Jean Hure

Jean Hure was born on 17 September 1877 in Gien (France). Shortly after his birth his family moved to Angers, where he spent his childhood and received his early education. During his school years he showed remarkable musical aptitude, appearing publicly as a pianist and organist from the age of twelve and presenting his first composition at seventeen. His earliest musical formation took place at the Ecole Saint-Maurille in Angers, a religious institution where he studied anthropology, composition, improvisation, and medieval music while also serving as organist at the city’s cathedral. Although he later received advice from leading musicians to pursue official conservatory training, much of his musical development remained self-directed, contributing to the independent character that marked his later career.
In 1895 Jean Hure moved to Paris in order to establish himself professionally. There he came into contact with prominent musicians such as Charles-Marie Widor and Charles Koechlin, who encouraged him to enroll at the Paris Conservatoire, but he deliberately chose an autonomous artistic path rather than following an academic career. During these early Paris years he earned his living primarily as an organist while composing extensively in a wide variety of genres. 
By the first decade of the twentieth century Jean Hure had become an established figure in Parisian musical circles. In 1910 he began teaching at the Ecole Normale, where notable students included the pianist Yves Nat and the composer Manuel Rosenthal. Around the same period he also founded educational institutions devoted to advanced musical training, including an Ecole Normale de Musique and a specialized school for pianists. His pedagogical work was accompanied by increasing activity as a theorist and writer: he published influential treatises such as La Technique du piano (1908), La Technique de l’orgue (1918), and later aesthetic writings on organ music and musical philosophy.
Jean Hure’s professional life was closely linked to church music. Between 1911 and 1914 he served successively as organist at several important Paris churches, including Notre-Dame-des-Blancs-Manteaux, Saint-Martin-des-Champs, and Saint-Severin. In 1924 he became organist at the Basilica of Sacre-Coeur, succeeding Lucien Grandjany, and in 1926 he was appointed organist of Saint-Augustin, taking over the prestigious post previously held by Eugene Gigout. Parallel to his liturgical duties, he participated actively in musical organizations: in 1911 he helped found the Paris Mozart Society and was associated with several composer groups promoting contemporary French music. From 1924 onward he edited and published the monthly journal L’Orgue et les organistes.
As a composer, Hure worked in nearly all major genres. His output included three symphonies, chamber music such as sonatas, string quartets, and a piano quintet, numerous organ works, vocal compositions, and stage works including the ballet Le Bois sacre, performed at the Opera-Comique in Paris in 1921. In 1926 Jean Hure received the Prix Chartier for composition, confirming his standing within French musical life.
Jean Hure died on 27 January 1930 in Paris (France).

In my possession is the autograph manuscript of a "Sonate pour piano et violoncelle" by Jean Hure. According to the manuscript the work was composed in December 1898. It consists of only one movement which raises the question if the work is complete at all.

Jean Hure composed three cello sonatas: in 1903, 1906 and 1909. But my manuscript does not match to any of these works. Therefore it seems that Jean Hure already in 1898 worked on a cello sonata but finished only one movement.