André Pirro

Who was André Pirro?

André Pirro was a French musicologist and an organist.

Born in Saint-Dizier, Pirro learned to play the organ from his father Jean Pirro. In Paris where he became and organist and a choirmaster for the Collège Stanislas de Paris. He studied with César Franck and taught music history at the Schola Cantorum. Pirro published his academic thesis on the Aesthetics of Bach in 1907, followed by Descartes and the Music'. His famous pupils include Vladimir Fédorov, Dragan Plamenac, Armand Machabey, Marc Pincherle and Jacques Chailley. These days he is probably most often remembered through his musicological collaborations with Alexandre Guilmant concerning reprints of ancient organ music.