Who wrote the French Christmas carol "Patapan"?
Answer
Bernard de la Monnoye
Bernard de la Monnoye wrote the French Christmas carol “Patapan.”
“Patapan” is a Christmas song in the Burgundian dialect, originally titled “Guillô, pran ton tamborin,” meaning “William, bring your little drum.” The song presents shepherds celebrating the birth of Jesus with simple instruments, especially a drum and a flute.
La Monnoye was a French poet, lawyer, philologist, and critic from Dijon. He used the pseudonym Gui Barozai for his Burgundian Christmas songs, which were collected in Noël bourguignons. “Patapan” is especially memorable because its title imitates the drum sound, while “tu-re-lu-re-lu” represents the flute.
The carol is sometimes mistaken for a later English or American Christmas song because its lively refrain resembles “The Little Drummer Boy.” However, “Patapan” predates that song by more than two centuries and belongs to a distinct Burgundian tradition.