Louis-Gabriel Guillemain (5 November 1705 – 1 October 1770)

[periodinstrumentfan]

Louis-Gabriel Guillemain (5 November 1705 – 1 October 1770) was a French composer and violinist.

Guillemain is thought to have been born in Paris, was brought up by the Count de Rochechouart, and started studying violin at an early age. He was then sent to Italy to complete his training as violinist, and studied under Giovanni Battista Somis in Turin. At 24, Guillemain was working in Lyons, where he quickly established himself as one of the most sought-after performers, and was appointed first violinist of the Acadèmie de Musique. His opus 1, Premier livre de sonates for violin and basso continuo, was published in Dijon in 1734.

Guillemain eventually moved back to Paris, where, in 1737, he became a musicien ordinaire to the King. His career was progressing rapidly, and by early 1740s the composer was among the highest-paid musicians at the court, regularly performing in private concerts before the royal couple. He continued publishing his music, and his works were frequently performed at the court in late 1740s and early 1750s. Fellow composer Louis-Claude Daquin praised Guillemain in his 1752 Lettre sur les hommes célèbres:

When one speaks of a man full of fire, genius and life, one has to think of Monsieur Guillemain, Musician to the King; he is perhaps the most extraordinary and adroit violinist one can hear play. There are no difficulties that can stump him and he can compose learned pieces which sometimes embarrass his rivals. Among the great Masters, this celebrated artist is one of the most productive. His works are full of touching beauty.

However, Guillemain's private life was troubled. He was apparently a heavy drinker, especially in his later years, and he was also continually in debt because of his affinity for making expensive purchases. He died in Chaville, then a small settlement near Paris, in 1770; some contemporary accounts describe his death as a bloody suicide, with the composer stabbing himself with a knife fourteen times. However, the drinking habit and the fact that Guillemain was buried, may indicate that he died a natural death.

~Wiki



Solo Unaccompanied Violin Sonata Op. 18

I. La Furstemberg

Gilles Colliard, baroque violin




VIII. Altro



XVII. Allegro

[Melanti]

I was just on the Verge of posting some SUperb Rameau which would be open for debate; where the performances used Recorder instead of the high Flute!
1stly, I am amazed that you have uncovered this Composer and his Works, which have only appeared a few Times on Recordings!! Well done!! I have also heard and highly recommend his quite excellent 6 Sonates en Quatour ou "Conversations galantes & amusantes" Paris 1756, Superb works!!!That owe something to Telemann's Paris Quartets of 1738, themselves being performed quite regularly at the Concert spirituel!
This IS real Baroquery!! I might also suggests some of Mondonville's Sonates en Symphonie! WOW! Exquisitely crafted Pieces! The Slow movements are just like Dream sequences!! The Rest, punchy & Original, highly rich in those typical French Baroque Colours & Tones!!

[periodinstrumentfan]

Originally Posted by Melanti

...
This IS real Baroquery!! ...

Dear Melanti,

LOL ... I love the term !!!

There's this one CD of Mondonville on Harmonia Mundi "Musiqe D'abord" that i've been ignoring for at least three years now on the shelf. Will consider it the next time i visit the shop. ... thanks for the suggestion.

I told Philidor this the other day.... i may be wrong but this last work by Guillemain is like at least 50 years before Viotti ... but it sounds so much like the latter and his contemporaries. Then again i may be wrong.

Although i avoid the term, i can't help but think him as "transitional" from Late baroque —Galant— to Classical. With some hints of Tartini, Viotti, and Leclair etc.... "similar but not identical".

[periodinstrumentfan]

I am held by the ears >>>


I can listen to it all day ... on loop !!!

[Melanti]

I must say I feel exactly the same with some of Telemann's superbly crafted Menuets which sometimes go through 3 Variations before returning home!! The awareness of these Sections of Suites exude their own kind of magic & surprises and when a Composer leads you down the musical path so well he may just trip you up with some twists & turns which add spice, piquancy & delightful contours to the Music. Some of Telemanns descriptive music is blissful & witty too! He could at the drop of a hat go from the Courtly into the Country, the stately to the Folk!☺☻♫♪♫

[Melanti]

Originally Posted by Melanti

I must say I feel exactly the same with some of Telemann's superbly crafted Menuets which sometimes go through 3 Variations before returning home!! The awareness of these Sections of Suites exude their own kind of magic & surprises and when a Composer leads you down the musical path so well he may just trip you up with some twists & turns which add spice, piquancy & delightful contours to the Music. Some of Telemanns descriptive music is blissful & witty too! He could at the drop of a hat go from the Courtly into the Country, the stately to the Folk!☺☻♫♪♫

Here's some fine Menuets after 2 Mvts of this Late-Suite in Dmajor circa 1765 for 2 Horns & strings :http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdlp4Xx44Ds