. . . . "LA THESE COMPREND TROIS PARTIES. CONSACREE A LA BIOGRAPHIE DE MARCHAND, LA PREMIERE UTILISE DE NOMBREUX DOCUMENTS INEDITS. EST D'ABORD EVOQUEE, EN UN CHAPITRE, LA FAMILLE. SON GRAND-PERE, PIERRE MARCHAND, FUT PRINCIPAL DE COLLEGE A SAINT-JEAN-DE-LOSNE, AUXONNE, ET SEURRE. TROIS DE SES FILS FURENT ORGANISTES : PIERRE, MORT JEUNE EN 1684; LOUIS, CURE DE PONTAILLIER, QUI, CONDAMNE A MORT EN 1693, NE SAUVA SA TETE QUE POUR MOURIR AUX GALERES EN 1694; JEAN ENFIN, ORGANISTE A LYON, CLERMONT, NEVERS. DE SON FILS LOUIS, LE GRAND MARCHAND, TOUS LES MYSTERES DE LA VIE N'ONT PAS ETE PERCES : JE N'AI PU ETABLIR POURQUOI IL QUITTE EN 1713 L'ORGUE DE LA CHAPELLE DU ROI, NI LES CIRCONSTANCES EXACTES DE SA RENCONTRE MANQUEE AVEC J-S BACH. J'AI EN REVANCHE VERIFIE QU'IL FUT ORGANISTE A NEVERS DES L'AGE DE 15 ANS, ET PRODUIT PLUSIEURS DOCUMENTS QUI ECLAIRENT SES RELATIONS AVEC L'ABBE DANDRIEU, LES CONDITIONS DE SA CANDIDATURE MALHEUREUSE A SAINT-MERRY, LES CIRCONSTANCES DE SA SEPARATION D'AVEC SA FEMME EN 1702, OU ENCORE SES RAPPORTS AVEC LES CORDELIERS. TOUTES CES PRECISIONS HUMANISENT QUELQUE PEU LE PORTRAIT DE CET EXTRAVAGANT, TOUT EN FAISANT REVIVRE AUTOUR DE LUI QUANTITE D'HOMMES PASSIONNES, VOIRE PASSIONNANTS. LA SECONDE PARTIE DRESSE MINUTIEUSEMENT LE CATALOGUE DES OEUVRES DE MARCHAND. GRAVEES OU MANUSCRITES, LES COPIES DISPONIBLES DES PIECES DE CLAVECIN SONT CONFRONTEES, DATEES, ANALYSEES. LE MEME TRAITEMENT EST APPLIQUE AUX PIECES D'ORGUE, PUIS AUX AUTRES OEUVRES, EN DEPIT DE DIFFICULTES D'ATTRIBUTION DUES A LA PROFUSION D'HOMONYMES MUSICIENS. L'EXAMEN DES BREVES OEUVRES THEORIQUES INTRODUIT ENFIN A L'ETUDE DES RAPPORTS AVEC LES ELEVES OU DISCIPLES : DU MAGE, DAQUIN, MAIS SURTOUT GUILAIN, ET BIEN SUR RAMEAU, QUI DUT SANS DOUTE A MARCHAND PLUS QU'ON NE PENSE GENERALEMENT DANS LA FORMATION DE SES IDEES THEORIQUES. UNE PREMIERE SERIE D'ANNEXES REUNIT ENVIRON 80 PIECES MANUSCRITES RELATIVES A MARCHAND ET A SA FAMILLE. DANS UNE SECONDE, J'AI SOUHAITE RASSEMBLER TOUTES LES MENTIONS DE MARCHAND IMPRIMEES AU XVIIIE SIECLE; LA LECTURE DE CES 111 PIECES LIVRE PARFOIS UN RENSEIGNEMENT INEDIT, PERMET SOUVENT D'ETABLIR LA GENEALOGIE DES SOURCES, DONNE TOUJOURS L'IMAGE QUE LE SIECLE SE FAISAIT DE SES MUSICIENS." . . "LOUIS MARCHAND (1669-1732) : LIFE AND WORKS" . . "THIS THESIS IS IN THREE PARTS. PART ONE IS DEVOTED