Jean Prosper Guivier (original) (raw)

Jean Prosper Guivier (c. 12 March 1814 – 18 November 1862) was a French musician, best known for his solo performances within in the orchestra of Louis-Antoine Jullien. The son of a Napoleonic soldier, he was brought up in the army before enrolling at the Conservatoire de Paris, where he was expelled. As an early exponent of the ophicleide, Guivier became one of Jullien's core of elite musicians along with other soloists such as Herman Koenig. Ill health forced him to reduce his musical engagements during the 1850s and he supplemented his income by dealing and consulting on the design of brass instruments. He retired to Marseilles in 1860, where he died.