Jean de Bournonville


Jean de Bournonville was a French composer active in the first third of the 17th century, born in Noyon around 1585 and died in Paris on 27 May 1632. He should not be confused with his son Valentin de Bournonville, who published masses in the middle of the 17th century.

Biography

Noyon

The 1612 Octo Cantica state that he was born in Noyon, but his year of birth is unknown.

Saint-Quentin

The same collection indicates him at that time as master of the children of the collegiate church of Saint-Quentin. In 1613 Bournonville offered to the chapter of the Cambrai Cathedral a bound collection of his masses. He remained in Saint-Quentin until about 1618.
In the 1610s, he won first prizes at the puys de musique of Rouen, Évreux and Abbeville.

Amiens

Bournonville was in Amiens before 1619: he was appointed maître de chapelle of the Amiens Cathedral with respect to his 1619 Missae tredecim. We know an expertise of reception of the organ of the cathedral signed by his hand on 23 June 1623, also signed by Henri Frémart and Jehan Titelouze, which suggests that he was an organist.

Paris

He ended his career at the Sainte-Chapelle du Palais in Paris, where he was appointed director of the master's degree on 6 December 1631, replacing Jacques Du Moustier who died on 6 December 1631. He took possession of his post on 3 January 1632, after taking an oath, and was installed "in the lower chairs on the right side, not having the order of priesthood". Offering such a position to a non-ecclesiastical musician was unusual; it can be inferred that it was his qualities that earned him such an offer. He did not work long, dying on 27 May 1632.

Legacy

He was also mentioned by Annibal Gantez, in 1643: comme un Bournonville qui est mort maistre de la Saincte Chapelle, et qui a laissé son fils aussi vertueux que luy maistre de l'Église d’Amiens. In addition to his son Valentin, he also had Artus Aux-Cousteaux as a student in Saint-Quentin in 1615.

Works

The known works of Bournonville are exclusively sacred and spiritual. They were well regarded by his contemporaries. In his writing, imitations are treated with flexibility and elegance. His counterpoint is of high quality and knows how to stay alive and spontaneous, as in the songs from which he sometimes draws inspiration for his masses.

Masses

There are nineteen of them, divided between Parisian volumes and a Douaisian collection.