TO MARCHAND'S BIOGRAPHY, AND RELIES MAINLY ON YET UNPUBLISHED DOCUMENTS. CHAPTER ONE EVOKES MARCHAND'S FAMILY : PIERRE MARCHAND, HIS GRANDFATHER, WHO WAS A SCHOOL RECTOR IN BURGUNDY, AND THREE OF HIS SONS WHO WERE ORGAN PLAYERS : PIERRE, LOUIS, AND JEAN. THE FAMOUS LOUIS MARCHAND, WAS THE SON OF JEAN, WHO WAS AN ORGAN PLAYER IN LYONS, CLERMONT, AND NEVERS. ASPECTS OF HIS LIFE REMAIN MYSTERIOUS : WE STILL DON'T KNOW WHY HE QUIT THE KING'S CHAPEL'S ORGAN IN 1713, OR WHY EXACTLY HE FAILED TO MEET J-S BACH. ON THE OTHER HAND, I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO ASCERTAIN THAT HE WAS AN ORGANIST IN NEVERS AS YOUNG AS 15, AND I PRODUCE EVIDENCE ABOUT HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH ABBE DANDRIEU, ABOUT HIS UNSUCCESSFUL SAINT-MERRY APPLICATION, ABOUT HIS SEPARATION FROM HIS WIFE IN 1702, AND ABOUT HIS ASSOCIATION WITH THE FRANCISCAN MONKS. ALL THIS CONTRIBUTES TO DRAW A LIVELIER PICTURE OF THE ECCENTRIC MARCHAND, WHILE CONJURING UP A MULTITUDE OF PASSIONATE AND OFTEN FASCINATING PEOPLE. PART TWO IS A METICULOUS CATALOGUE OF MARCHAND'S WORKS. ALL AVAILABLE COPIES OF HARPSICHORD PIECES, WHETHER ENGRAVED OR IN MANUSCRIPT FORM, HAVE BEEN CONFRONTED, ANALYSED AND DATED. THE SAME HAS BEEN MADE FOR ORGAN PIECES AND OTHER WORKS, DESPITE PROBLEMS STEMMING FROM THE EXISTENCE OF MANY HOMONYMS. MARCHAND'S THEORETICAL WORKS, HOWEWER BRIEF, BROUGHT US TO STUDY HIS DISCIPLES : PIERRE DU MAGE, LOUIS-CLAUDE DAQUIN, AND ABOVE ALL GUILAIN, AND RAMEAU, WHOSE THEORETICAL IDEAS OWE PROBABLY MORE TO MARCHAND THAN IS GENERALLY ACKNOWLEDGED. TWO SETS OF DOCUMENTS ARE ANNEXED : FIRST A CHOICE OF 80 MANUSCRIPT DOCUMENTS ABOUT MARCHAND AND HIS FAMILY (OFFICIAL CERTIFICATES, COURT EVIDENCE AND SENTENCES...) THE SECOND SET IS A FIRST ATTEMP AT AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST OF 18TH CENTURY REFERENCES TO MARCHAND : ITS 111 ITEMS CONTRIBUTE TO A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE PERIOD AND OF ITS MUSICAL VALUES AND HIERARCHIES, WHILE PERMITTING AN EASIER GENEALOGY OF SOURCES, AND OCCASIONALLY DISCLOSING ENTIRELY NEW INFORMATION." . "LA VIE ET L'OEUVRE DE LOUIS MARCHAND (1669-1732)" . "La vie et l'oeuvre de Louis Marchand (1669-1732)" . . . . "La vie et l'oeuvre de Louis Marchand : 16691732" . . . . . "La Vie et l'oeuvre de Louis Marchand, 1669-1732" .