A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Carpentras

CARPENTRAS, or IL CARPENTRASSO, the sobriquet of Eliazar Genet, born at Carpentras, Vaucluse, before 1500. Being in priest's orders he became a member of the Pope's Chapel, and wrote some Magnificats and Lamentations, the latter of which induced Leo X to make him Bishop in partibus in 1518. About the same time he became the Pope's Chapel-master. He was much employed in negotiations by both Leo and Clement VII, and died after the year 1532—the date of two out of four volumes of music which he published. Vol. 1 contains 5 masses, written on the most secular tunes—'A l'ombre d'un buissonet,' 'Encore irai-je jouer,' etc.; vol. 2, the Lamentations of Jeremiah; vol. 3 is Liber Hymnorum; vol. 4, Liber Magnificat. Carpentras' music enjoyed a great fame at the time, and was much published (see the list in Fétis). His Lamentations were so favourite as to keep those of Palestrina out of the Pope's Chapel for many years. M. Fétis had examined them, however, and finds them inferior not only to Palestrina but to Josquin des Près.