Pierre Guédron

A French composer of the early seventeenth century who held appointments with the French court from 1588 until his death. (He was first heard of as a chorister in service to Cardinal de Guise, Louis II of Lorraine.) The fame of Guedron came from his facility in teaching singing and writing airs and ballets for the court. His music was characteristically climactic and he was praised for capable renditions of textual materials for the poetry of a number of writers. A number of his songs illustrated and indicated current Italian influences. The airs included the qualities of were polyphony and sensitivity. Although he attempted mensural writing on occasion -- which he was adept at doing -- more often than not Guedron followed the natural rhythms of the texts. ~ Keith Johnson