Jacquet de la Guerre, Elisabeth-Claude
Jacquet de la Guerre, Elisabeth-Claude
Jacquet de la Guerre, Elisabeth-Claude, French harpsichordist and composer; b. 1666 or 1667; d. Paris, June 27, 1729. She was the daughter of Claude Jacquet, a descendant of the prominent family of organists and harpsichord makers. She was a gifted child and appeared in a Paris concert at the age of 6 as a singer accompanying herself on the harpsichord. Louis XIV and Madame de Montespan became her patrons. She sang at and composed music for the Théâtre de la Foire, and also presented concerts in her home until 1717. Among her works were the opera Cephale et Procris (Académie Royale de Musique, Paris, March 15, 1694), a ballet, three vols, of cantatas (1708-15?), solo and trio sonatas with violin and bass viol, and two vols, of Pièces de clavecin (1687, 1707). She was one of the earliest French composers to write cantatas and sonatas, and the only woman to compose a tragédie lyrique.
Bibliography
E. Borroff, An Introduction to E.-C. J.d.a.G. (N.Y., 1966).
—Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire