Joseph-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer was an Italian-born French Baroque composer and harpsichordist who moved to Paris in the early 18th century and established his career in the city's operatic and court music circles. His output, which includes operas, cantatas and published harpsichord pieces, combines theatrical, dramatic writing for the stage with virtuosic and expressive keyboard writing typical of the French Baroque and formed part of Parisian musical life in the first half of the 18th century.
