 The term has been in use since the beginning of the 18th century, or to be more specific, since it was used by the French music publisher Christophe Ballard (1641–1715) for the edition of a collection of pieces in 1711.In the 18th century the term was used in France for collections of songs which, with a thematic link, were sometimes given stage presentation.Later the term was used also for instrumental collections, like the "Potpourry français", a collection of originally unconnected dance pieces issued by the publisher Bouïn.