Bourgeois, Louis

French, 1510?–1561? Born in Paris, he went to Geneva, Switzerland, as a follower of the Protestant reformer John Calvin and there became a choirmaster. Calvin assigned him the responsibility for the musical editorship of the Genevan Psalter, one of the most important collections in the history of Christian hymnody. He prepared psalm collections and textbooks and was highly regarded in Geneva as an innovative and devoted teacher of music. He harmonized many unison hymn tunes, a practice so controversial that he was jailed for a short time because of it. He is credited with the invention of the hymn board, which posted the hymn numbers in front of the church so that worshipers could find them more easily.

Praise God, from Whom All Blessings Flow, 242 (Music)