French composer and organist. His family had served French courts for three centuries; his father, Dominique (1644 1704), had been one of Louis XIV's "Vingt-quatre violons du roi." Louis-Nicolas studied music with André Raison and Jean-Baptiste Moreau, and around 1705 he was appointed surintendantfor Louis XIV; in this position he organized concerts and composed a number of cantatas. In 1704 he published the Premier livre de pièces de clavecin:later (in 1710) he received a 15-year publishing privilege. Soon afterward he assumed the post of organist at St. Sulpice; in 1714 he was also appointed organist at the convent at St. Cyr, and in 1719 at the church in the rue St. Jacques. For the wedding of the Dauphin and the Infanta of Spain, he composed (in 1745) the divertissement L'IdyIle de St. Cyr. Although his earliest harpsichord pieces are typically French, both vocal and instrumental works thereafter show the increasing presence of Italian elements. Many of his works were published, including some twenty-five cantatas. Among the known cantatas are Orphée(1710), Médée(1710), Le triomphe de la paix(1713), L'isle de Délos(1716), Apollon et Doris (1720), Abraham(1715), and La muse de l'opéra(1716). His choral music also includes motets; a Te Deum (1701); and Le retour du printemps(1748). His instrumental music includes a collection for harpsichord (1704) and a collection for organ (ca. 1710).