Jean-Baptiste Besard(b Besançon, c 1567; dafter 1617). Burgundian lutenist and composer. He studied law in Dôle and medicine in Rome before moving to Germany. His Thesaurus harmonicus (1603) contains 403 lute pieces, some with voice, representing 21 composers (including himself) and almost all the instrumental forms of the time; many pieces were copied into later collections. A smaller collection, Novus partus, appeared in1617. Both are important for their size, catholicity of taste, influence and historical context.