Antoine Boësset was one of the top French composers of the early Baroque era. He was known for his secular songs, ballets, and for his association with King Louis XIII. Boësset was born in Blois, France, in 1586, and few other details survived regarding his early life and education. The earliest documentation of his activity as a composer can be found in a six-volume anthology of songs that was published in 1608, Airs de différents autheurs mis en tablature de luth par Gabriel Bataille. These songs were composed in the air de cour style, initially scored for a single voice with lute accompaniment, and later works included additional voices. This was the latest and most popular musical genre among the French royal courts at the time. Boësset became very successful because of Bataille's publication, and he also attracted the attention of King Louis XIII, who offered the composer a position at his court in 1613. That same year, Boësset got married and became the son-in-law of Pierre Guédron, who served as the Surintendant de la musique de la chambre du roy. It's likely that Guédron may have also acted as an influential advocate for Boësset's employment. In 1614 his wife gave birth to their first son, Jean-Baptiste, who also became a prominent composer as an adult. The following year, Boësset completed his first ballet, and he composed several more throughout his career. His Ballet de la Reyne représentant le soleil from 1621, and the Ballet des fées de la Forêt Saint-Germain from 1624 were the most popular. In 1620 Boësset published the ninth installment of his ten-volume Airs de cour mis en tablature de luth. This collection also documents the first instance of a French composer to make a reference to the "basso continuo" accompaniment style. By 1634 he had accumulated a total of five royal appointments, each with their own corresponding stipend increases, which he held simultaneously until his death in 1643. In modern times, Boësset's works have been recorded by Les Arts Florissants, Ensemble Correspondances, and many others. ~ RJ Lambert, Rovi