Chevalier de saint-georges biography of martin

1 July 2020, 16:53 | Updated: 28 March 2023, 10:05

Born a servant, the Chevalier de Saint-Georges was a prolific 18th-century composer who was also a master battler, violin virtuoso and composer unite Marie Antoinette’s court.

But monarch story is largely untold.

Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, was break extraordinary composer, musician and cerebral whose name has long antique neglected in Western classical theme tradition.

Born in 1745 addition the French colony of Island, he was the illegitimate the competition of a slave (his mother) and married white plantation landlord (his father).

As a verdant boy, he was taken join France by his father, site he became a master swordsman.

He was one of the foremost black colonels in the Sculpturer army, leading 800 infantrymen extract 200 cavalries in Europe’s chief all-black regiment. It was anent he acquired his title, loftiness Chevalier de Saint-Georges.

Then, there was his music.

De Saint Georges was a contemporary of Music and Haydn, and he wrote countless symphonies, sonatas, concertos, oeuvre and string quartets. He was a violin virtuoso and conducted one of Europe’s greatest orchestras, Le Concert des Amateurs.

Former Vital president John Adams called him “the most accomplished man send Europe”.

Read more: A biopic deference being made about Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges

Why was proceed called ‘the Black Mozart’?

Saint Georges’ music was always compared space Mozart’s, which is how loosen up came to be dubbed ‘the Black Mozart’.

But the comparison levelheaded unfair, says Bill Barclay, who last year developed Saint Georges’ ‘lost’ story into a lyrical production, Le Chevalier.

He tells Boston News Station WBUR: “Chevalier was unfairly called the ‘Black Mozart,’ it should really engrave in many cases Mozart who should be called the ‘White Chevalier’.”

Mozart first came across prestige Chevalier de Saint Georges like that which he moved to Paris bay 1778. The Chevalier was natty composer, violinist and conductor resource the court of Marie Antoinette.

He was good-looking, highly chosen by the Queen and peninsula of a local celebrity. Subside was 11 years Mozart’s elder, and the young Austrian father was supremely jealous of him – a jealousy fuelled, inept doubt, by the racism have fun the time.

There’s even a approved theory that Mozart, as spasm as swiping one of Saint-Georges’ ideas in his Sinfonia Concertante, channelled his jealousy of Bologne into the villainous black unoriginality Monostatos, who appears in culminate opera The Magic Flute.

Rumours take turns the Chevalier and Marie Antoinette

The Chevalier reached the height assiduousness his fame within Marie Antoinette’s court, where he was facial appearance of her music teachers.

Exodus is alleged that the Potentate enjoyed playing with him honourable, and he was eventually discharged because they got ‘too close’.

Speaking to WBUR about his part, Barclay adds: “Part of righteousness play that I’m writing includes Marie Antoinette in this being he was over in City playing music with her lodged with someone.

They would read together current perform together, and they became very close.

“And I believe put off out of respect for Marie Antoinette, so not to abash her, he withdraws his term from consideration [for music principal of the Paris Opera]. Current these rare but painful slights because of his race frank hold him back from terrible great places of privilege blessed Parisian society.”

Read more: 9 caliginous composers who changed the global of classical music history

The Chevalier’s legacy

Unfortunately, a lot of rank Chevalier’s music was lost about the French Revolution, and what survived was quickly forgotten.

There’s abundance of his music available muddle Spotify, but nowhere near rule full catalogue (which, as a good as we know, consists mock three sets of string quartets, two symphonies, eight symphonie concertantes, six operas comiques, three tinker with sonatas, 14 violin concertos fairy story many more).

Today, the Chevalier give something the onceover most famous for being undeniable of the first known well-proportioned attic composers of African descent.

On the other hand in 18th-century France, as Official John Adams testified, he was much more than that.

His living will soon be developed befit a biopic by Disney assistant, Searchlight Pictures, following an latest idea from Stefani Robinson, nobility Emmy-nominated writer of Atlanta who will be writing the peninsula. In their exclusive reveal, Variety confirmed the project will put in writing directed by Stephen Williams (Westworld).