Jean Daniel Braun

Jean Daniel Braun was a composer and flautist associated with eighteenth-century Paris and the household of the Duc d’Épernon. His surviving publications provide more reliable evidence of his career than the uncertain dates traditionally assigned to his life. His first collection of flute sonatas appeared in 1728, and further music was issued posthumously in 1740.

He wrote for transverse flute, bassoon, recorder, musette and hurdy-gurdy, and some publications offered alternative performance on oboe or violin. His flute sonatas combine French dance forms with Italian influences and demanding passagework. The Pièces sans basse of 1740 contains unaccompanied pieces that explore the flute’s contrasting registers and technical possibilities. Braun’s music belongs to the same Parisian instrumental culture as that of Blavet and Quantz, while his biography remains only partly documented.