A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Briard, Étienne

by Franz Gehring

BRIARD, Étienne, engraver of music, born at Bar-le-Duc towards the end of the 15th century, settled at Avignon in 1530. He replaced the square characters hitherto in use by round ones, and devised a simple means of expressing the duration of a note, instead of the complicated system of ligatures. Peignot, in his 'Diction, de la Bibliologie,' supp. p. 140, claims priority in these inventions for Granjon, also a printer; but Briard's characters are certainly better formed and easier to read. A facsimile of them may be seen in Schmidt's 'Ottaviano Petrucci.' The works of the composer Eleazar Genet, called 'Carpentras,' after his birthplace, were printed at Avignon in 1532 in Briard's characters. Jean Baptiste, a descendant of the celebrated printer, has distinguished himself as a violinist. He was born May 13, 1823, at Carpentras; gained the second prize at the Paris Conservatoire in 1843, and the first in 1844. His teachers were Clarel, Baillot, and Habeneck.

[ F. G. ]