General Biography on D'Anglebert

The son of a prosperous shoemaker, Jean-Henri d’Anglebert’s (1629-91) early years are all but invisible to the historian’s glance. He may have had one or more powerful teachers, but it was not until about his 25th year that his first compositions emerged. Notably, d’Anglebert’s works first appeared alongside pieces by Couperin and Chambonnières and possibly originated in their immediate circle. Thus by the mid-1650s, d’Anglebert was closely associated with the most prominent French harpsichordists of the day. The bulk of his career unfolded in court and chapel circles around Paris, where he held several keyboard posts. His only published work, Pièces de clavecin, appeared in 1689 just before his death, though a fair amount of other music survives in handwritten copies.

(c) Jason Stell