Franco-Flemish composer and organist who made his career in Naples. His output includes a large number of madrigals, but it is for his few keyboard pieces that he is best-known today. De Macque experimented with new dramatic instrumental forms, adding a heightened chromaticism which climaxed in the work of Gesualdo. He is also known as the founder of the Neapolitan school of keyboard music, and was an influential early figure in the formation of the Italian Baroque style. ~ Todd McComb (8/97)