Books › Musical biographies / 2 The American history and encyclopedia of music / W.L. Hubbard, ed, 1908 › scan 87
Scan 87
Musical biographies / 2 The American history and encyclopedia of music / W.L. Hubbard, ed, 1908
16 lines. Read by computer on 8 September 2026. Printed page 65. See the scan on archive.org.
1Monsigny
2tist, Sedaine, with whom he afterward worked, writing On ne s'avise jamais de tout, to his libretto. This was his last opera produced at the Theatre de la Foire. He wrote from 1764 to 1777 for the Comédie Italienne. Although Felix, ou l'enfant trouvé, was exceedingly successful, it was his last opera. Whether from fear of a rivalry with Grétry or from fatigue, he never wrote again. As inspector-general of canals and maître d'hôtel to Duc d'Orléans he had amassed a considerable fortune, which was swept away during the Revolution. In 1798 the societaires of the Opéra Comique made up a subscription which yielded him an annuity of about five hundred dollars. On the death of Puccini in 1800 he became inspector of instruction at the Conservatory of Music, but, feeling that his own very inadequate technical training had not rendered him competent to fill this position, he resigned in 1802. In 1813 he was appointed to Grétry's place in the Institut and in 1816 was decorated with the cross of the Legion of Honor. He died a year later in Paris. Owing to the meagre technical training he had received the orchestration for his operas was always poor, but his plays were full of melody and dramatic truth and were more natural and amusing than much of the work of his time. The best of them is Le Déserteur, performed in 1769; Le Cadi dupé is also notable for its animation and truly comic element. The other operas are L'île sonnante; Le Roi et le Fermier; Le Faucon; Le Rendezvous bien employé; Rose et Colas; Aline, Reine de Golconde, and La belle Arsène.
4Montagnana (môn-täy-nä'-nä), Domenico. 1700-1740.
5Violin-maker who was an apprentice to Antonius Stradivarius. He is not so well known as other master violin-makers owing to the insertion of false signatures into his instruments by unscrupulous dealers, but he ranks with Carlo Bergonzi. He worked at Cremona and later at Venice, where he made violas and superb violoncellos, gaining from Charles Reade the title of the mighty Venetian. Though the pupil of Stradivarius, his instruments are quite different in shape, with much larger and bolder scroll and a varnish of wonderful smoothness and beauty. His instruments are now very rare and valuable.
7Monteverde
8Monte (môn'-tě), Fillippo de. 1521-1603.
9Composer of madrigals and church music; born at Mons, or according to some authorities, Mechlin. He published his first book of masses in 1557 in Antwerp, and tradition has it that he knew Lassus and also Orlando, at whose recommendation he became chapelmaster to Maximilian II., in Vienna, in 1568. He served Rudolph in the same capacity in Prague, and became canon and treasurer of the Cathedral of Cambrai. He died in Vienna. Among his many writings are nineteen books of madrigals to five voices; eight books of madrigals to six voices; canzonets and madrigals to seven voices; Madrigali spirituali to five voices; masses to five voices; and mass to six voices; several masses to four and five voices; a Benedicta es; six books of motets to five and six voices; two books of motets to six and twelve voices; some French chansons; and Sonnets de Pierre de Ronsard.
11Montéclair (môn-tä-klär), Michel Pignolet de. 1666-1737.
12Dramatic and instrumental composer; born at Audelot. As a chorister at the Cathedral of Langres he studied under Jean Baptiste Moreau. He became musicmaster to the Prince of Vaudémont and went with him to Italy. Returning to Paris in 1700 he entered the orchestra of the Opéra as a doublebass player, a position which he filled for thirty years and was then given a pension. He died at St. Denis. Among his compositions are the operas, Les Fêtes de l'été, and Jeptha; six concertos for two flutes; four collections of minuets; cantas for voice with basso continuo; motets; a requiem; six trios for strings; and his Méthode pour apprendre la musique.
14Monteverde (môn-tä-věr'-dě), Claudio. 1567-1643.
15Originator of instrumentation in opera, and pioneer in the use of certain musical forms contrary to ancient ideas of counterpoint; was born in Cremona, Italy. While very young he played the viola in the orchestra of the Duke of Mantua, and studied counterpoint under Marc Antonio Ingegneri, ducal maestro di cappella, although he probably derived more knowledge from the writings of the Florentine musical reformers, Cascini
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