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Ariès, Philippe

(Encyclopedia)Ariès, Philippe, 1914–84, French cultural historian, b. Paris. While at the Sorbonne, he failed a crucial exam necessary for a university career, and instead became an agronomic researcher and late...

Guettard, Jean-Étienne

(Encyclopedia)Guettard, Jean-Étienne zhän-ātyĕnˈ gĕtärˈ [key], 1715–86, French geologist, botanist, and natural historian. He was curator of the natural history collection of the French scientist René de...

Leclerc, Jacques Philippe

(Encyclopedia)Leclerc, Jacques Philippe ləklĕrˈ [key], 1902–47, French general. His real name was Philippe, vicomte de Hauteclocque, but he adopted the name Leclerc in World War II. Commanding the Free French...

Destouches, Philippe Néricault

(Encyclopedia)Destouches, Philippe Néricault fēlēpˈ nārēkōˈ dāto͞oshˈ [key], 1680–1754, French dramatist. He was known for his moralistic comedies. Le Glorieux (1732, tr. 1791), his masterpiece, treats...

Chabot, Philippe de

(Encyclopedia)Chabot, Philippe de brēôNˈ [key], 1480–1543, count of Charny and of Buzançois, admiral of France. After a successful campaign (1536) in Savoy and Piedmont, he was, through the intrigues of Anne,...

rococo, in music

(Encyclopedia)rococo, in music, 18th-century reaction against the baroque style. Less formal and grandiose in structure, it was a graceful rather than a profound style, more hedonistic than venturesome. Extreme man...

Isabey, Jean Baptiste

(Encyclopedia)Isabey, Jean Baptiste zhäN bätēstˈ ēzäbāˈ [key], 1767–1855, French portrait painter and miniaturist. He was a pupil of J. L. David and was greatly influenced by Fragonard. His portraits are ...

overture

(Encyclopedia)overture, instrumental musical composition written as an introduction to an opera, ballet, oratorio, musical, or play. The earliest Italian opera overtures were simply pieces of orchestral music and w...

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