Favorable judgment of a work of art, or of a man, usually means that the work of art, or a record of the man, will be preserved for future generations to judge for themselves. An unfavorable judgment may result in a richly deserved obscurity or an irreplaceable loss, unless favorable circumstances combine to preserve the evidence for a more perspicacious generation. One can be forgiven if he distrusts history's judgment; mistakes which have been corrected are legion (the case of J. S. Bach comes most vividly to mind) and skepticism is warranted unless or until the facts are available for confirmation. It is difficult to explain the paucity of information about Jacques-Christophe Naudot, Not that he is another J. S. Bach; neither Fleury, who made the first serious effort to revive interest in his music in the early 1920's, nor Ruf, who has done much in this regard recently, nor this writer makes any such claim. He does not, however, deserve the obscurity that has been his lot. If his music is not always profound, it nevertheless has both intrinsic and historical value, and some of his works reveal considerable contrapuntal skill. It may be that Naudot stood in the …

There are no records to substantiate that one of the passengers on the Mayflower brought an oboe with him in 1620, but diaries, journals, and newspaper articles document its presence and utilization in the United States a few years after that date. A reference to musical instruments occurs in the inventories of the goods of two neighboring New Hampshire "plantations" taken approximately ten years after they were originally settled. At "Newitchwanicke, ld of Julie, 1633. . . in the Great House, 15 recorders and hoeboys" were listed, while "at Pascattaquack 2d Julie, 1633," one day later, there were no less than "hoeboys and recorders 26" and "1 drume"!1 By 1635 New Hampshire had 56 oboes and recorders alone. 2

The musical compositions known collectively as the French cantata have remained relatively unknown since their popularity waned in the middle of the 18th century. In order to establish a foundation for their systematic study and to bring them to the attention of a wider audience, this survey and catalog have been prepared. The cultural mileu in which the cantatas were written, their formal structure, and principles related to their performance have been presented along with pertinent biographical and bibliographical information.