Jacques Aubert

Who was Jacques Aubert?

Jacques Aubert, also known as Jacques Aubert le Vieux, was a French composer and violinist.

Aubert was born in Paris and became a student of Jean Baptiste Senaillé. His first position was as violinist in the service of the Prince of Condé. Thereafter he was a member of the Vingt-quatre Violons du Roy. From 1728 to 1752, he was the first violinist at the Paris Opéra.

He regularly and successfully appeared for a dozen years beginning in 1729 at the Concert Spirituel with, among other works, concertos for violin and orchestra of his own composition.

Together with Jean-Joseph Cassanéa de Mondonville and Jean-Marie Leclair, Aubert brought the zest of Italian violin virtuosity into the French musical fare of their time. He died in Belleville.

His son Louis Aubert was also a violinist and composer. Another son, Jean-Louis Aubert was a dramatist, poet and journalist, also known as the Abbé Aubert.