Composer. A leading French musician of the late Renaissance, best known for his many settings of the Psalms. Le Jeune was born in Valenciennes, Flanders (now in France). His first compositions appeared in the mid-1550s and he was already fairly famous when he arrived in Paris in 1564. As a Protestant from early adulthood, Le Jeune lived a comparatively charmed life for the period. He managed to move freely within Catholic intellectual circles, was spared harm during the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre of the Huguenots in 1572, and later avoided arrest for writing an anti-Papist pamphlet. At various points in his career he was sponsored by such nobles as William of Orange and the Duke of Anjou, and from 1596 until his death he was Master of the King's Music for Henry IV. During the 1570s Le Jeune was a member of the Academy of Music and Poetry led by poet Jean-Antoine de Baif, and the ideals of this group influenced his composing methods. Adaptations of Ancient Greek and Medieval modes are seemlessly absorbed into the textures of his music, giving it a highly individual sound. Le Jeune's 347 Psalm settings, notably those in the collection "Dodecacorde" (1598), were written for home use by fellow Protestants and were admired for their hearty directness. He also wrote a mass, the "Missa ad Placitum", 11 motets, three instrumental fantasias, and some 250 secular songs. Most of these were published and have been preserved. The same cannot be said for Le Jeune's resting place, in the tiny Huguenot section of the Cimetiere de La Trinite in Paris. The cemetery was closed in 1678 and modern apartments now occupy the site on the Rue Saint Denis.
Composer. A leading French musician of the late Renaissance, best known for his many settings of the Psalms. Le Jeune was born in Valenciennes, Flanders (now in France). His first compositions appeared in the mid-1550s and he was already fairly famous when he arrived in Paris in 1564. As a Protestant from early adulthood, Le Jeune lived a comparatively charmed life for the period. He managed to move freely within Catholic intellectual circles, was spared harm during the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre of the Huguenots in 1572, and later avoided arrest for writing an anti-Papist pamphlet. At various points in his career he was sponsored by such nobles as William of Orange and the Duke of Anjou, and from 1596 until his death he was Master of the King's Music for Henry IV. During the 1570s Le Jeune was a member of the Academy of Music and Poetry led by poet Jean-Antoine de Baif, and the ideals of this group influenced his composing methods. Adaptations of Ancient Greek and Medieval modes are seemlessly absorbed into the textures of his music, giving it a highly individual sound. Le Jeune's 347 Psalm settings, notably those in the collection "Dodecacorde" (1598), were written for home use by fellow Protestants and were admired for their hearty directness. He also wrote a mass, the "Missa ad Placitum", 11 motets, three instrumental fantasias, and some 250 secular songs. Most of these were published and have been preserved. The same cannot be said for Le Jeune's resting place, in the tiny Huguenot section of the Cimetiere de La Trinite in Paris. The cemetery was closed in 1678 and modern apartments now occupy the site on the Rue Saint Denis.
Bio by: Bobb Edwards
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