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Jean-Baptiste Barrière
Person · male · Kingdom of France · Bordeaux · born 1705 · died 1747 · recording since 1999
French cellist and composer (1707–1747)
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Also known as Jean Barrière · ジャン＝バティスト・バリエール
Timeline
7 events▣ Album 4◦ Birth 1† Death 1★ Debut release 1
1700s
1740s
1990s
· Debut release
Debut release: Sonates pour le violoncelle avec la Basse Continüe
First documented Album in the MusicBrainz discography.
source: musicbrainz
2000s
2010s
Biography
English biography527 words · 4 sectionssource: wikipedia-en · licence CC BY-SA 4.0 · revision 1369224321
Biography
Jean-Baptiste Barrière (2 May 1707 – 6 June 1747) was a French cellist and composer. He was born in Bordeaux, Gascony and died in Paris, at 40 years of age.
Musical career
Barrière first studied the viol, and published a set of viol sonatas. In due course however he became a skilled cellist during a period when the cello was gaining popularity over the viol in France, and later came to completely replace it, as indeed had already happened in Italy some 40 years prior. He became one of the best known virtuoso cellists of his time.
In 1731 he went to Paris, and entered the Académie Royale de Musique (also known as the Opera), with an annual salary of 445 livres. He was accorded special privileges by King Louis XV at Fontainebleau, on 22 October 1733 for six years, to compose and publish several sonatas and other instrumental works. One of his most famous pupils was the Count of Guergorlay, Seigneur of Trousily. After his first book Livre I - Sonates pour violoncelle et basse continue was a success, in November 1733, he published a second edition of it in 1740. His second book, Livre II, was published around 1735.
He went to Italy in 1736 to study with the well-known Italian cellist Francesco Alborea, known as Franciscello, who during that time seems to have also been employed in Vienna from 1726 until 1739. He undertook a further long tour in Italy in April 1737 and returned to Paris in summer of 1738, to appear at the renowned Concert Spirituel on 15 August and 8 September where he impressed his audience with "grand precision", according to the local press. In 1739, a new 12-year privilege was granted to him at Versailles, and registered on 5 January 1740. In that year he published his Livre III, and other works followed suit the following year. He died at a relatively young age of 40 years, at the pinnacle of his creativity.
Barrière rise to popularity a few years after his death. Pierre-Louis Daquin de Chateau-Lyon describe him as: the famous Barrière, deceased only recently, possessed all that one can desire...few could perform as well as he.
Style
His works are best known for their sensitivity and fine tonality, their emotional resonance and deep sonority. Several of his works are quite demanding in terms of technical performance, especially in terms of left and right hand coordination, and with complicated fingerings and frequent complex bowing techniques. Much subtlety is required to achieve virtuosity in the performance of several of his pieces, for while he assimilated elements of Italian style, there is also a rich French flavour in his musical discourse and its subtlety.
Compositions
Livre I de sonates pour violoncelle et basse continue (1733 Paris, dedicated to Count Guergolay, Seigneur of Trousily)
Livre II de sonates pour violoncelle et la basse continue (1735 Paris, dedicated to Madame Jourdain)
Livre III de sonates pour violoncelle et la basse continue (1739 Paris)
Livre IV de sonates pour violoncelle et la basse continue (1740 Paris)
Livre V Sonates pour le Pardessus de viole avec la Basse Continue
Livre VI Sonates et Pièces pour le Clavecin (Harpsichord Sonatas)
Discography & profile
Normalised profile
Percentiles are computed over every artist in the database, so a tier-3 artist can still sit in the 95th percentile on a single axis.
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 12 | 64.8th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 4 | 78.1th |
| Studio albums | 4 | 82.8th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 7 | 82.6th |
| Recording span (years) | -252 | 2.4th |
| Genres | 1 | 56th |
Percentiles are computed at render time; missing values mean the artist has no data on that axis.
