minor Le Bouget
- Concerto in A minor for flute and strings (without viola) (1745, found again in 1954).
- Four operas, but only Le Jaloux Corrige (1752) still exists.
- Le jaloux corrigé (1752)
- Floriane ou la grotte des Spectacles (1752)
- Les Jeux olympiques (1753)
- La Fête de Cythère (1753)
- Arrangements and original pieces for two flutes
- Premier recueil de pièces accomodé pour les flûtes traversières; Deuxième recueil de pièces accomodé pour les flûtes traversières; Troisième recueil de pièces accomodé pour les flûtes traversières. Paris s.d.
Images for kids
-
This picture is thought to be a portrait of Blavet by Henri Millot.
