Claude Coffin

Claude Coffin was a French cantor and composer, active in Paris during the first third of the 17th century.

He must have acquired a certain notoriety since in 1636 Marin Mersenne included a fugue of him in his Harmonie universelle and praised the quality of his compositions: "The notes which follow show more clearly what I have just said, and contain a fugue composed by Sieur Coffin, one of the oldest and best disciples of Du Caurroy.

[2] This mention tells us also that he was one of the students of Eustache Du Caurroy, a very skilful countrapuntist working for the King's Chapel.

On an unknown date, Coffin published Psalmes de David, à 3, 4 et 5 voix by Pierre I Ballard [fr].

A few of his were published in various collections: - Two tunes and two psalms for voice and lute in the "Seventh Book" of Airs de différents auteurs mis en tablature par eux-mêmes (Paris, Pierre I Ballard, 1617 : RISM 1617 exp 8, Guillo 2003 n° 1617-A : - Four tunes for voice and lute in the "Eighth book" of the same collection (Paris, Pierre I Ballard, 1618 : RISM 1618 exp 9 and S 3419, Guillo 2003 n° 1618-A), All four republished for single voice the following year (Guillo 2003 n° 1619-A) : Two arias from the Ballet des Indiens (Paris, 1621) published in Airs de cour de différents auteurs (Paris, Pierre I Ballard, 1621 : RISM 1621 exp 13, Guillo 2003 n° 1621B) : - A fugue with three voices on Vive le Roy, vive le Roy Louis appears in the Livre cinquième de la composition de musique of the Harmonie universelle in 1636.