Scan 34
Groves Dictionary Of Music And Musicians,vol.5 L-m, 1900
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1beautiful tone, great powers of refined expression and a perfect technique. He was also constantly in request for cor anglais solos.
3N. C. G.
5LALANDE, Henriette Méric-. See Méric-Lalande.
7LALANDE, Michel (Richard) de (b. Paris, Dec. 1657; d. Versailles, 18 June 1726).
8French organist and composer. He was the fifteenth child of a tailor and was at first a chorister of the church of Saint-Germain l'Auxerrois, where he studied music under Chaperon and learnt, almost entirely by himself, to play the violin, bass viol, organ and harpsichord. When, on the breaking of his voice at the age of fifteen, he was obliged to leave the maîtrise, he bethought himself of turning his violin playing to account and applied for admission into Lully's orchestra. He was refused, and swore out of pique never to touch the violin again, giving substance to his resolution by breaking his instrument forthwith. He gave himself up to the organ and made such progress that he was soon appointed organist of four different churches in Paris — Saint-Gervais, Saint-Jean en Grève, Petit Saint-Antoine and that of the Jesuits of the Maison Professe, who confided to him the composition of symphonies for several of the tragedies performed at their college. He soon afterwards applied for the post of organist to the king, but though Lully pronounced him to be the best of the competitors, he was refused on account of his youth. His performance had, however, brought him to the notice of the Maréchal de Noailles, who engaged him to teach his eldest daughter and recommended him to Louis XIV, who chose him to superintend the musical education of the princesses, afterwards the Duchesse d'Orléans and Madame la Duchesse. In 1683, on the retirement of Du Mont and Robert, the post of surintendant de la chapelle royale was at first divided among four musicians, Coupillet, Minoret, Colasse and Lalande, who were to serve for three months by turns. This marked the starting-point of Lalande's successful career at court. He rose steadily through a number of different offices until by 1704 he was in complete control of the royal chapel and also director of the chamber music, serving as composer in both capacities. In 1684 the king had given him a wife, Anne Rébel, said to be the best singer of the court, had paid the expenses of the wedding and had presented a dowry to the bride. In 1722, having lost his wife and two gifted daughters, who died of smallpox in the same year as the dauphin (1711), Lalande begged the king to allow him to remit three-quarters of his salary as master of the royal chapel, and to return to the original arrangement of sharing the duties with others. He presented as his substitutes and assistants Campra, Bernier and Gervais. As a reward for his disinterested conduct the regent granted him a pension of three thousand livres. In the following year he married again — Mlle de Cury, daughter of one of the Princesse de Conti's surgeons — and he died three years later at the age of sixty-eight, having spent forty-five years in the service of the court.
10Lalande's fame rests chiefly on the impressive collection of forty-two motets for chorus and orchestra, composed for the chapel at Versailles, which were published posthumously at the king's expense in 1729. These reveal a distinctive personality, in many respects far removed from the style of Lalande's illustrious predecessor Lully. Italian influence is equally strongly in evidence with both composers, but in Lalande it produced a brighter and clearer texture than in Lully, and a firmer, more balanced melodic line. Lalande was outstanding among his French contemporaries for his fluent and muscular handling of polyphony; his clean, energetic writing often achieves effects of real brilliance and exhilaration — qualities not otherwise predominant in the French church music of this period. Although Lalande had a definitely contrapuntal outlook, and therefore might have been expected to have been in reaction against current trends, his traditional technique is combined so skilfully with the more homophonic methods of the admired Italian style that he achieved far greater success than those that attempted a more servile imitation of popular models. His use of counterpoint is never academic, but always directed to an artistic end; his selection and treatment of counter-subjects is particularly felicitous. By keeping the soprano lines well up in their register he prevents his five-part polyphonic writing from becoming thick and heavy, and in the occasional passages in ten real parts the result is massive without being confused. The solos have often much elegance and charm; the declamation is perhaps inclined to be more flowing and persuasive than eloquent, but particular attention is paid to verbal rhythm and emphasis. Noteworthy is the widespread use of obbligato instruments (violin, oboe or flute) with the solo voices in the dialogue style which found its culmination in the arias of J. S. Bach. Lalande's use of the orchestra generally in these motets shows a lively appreciation of its resources and a careful regard for technical detail in matters such as bowing and figuration which is in advance of his time. The contents of this important series of volumes reveal a composer who is always an expert stylist and frequently much more than that. Lalande brought qualities to French church music comparable, in type if not in degree, to some of the con-
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