The composer and bassoonist FRANÇOIS-RENE GEBAUER was born on March 15, 1773, in Versailles (Seine-et-Oise) and came from a highly talented family of musicians. His three brothers were also musicians. He received his first bassoon lessons from his ten years older brother Michel Joseph, and then from François Devienne.
At the age of fifteen, he joined the Swiss Guard in Versailles as a bassoonist and then followed his older brother into the music corps of the National Guard in Paris. At the age of twenty-three, he was accepted as a bassoon teacher at the Paris Conservatory, but was dismissed in the course of the 1802 reform because he was younger than Ozy and Delcambre; however, when the latter retired in 1825, Gebauer succeeded him. In January 1801, he joined the orchestra of the Opera, where he remained until 1826, retiring after twenty-five years of service. Gebauer was also a member of Emperor Napoleon's band, a position he held until the band was finally disbanded as a result of the July Revolution of 1830. King Louis XVIII appointed him Knight of the Legion of Honor in 1814 and composer of music for the general staff of his guard. He died in Paris on July 28, 1845, “with the fame of having been one of the most prolific composers for his instrument.” Like his three brothers, he knew how to cultivate the new gallant style of the time, which was strongly influenced by the works of Joseph Haydn.
Gebauer composed primarily for his own instrument, the bassoon, but also wrote numerous works for other wind instruments, including duets for flute and bassoon, flute duets, trios, etc.
This Duo for Flute and Bassoon No. 2 is taken from a collection of six concertante duos entitled
6 duos concertans pour flûte et basson composés par F. R. Gebauer
The source used was the first edition, which is held at the Berlin State Library.