Discography (4 release groups · 4 studio albums)
Albums · 4
Sonates pour le violoncelle avec la Basse Continüe
1999 · studio album
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Tracklist · 21 tracks · 1:03:00
1Sonate en fa dièse mineur N°2 (Livre II) : I. Adagio2:132Sonate en fa dièse mineur N°2 (Livre II) : II. Allegro2:443Sonate en fa dièse mineur N°2 (Livre II) : III. Largo3:194Sonate en fa dièse mineur N°2 (Livre II) : IV. Giga2:025Sonate en si bémol majeur N°4 (Livre III) : I. Andante2:316Sonate en si bémol majeur N°4 (Livre III) : II. Allegro3:447Sonate en si bémol majeur N°4 (Livre III) : III. Adagio1:158Sonate en si bémol majeur N°4 (Livre III) : IV. Allegro3:229Sonate en do mineur N°6 (Livre II) : I. Adagio2:5610Sonate en do mineur N°6 (Livre II) : II. Allegro4:3811Sonate en do mineur N°6 (Livre II) : III. Larghetto5:4012Sonate en do mineur N°6 (Livre II) : IV. Giga3:1813Sonate en ré mineur a tre N°2 (Livre III) : I. Adagio1:5614Sonate en ré mineur a tre N°2 (Livre III) : II. Allegro1:2315Sonate en ré mineur a tre N°2 (Livre III) : III. Aria3:0916Sonate en ré mineur a tre N°2 (Livre III) : IV. Giga2:4117Adagio de la sonate en mi majeur N°4 (Livre II)4:3918Sonate en sol majeur N°6 (Livre III) : I. Largo3:2219Sonate en sol majeur N°6 (Livre III) : II. Allegro2:3820Sonate en sol majeur N°6 (Livre III) : III. Adagio1:0221Sonate en sol majeur N°6 (Livre III) : IV. Aria4:28Sonates pour le violoncelle avec la basse continüe
2001 · studio album
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Tracklist · 22 tracks · 1:02:29
1Sonate I en si mineur, Livre I : I. Adagio2:172Sonate I en si mineur, Livre I : II. Allegro3:163Sonate I en si mineur, Livre I : III. Adagio-andante4:454Sonate I en si mineur, Livre I : IV. Allegro2:315Sonate II a tre en ré mineur, Livre III: I. Adagio1:566Sonate II a tre en ré mineur, Livre III: II. Allegro1:237Sonate II a tre en ré mineur, Livre III: III. Aria (largo)2:558Sonate II a tre en ré mineur, Livre III: IV. Giga2:219Sonate IV en sol majeur, Livre IV: I. Andante3:3410Sonate IV en sol majeur, Livre IV: II. Adagio2:5411Sonate IV en sol majeur, Livre IV: III. Allegro prestissimo3:4212Sonate VI en do mineur, Livre II: I. Adagio2:3213Sonate VI en do mineur, Livre II: II. Allegro3:2414Sonate VI en do mineur, Livre II: III. Larghetto4:4115Sonate VI en do mineur, Livre II: IV. Giga2:1216Sonate III en ré mineur, Livre II: I. Adagio1:3417Sonate III en ré mineur, Livre II: II. Allemanda (allegro)2:5818Sonate III en ré mineur, Livre II: III. Sarabanda3:0519Sonate III en ré mineur, Livre II: IV. Minuetto1:1120Sonate IV en si bémol majeur, Livre III: I. Andante2:1321Sonate IV en si bémol majeur, Livre III: II. Allegro2:5722Sonate IV en si bémol majeur, Livre III: III. Adagio - Allegro4:08Six Sonatas for Cello and Basso Continuo
2008 · studio album
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Tracklist · 21 tracks · 1:04:56
1Sonata no. 6 in C major (Book IV): I. Allegro3:452Sonata no. 6 in C major (Book IV): II. Largo3:313Sonata no. 6 in C major (Book IV): III. Allegro3:244Sonata no. 4 in E major (Book II): I. Gratioso2:535Sonata no. 4 in E major (Book II): II. Allegro1:596Sonata no. 4 in E major (Book II): III. Adagio4:037Sonata no. 4 in E major (Book II): IV. Aria, Gratioso2:418Sonata no. 2 in F-sharp minor (Book II): I. Adagio2:309Sonata no. 2 in F-sharp minor (Book II): II. Allegro2:0910Sonata no. 2 in F-sharp minor (Book II): III. Largo3:5511Sonata no. 2 in F-sharp minor (Book II): IV. Giga2:1812Sonata no. 2 in A major (Book IV): I. Allegro4:4013Sonata no. 2 in A major (Book IV): II. Adagio3:5714Sonata no. 2 in A major (Book IV): III. Aria2:3615Sonata no. 6 in G major (Book III): I. Largo4:1716Sonata no. 6 in G major (Book III): II. Allegro2:1617Sonata no. 6 in G major (Book III): III. Adagio1:4218Sonata no. 6 in G major (Book III): IV. Aria, Gratioso, Variatione2:5019Sonata no. 3 in C major (Book III): I. Adagio - Allegro3:2020Sonata no. 3 in C major (Book III): II. Adagio4:1521Sonata no. 3 in C major (Book III): III. Allegro1:55Sonates pour le violoncelle avec la basse continue, Vol. 2
