Jacques Danican Philidor

Jacques Danican Philidor le cadet was a French instrumentalist and composer, born in Paris in 1657 and died in Versailles in 1708. He belonged to one of the dynasties of musicians at the court of Louis XIV, and his significance lies above all in the example he set for his descendants and in the role he played within the military and royal ensembles of the period.

The son of Jean Danican and younger brother of André Danican Philidor l'aîné, he joined the Fifres et Tambours in 1667, a corps of fifers and drummers that took him on several military campaigns. After his father's death in 1679 he inherited his post among the Cromornes et Trompettes Marines. In 1682 he moved to the Grands Hautbois and, in 1690, was admitted as an official member of the Petits Violons, where he played the bassoon; he also performed in the royal chapel. According to the inventory of his possessions, he owned tools for making instruments and 44 instruments, most of them woodwinds, which suggests he also worked as a maker, although it is possible that this activity is indicated only by those objects.

Only a few marches and dances survive from his output, preserved in manuscript anthologies, as the volumes of the Philidor Collection that contained more of his works have been lost. He had twelve children, four of whom were musicians, among them Pierre, Jacques (ii), François (ii) and Nicolas. His musical legacy is today known only in fragments, but his family line held a prominent place in French court music.