André Campra

André Campra was a French composer of the Baroque period, baptised in Aix-en-Provence on 4 December 1660 and who died in Versailles on 29 June 1744.

Chronologically situated between Jean-Baptiste Lully and Jean-Philippe Rameau, he took part in the revival of French opera. After training at Saint-Sauveur Cathedral in Aix-en-Provence, he rose within a few years to the prestigious post of maître de musique at Notre-Dame de Paris, having previously held the same position at Toulon Cathedral (Notre-Dame-de-la-Seds), Saint-Trophime Cathedral in Arles (which has since become, and remains, simply the church of Saint-Trophime), and Saint-Étienne Cathedral in Toulouse. He then became "batteur de mesure" at the Académie royale de musique (the Paris Opéra), of which he would become inspector general. He also directed the musicians and choirboys of the Chapelle royale (essentially adult singers — chantres — and boys in training) and was one of its two "ordinaire" composers, until he retired in 1735 for health reasons. He wrote numerous secular works, notably in the field of opera-ballet. He also composed a significant number of religious scores. Some of his grands motets have remained famous (particularly his Requiem).

At the height of his fame under the Regency (the period from 1715 to 1723), Campra was still celebrated in the final years of his life. He died in Versailles on 29 June 1744, at the age of 83. Curiously, his will shows him to have been poor, infirm, and isolated in a small Versailles apartment, accompanied only by his two servants. Upon his death, his body of work, still very much alive and widely performed in the provinces, remained in the repertoire for more than twenty years.