Napoléon Coste facts for kids
Napoléon Coste (born June 27, 1805 – died January 14, 1883) was a famous French classical guitar player and composer. He is known for writing many beautiful pieces for the guitar and for his special seven-string guitar.
About Napoléon Coste
Napoléon Coste was born in a place called Amondans, near Besançon, France. His mother was a very good guitar player, and she was his first teacher. When he was a teenager, he started teaching the guitar himself. He also played in three concerts.
In 1829, when he was 24, Coste moved to Paris. There, he studied with another famous guitarist named Fernando Sor. Napoléon quickly became known as the best guitar player in France.
Even though it was hard to find work as a guitarist in Paris back then, Coste became a successful musician. He wrote many songs, but he often had to publish them himself because publishers weren't interested. Coste was inspired by other great musicians of his time, like Hector Berlioz. For example, his piece "La Source du Lyson" was inspired by nature, much like Berlioz's music.
In 1863, Coste hurt his left shoulder. But he was still able to play for audiences until 1881, just two years before he passed away. After his teacher Fernando Sor died, Coste helped to update and publish Sor's guitar method book. He added many new examples and lessons to it.
Coste's Special Guitar
Napoléon Coste really loved playing the seven string guitar. He was famous for using a unique seven-string guitar. It was made by René François Lacôte and was called the "Lacôte Heptachord." This guitar had a special "floating" seventh string. This string was usually tuned to D or C.
This invention made the guitar sound richer and deeper. The floating string would vibrate on its own, even when the other strings were played. This added a special sound to his music.
Coste was also one of the first composers to write down old guitar music from the 1600s using modern musical notation. This helped people today to still play and enjoy that old music. He died when he was 77 years old. He left behind many original songs and pieces for the guitar.
Some of Coste's Music
Napoléon Coste wrote many pieces for the guitar. Here are a few examples of his published works:
- Op. 2: Variations et Finale... (Variations and Finale)
- Op. 5: Souvenirs de Flandres (Memories of Flanders)
- Op. 15: Le Tournoi fantaisie chevaleresque (The Fantasy Chivalry Tournament)
- Op. 17: La Vallée d'Ornans (The Ornans Valley)
- Op. 21: Les Cloches (The Bells)
- Op. 38: 25 Études de genre (25 Typical Studies)
- Op. 41: Feuilles d'automne (Autumn Leaves)
- Op. 47: La Source du Lyson (The Lyson River Spring)
- Op. 51: Récréation du Guitariste (The Guitarist's Break)
He also wrote other pieces that didn't have opus numbers, like:
- Méditation de nuit (Night Meditation)
- Berceuse (Lullaby)
- Valse des roses (Waltz of the Roses)
See also
In Spanish: Napoléon Coste para niños
