Le Bé, Guillaume

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Le Bé, Guillaume

Le Bé, Guillaume, French type founder; b. Troyes, 1525; d. Paris, 1598. He was an apprentice in Robert Esteinne’s household, learning the cutting of punches from Claude Garamond. After a sojourn in Italy, he went to Paris to work with Garamond. From 1552 to 1592 he had his own business. Le Bé followed Petrucci’s method, printing notes and staff lines separately, thus necessitating two impressions. He also made tablature type. His punches and other equipment were acquired by Ballard, and were used for two more centuries.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire