Gilles, Jean
Gilles, Jean
Gilles, Jean, French composer; b. Tarascon, near Avignon, Jan. 8, 1668; d. Toulouse, Feb. 5, 1705. He received music training in the choir school of the Cathedral of St. Sauveur at Aix-en-Provence, where he became 2nd instructor and organist in 1688. He later received an appointment as maitre de musique at St. Etienne at Toulouse. His most famous work was Messe des morts, which contains an erudite fugue in its Requiem, attesting to Gilles’s excellent technique. It became part of the regular services at funerals and was performed at services for Louis XV in 1774. He also wrote 32 choral motets and other sacred works.
Bibliography
M. Prada, Un Maitre de musique en Provence et en Languedoc: J. G., 1668-1705: L’Homme et I’oeuvre (Beziers, 1986).
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire