Philippe Musard

Philippe Musard (8 November 1792 – 31 March 1859) was a French composer who was crucial to the development and popularity of the promenade concert. One of the most famous personalities of Europe during the 1830s and 1840s, his concerts in Paris and London were riotous (in several senses of the word) successes. Best known for his “galop” and “quadrille” pieces, he composed many of these numbers himself, usually borrowing famous themes of other composers. Musard plays an important role in the development of light classical music, the faculty of publicity in music, and in the role of the conductor as a musical celebrity. He has been largely forgotten subsequent to his retirement in the early 1850s. History Philippe Musard was born in Tours on 8 November 1792 to parents of limited financial means. Musard joined a unit of the Imperial Guards as a cornet player. When Napoleon was defeated, he moved to London, started as a violinist, and eventually his career progressed to the point of leading the orchestra of King George IV and organized balls, becoming wealthy in the process. Between 1821 and 1825 many of his compositions were published in London, and some of these were performed in Par