Marin Marais
Marin Marais (lang; 31 May 1656, Paris – 15 August 1728, Paris) was a French composer and viol player of the middle Baroque era. He studied composition with Jean-Baptiste Lully, often conducting his operas, and with the master of the bass viol Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe for six months. In 1676 he was hired as a musician to the royal court of Versailles and was successful there, being appointed in 1679 as ordinaire de la chambre du roy pour la viole, a title he kept until 1725.
Marin Marais
French composer.
Workshop of André Bouys · Public domain
- Born
- 31 May 1656
- Birthplace
- Paris, Kingdom of France
- Died
- 15 August 1728
- Place of death
- Paris
- Occupation
- * Composer
- Spouse
- Catherine d'Amicourt (1676-1728)
- Nationality
- France.
- Fields
- opera.
- Movements
- classical music and Baroque music.
- Teachers
- Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe and Jean-Baptiste Lully.
- Languages
- French.
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Marin Marais (lang; 31 May 1656, Paris – 15 August 1728, Paris) was a French composer and viol player of the middle Baroque era. He studied composition with Jean-Baptiste Lully, often conducting his operas, and with the master of the bass viol Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe for six months. In 1676 he was hired as a musician to the royal court of Versailles and was successful there, being appointed in 1679 as ordinaire de la chambre du roy pour la viole, a title he kept until 1725.
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gnd · 1078694605 · museum · c6ea915d-3441-48fe-b1ad-e832e1410ea7 · wikidata · Q213519 · wikipedia · Marin Marais
In this article
Biography
Biography
He was the father of the composer Roland Marais (c. 1685 – c.
Key facts
Key facts
• Born — 31 May 1656 • Birthplace — Paris, Kingdom of France • Died — 15 August 1728 • Place of death — Paris • Occupation — * Composer • violist • Spouse — Catherine d'Amicourt (1676-1728) • Children — 19, incl. Roland Marais (son)
Career
Career
Marin Marais was a master of the viol, and the leading French composer of music for the instrument. He wrote five books of Pièces de viole (1686–1725) for the instrument, generally suites with basso continuo. These were quite popular in the court, and for these he was remembered in later years as he who "founded and firmly established the empire of the viol" (Hubert Le Blanc, 1740). His other works include a book of Pièces en trio (1692) and four operas (1693–1709), Alcyone (1706) being noted for its tempest scene. Titon du Tillet included Marais in Le Parnasse françois, making the following comments on two of his pieces, Le Labyrinthe, perhaps inspired by the labyrinth of Versailles, and La Gamme: As with Sainte-Colombe, little of Marin Marais' personal life is known after he reached adulthood. Marin Marais married a Parisian, Catherine d'Amicourt, on 21 September 1676. They had nineteen children together. Facsimiles of all five books of Marais' Pièces de viole are published by Éditions J.M. Fuzeau. A complete critical edition of his instrumental works in seven volumes, edited by John Hsu, is published by Broude Brothers. Marais is credited with being one of the earliest composers of program music. His work The Bladder-Stone Operation, for viola da gamba and harpsichord, includes composer's annotations such as "The patient is bound with silken cords" and "He screameth." The title has often been interpreted as "The Gall-Bladder Operation," but that surgery was not performed until the late 19th century. Urinary bladder surgery to remove stones was already a medical specialty in Paris in the 17th century.
Instrumental music
Instrumental music
• Illustration — Viol part of Premiers couplets (sic) des Folies d'Espagne from the Marin Marais' deuxième livre de pièces de viole for viola da gamba and figured bass • Pieces for 1 and 2 viols, Book I (20 August 1686, only solo viols, 1 March 1689 first published with associated basso continuo) • Pieces en trio pour les flutes, violon, et dessus de viole (published on 20 December 1692, dedicated to Marie-Anne Roland) • Pieces for 1 and 2 viols, Book II (1701), including 32 couplets on "Les folies d'Espagne" • Pièces de violes, Book III (1711) • Pieces for 1 and 3 viols, Book IV (1717; includes the famous Suitte d'un Goût Étranger.) • La gamme et autres morceaux de symphonie (1723, includes La Gamme en forme d'un petit Opéra, Sonate à la Maresienne, Sonnerie de Ste-Geneviève du Mont-de-Paris) • Pièces de violes, Book V (1725) • 145 Pieces for viol (ca. 1680), about 100 pieces were published in Books I – III
Operas
Operas
• Idylle dramatique of 1686 (music lost) • Alcide (1693, in collaboration with Louis Lully) • Ariane et Bacchus (1696) • Alcyone (premiered on 18 February 1706) • Sémélé (1709) • Pantomime des pages (with Louis Lully, music lost)
Sacred works
Sacred works
• Te Deum (1701) for the recovery of the Dauphin (lost) • Motet Domine salvum fac regem (1701) for the recovery of the Dauphin (lost)
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1656
Marin Marais born at Paris.
1728
Marin Marais died at Paris.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
FR.
Country
Paris.
Birth place
References in film
• Marais and his music were featured in the film Tous les matins du monde (1991), an atmospheric, meticulously imagined life of Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe. Marais' music figured prominently in that film, including his longer work Sonnerie de Ste-Geneviève du Mont-de-Paris (1723). The role of Marin Marais is played by Gérard Depardieu as an old man and by Guillaume Depardieu as a young man. The soundtrack was done by the violist Jordi Savall. • A recording of the Sonnerie performed on a Fairlight synthesizer was used in the cult classic film Liquid Sky. • "Le badinage" features in No Other Choice (2025) by Park Chan-wook.
