Mather Brown's portrait of Saint-Georges (1788), National Portrait Gallery, London
In early May of 2023, curiosity conquered my mind. Researching the life and epochs of 18th century composer Joseph Bologne, better known as Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges, became a fascinating unexpected journey of scholarhsip. Reading the following small sentence from an article on Chevalier by Romanian violinist of the New York Philharmonic, Gabriel Banat, is what pushed this inquisitive guitarist over the edge: "[a] sonata for flute and harp and a piece for guitar, published in the Journal de la Guitarre [...]" The gears began to turn, the cogs slowly intertwining... Is this true? Could it be possible that the extraordinary man dubbed "Le Mozart Noir" did in fact compose anything for guitar?
Joseph Bologne, known formally as Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges, was born on the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe to a wealthy, white, French planatation owner. During his youth, he was then taken to France to begin a formal education soon becoming a leading fencing champion, for a time earning a living simply by fencing challengers from all around Europe. Mastering many other skills such as marksmanship and boxing, he excelled most in music by becoming a virtuoso violinist, soon becoming principle violinist (and later conductor) of Le Concert des Amateurs orchestra; and as a composer by writing symphonies, string quartets, arias, duets, opera, and can be credited as the creator of "Simphonies Concertantes" for two violins. He ran circles with the likes of the upper-echelon of aristocracy like Marie Antoinette and, despite the twist, still left his mark towards the end of his life with even more accomplishments by leading a legion as a Colonel in the French Revolution. This is just a mere scratch on the surface of all the details that comprise the life of a master swordsman and virtuosic musician, who overcame numerous obstacles as a black man in a white world where slavery was pravelent. As the epitome of overcoming obstacles in a time when only his exceptional excellence could seemingly break the accepted barriers of racism, Chevalier can inspire us as we move forward moved by remarkable and influential figures of our past, who achieved great success despite those obstacles. Furthermore, we can further push for better inclusion, diversity, and egalité by reminding others of great and diverse examples in historical figures such as Saint-Georges.
Despite his world renowned success (including a brief mention in the diary of US President John Adams) and historical achievements, Chevalier seems to have slipped through the cracks of history books and historical musicology. Flipping through the pages of my collegiate music history textbooks proved this disappointing fact, as he was nowhere to be found. Now, some of Chevalier's music has survived and through recordings by Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and their commitment to his works, a modern revival has occurred as a newfound modern popularity with an upward trajectory that can't be stopped: Gabriel Banat and Alain Guédé have written oft-cited biographies, Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) music professor Charles Pettaway has rapidly spread awareness with his traveling performances and lectures on Chevalier (a highly recommended video of one of his presentations can be found on YouTube by clicking here), and Searchlight Pictures recently added their Hollywood take with their film "Chevalier". This guitarist was no exception to the Chevalier bandwagon as curiosity overcame me in the search (and need) to know if guitar compositions could be added to his repertoire.
As of the moment, hours of research and conversing back and forth with scholars, libraries, and archives in Europe and the United States seems to have been well worth the effort so far. In my investigation, I have been able to find surviving evidence that Chevalier can now be known for composing guitar accompaniments. With the gracious help of Professor Christopher Dingle (Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, England) and Dr. Julian Ledford (The University of the South, Sewanee, TN) - admirable scholars of Saint-Georges - we have been able to prove some surviving guitar accompaniments as Chevalier's, with the hope that more I have found can be verified. (Professor Dingle recently revealed our new information and addition to Saint-Georges's memory as a guitarist/guitar composer/arranger while presenting at the Royal Music Association's 59th Annual Conference at the University of Nottingham, England.) The search, however, for that one "piece for guitar" of the "Journal de la Guitarre" that started this quest has yet to be found and henceforth continues... Stay tuned!
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