Antoine Clapisson was born on November 13, 1779 in Lyon. His father Léonard was a wind instrument maker there. Clapisson was probably a horn student of Giovanni Puntos (1745-1803) in Paris. He participated as a military musician in the Egypt campaign of Napoleon Bonaparte 1798-1801 part. In 1805 he married the Swiss Philippine Dubois. At that time he was a musician in the 22nd Light Infantry Regiment in Besançon. Later, before 1808, he moved with his family to Naples. There he was with local King Joachim Murat, who ruled there 1808-1815. He was also head of the Vélites de la garde du roi Murat, taught at the conservatory and first horn player at the Teatro San Carlo in Naples. The political conditions in 1815 forced Clapisson initially to withdraw back to Lyon. As a military musician, he, who was considered a Bonapartist, could no longer work for the newly organized army. However, he found employment as the first horn at the Grand Théâtre of Bordeaux. There he died on April 7, 1857.
Clapisson's oeuvre does not seem to have been small. For example, Whistling's Musical Handbook of 1828 contains 12 works with duos for 2 horns, various duos with horn and other wind instruments, trios for 3 horns, a quartet for 3 horns and trombone, and a fantasy for piano and horn.