Discography
• Sonnerie de Ste-Genevieve du Mont, Suite en Do majeur (C major), Suite en Re majeur (D major); performers: Nikolaus Harnoncourt, A. Harnoncourt, L. Stastny, H. Tachezi; recording label: Harmonia Mundi, France, no. HMC 90414; 1973, 1987. • Les Folies d'Espagne, La rêveuse, L'arabesque, Le badinage, Sonnerie de Ste-Genevieve du Mont; performers: Jordi Savall (Bass viola da gamba), Pierre Hantaï (Harpsichord), Rolf Lislevand (Theorbo); recording label: Alia Vox, 9821; 2002. • Pièces de viole du Second Livre (1701) (Le Parnasse de la Viole, vol. II) – Jordi Savall et al. – Alia Vox AV 9828 • Suite d'un Goût Étranger, Pièces de viole du Quatrième Livre (1717), (Le Parnasse de la Viole, vol. III) – Jordi Savall et al. – Alia Vox AVSA 9851 • Pièces de viole du Cinquième Livre ~ J.Savall, C. Coin, T. Koopman, H. Smith, A. Gallet ~ Alia Vox AVSA 9872 • Alcione, Tragédie lyrique, Jennifer Smith, Gilles Ragon, Philippe Huttenlocher, Vincent Le Texier, Véronique Gens, Les Musiciens du Louvre, conducted by Marc Minkowski, 3 CD Erato 1990 • Alcione, Suites des Airs à joüer (1706), Le Concert des Nations, conducted by Jordi Savall, CD Astrée-Auvidis 1994 • Sémélé, Tragédie lyrique, Shannon Mercer, Bénédicte Tauran, Jaël Azzaretti, Marc Labonnette, Le Concert Spirituel conducted by Hervé Niquet, 2 CD Glossa 2007. Le Diamant magazine Opéra, 10 de Classica, Diapason découverte. • Ariane et Bacchus (1696), Suite d'orchestre, The Versailles Revolution, Indiana Baroque Orchestra, conducted by Barthold Kuijken, CD Naxos 2018 • Sémélé, Ouvertures et danses, Montréal Baroque, conducted by Wieland Kuijken, SACD Atma baroque 2006 • Premier Livre de pièces de viole, complete (1686), L'Achéron, François Joubert-Caillet, viole de gambe. 4 CD Ricercar 2016–2017. Diapason d'or. • Deuxième Livre de pièces de viole, complete (1701), L'Achéron, François Joubert-Caillet, viole de gambe. 5 CD Ricercar 2019. Diapason d'or. • Troisième Livre de Pièces de Viole, complete (1711), L'Achéron, François Joubert-Caillet, viole de gambe. 4 CD Ricercar 2021. • Quatrième Livre de Pièces de Viole, complete (1717), L’Achéon, François Joubert-Caillet, viole de gambe. 4 CD Ricercar 2021. • Cinquième Livre de pièces de Viole, complete (1725), L’Achéron, François Joubert-Caillet, viole de Gambe. 3 CD Ricercar 2021 (parution 11/2023). • Alcione, Tragédie lyrique, Lisandro Abadie, Marc Mauillon, Cyril Auvity, Le Concert des Nation, conducted by Jordi Savall, 3 SACD Alia Vox 2020 • Ariane et Bacchus (1696), Tragédie lyrique, Judith Van Wanroij (Ariane), Mathias Vidal (Bacchus), Véronique Gens (La Nymphe de la Seine, Juno), Marie Perbost (La Gloire, Corcine), David Witczak (Adraste), Les Chantres du Centre de Musique baroque de Versailles, Le Concert Spirituel, conducted by Hervé Niquet. 2 CD Alpha 2023. Diapason d'or
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q213519: Marin Marais
Reputable secondary · Wikimedia Foundation
- “Marin Marais”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
scholarly publication
- Marais, Marin (opera), Oxford Music Online, 2002
Scholarly · Crossref registry · 2002
Institutional database
- MusicBrainz artist record for Marin Marais
Scholarly · MetaBrainz Foundation
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
scholarly publication
Marais, Marin (opera), Oxford Music Online, 2002Crossref registry
VerifiedInstitutional database
MusicBrainz artist record for Marin MaraisMetaBrainz Foundation
Verifiedauthority file
Gemeinsame Normdatei 1078694605, Marin Marais variations.Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Partially resolvedreference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q213519: Marin MaraisWikimedia Foundation
Partially resolvedreference work
Partially resolved
People, houses and institutions
Knowledge graph
People, houses and institutions
Teachers, collaborators, publishers and institutions recorded against this person, each on a stated basis.
Further particulars
Held on the record
Further particulars
Open the remaining particulars
Marin Marais is recorded as composer and viol player.
(MusicBrainz artist record for Marin Marais) • Country: FR (MusicBrainz artist record for Marin Marais) • Described As: French composer (MusicBrainz artist record for Marin Marais) • Kind Of Artist: person (MusicBrainz artist record for Marin Marais) • Born: Marin Marais was born in 1656 at Paris.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
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