Michel Corrette (1707–1795) was an extremely prolific French composer, organist, teacher, and musician of the 18th century. His work covers virtually every genre of his time: sacred music, instrumental music, theatrical music, and educational music. He is best known for his teaching methods and treatises, which have trained generations of musicians.

Born on April 10, 1707, in Rouen, Corrette received a comprehensive musical education from an early age, particularly in organ and harpsichord. He studied with local masters and perfected his skills in Paris, where he established himself as organist at several churches, including Saint-Merri and Saint-Sulpice.

A prolific composer, Michel Corrette wrote more than 120 instrumental works, including sonatas, concertos, symphonies, and pieces for harpsichord and organ, as well as numerous arrangements of popular and theatrical music. He was distinguished by his ability to combine solid technique with accessibility for the amateur, which explains the enduring success of his works. His compositions are often cheerful, melodious, and influenced by the galant style.

At the same time, Corrette was a renowned teacher. He wrote numerous methods for various instruments: violin, flute, bassoon, cello, trumpet, harpsichord, organ, etc. These highly precise and detailed treatises cover instrumental technique as well as interpretation, style, and ornamentation, and remain valuable documents for the study of 18th-century musical practice.

Michel Corrette also composed religious music: motets, masses, and psalms, as well as works for the stage, notably opera-ballets and comedies. His career spanned more than 70 years, allowing him to navigate the stylistic changes from the late Baroque to the emerging Classical style.

He died in Paris on June 21, 1795, leaving behind a considerable legacy of practical, didactic, and instrumental music, which continues to be played and studied today, particularly for its pedagogical value and its clear and elegant style.

Along his university studies (DEA in musicology, University of Paris IV-Sorbonne), Frédéric Cellier was awarded three first prizes and a development prize at the CNR of Nice and won first prize at the International Competition of Musical Execution - soloist category – of Stresa (Italy).

He is the laureate of the Fondation de France and the Yehudi Menuhin Foundation and accredited teacher at the CNR of Nice, the CNR of Marseille, and at the CRR Olivier Messiaen of Avignon (France).

Frédéric Cellier is the interpreter of Francis Poulenc’s Sonata for clarinet Bb and piano with Jean-Michel Damase, Jean Françaix or Gabriel Tacchino, as well as his own arrangements for clarinet and harp of Erik Satie's Gymnopédies and Gnossiennes with the great French harpist Elizabeth Fontan-Binoche, and for clarinet, piano, and string orchestra of George Gershwin's Rhapsody in blue for Wynton Marsalis or under the baton of Adrian Gershwin, grandson of the composer.

Founder and artistic director of STRADIVARIUS Editions, he is the author of light music pieces played around the world and a considerable number of arrangements of all styles and for all instruments, acclaimed by many personalities in the music world, including Michèle Auric, Jean Françaix, Adrian Gershwin, Wynton Marsalis, Yehudi Menuhin, Madeleine Milhaud, Manuel Rosenthal, Gabriel Tacchino, and Ornella Volta.

"Frédéric Cellier has produced a number of adaptations of Georges Auric's works with such talent and precision that I consider them a natural addition to his chamber music catalogue."
Michèle AURIC - Georges Auric's widow

"To Frédéric Cellier, excellent musician and tireless arranger."
Jean FRANÇAIX - Composer and pianist

"Arranging a musical work is always a delicate and risky exercise, because it requires both modifying it so that it can be played by the desired instruments and preserving its very essence. But that is exactly what Frédéric Cellier has done, preserving the nuances, subtleties and soul of the original works while breathing new life into them.
His arrangements give all the musicians the chance to perform these compositions specially revisited for their instrument, and make music lovers rediscover them in a new light."
Adrian GERSHWIN - George Gershwin’s grandson

"Congratulations for your beautiful new orchestration and rendition of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in blue."
Wynton MARSALIS - Trumpet player, composer, bandleader, general and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York

"It is outstanding that Frédéric Cellier has managed to transpose Saxophone Marmalade from the saxophone to the clarinet. I thank him for it and wish its great and deserved success. "
Manuel ROSENTHAL - Conductor, composer and Maurice Ravel’s pupil

"I am very happy to tell you how much I appreciated your transcription of the Capriccio, based on Francis Poulenc's Le Bal Masqué. It perfectly reflects the spirit and verve of the score for two pianos that I had the opportunity to play and record with Jacques Février, and it was a great pleasure for me to premiere it in Montpellier."
Gabriel TACCHINO - Pianist, Francis Poulenc’s specialist

"I must tell you that I really like your transcriptions and that I think the tone of the instruments you have chosen suits perfectly our beloved composer."
Ornella VOLTA - Musicologist, president of the Erik Satie’s Foundation