2015 · studio album
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Tracklist · 29 tracks · 1:13:16
1Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 2 (Book II) in F-sharp minor: I. Adagio2:042Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 2 (Book II) in F-sharp minor: II. Allegro1:583Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 2 (Book II) in F-sharp minor: III. Largo3:024Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 2 (Book II) in F-sharp minor: IV. Giga2:045Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 5 (Book I) in F major: I. Adagio3:416Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 5 (Book I) in F major: II. Allegro1:557Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 5 (Book I) in F major: III. Adagio0:358Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 5 (Book I) in F major: IV. Allegro2:529Sonata for Pardessus and B.C. no. 4 (Book V) in G major: I. Adagio2:3110Sonata for Pardessus and B.C. no. 4 (Book V) in G major: II. Allegro2:4611Sonata for Pardessus and B.C. no. 4 (Book V) in G major: III. Adagio1:0212Sonata for Pardessus and B.C. no. 4 (Book V) in G major: IV. Aria2:3413Harpsichord Piece “La Boucon” (Book VI) in C minor3:4214Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 3 (Book I) in E minor: I. Adagio1:2015Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 3 (Book I) in E minor: II. Allegro1:2916Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 3 (Book I) in E minor: III. Adagio2:3017Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 3 (Book I) in E minor: IV. Aria gratioso2:0018Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 3 (Book I) in E minor: V. Altro2:4519Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 6 (Book III) in G major: I. Largo2:5720Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 6 (Book III) in G major: II. Allegro2:0221Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 6 (Book III) in G major: III. Largo1:2022Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 6 (Book III) in G major: IV. Aria gratioso1:5423Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 6 (Book IV) in C major: I. Allegro4:2424Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 6 (Book IV) in C major: II. Largo4:0025Sonata for Cello and B.C. no. 6 (Book IV) in C major: III. Allegro3:3726Harpsichord Piece “La Tribolet” (Book VI) in A minor5:1127Sonata for Pardessus and B.C. no. 6 (Book V) in F minor: I. Largo1:4428Sonata for Pardessus and B.C. no. 6 (Book V) in F minor: II. Allegro3:3229Sonata for Pardessus and B.C. no. 6 (Book V) in F minor: III. Grave & Aria allegro1:45
Stats & PK
Percentile within all 23,672 published artists.Put Jean-Baptiste Barrière head-to-head →
| Metric | Value | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Wikipedia language versions | 12 | 64.8th |
| Spotify monthly listeners | — | no data |
| Release groups in DB | 4 | 78.1th |
| Studio albums | 4 | 82.8th |
| Awards recorded | 0 | 0th |
| Timeline events | 7 | 82.6th |
| Recording span (years) | -252 | 2.4th |
| Genres | 1 | 56th |
Awards & honours
Where this record comes from
aliases/urls—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/cb4797ab-1379-44f6-819f-b87a0fead4a4discography—musicbrainz · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://musicbrainz.org/artist/cb4797ab-1379-44f6-819f-b87a0fead4a4core—wikidata · CC0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q726908seed-list—wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Baptiste_Barri%C3%A8rebiography—wikipedia-en · CC BY-SA 4.0 · retrieved 10 October 2026
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Baptiste_Barri%C3%A8re
Why this artist is in the database
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Wikidata: Q726908 · MusicBrainz: cb4797ab-1379-44f6-819f-b87a0fead4a4