Couperin: The Sphere of Intimacy

Featuring

Cyrille Dubois
Christophe Rousset
Les Talens Lyriques
François Couperin
Anonymous
Louis Marchand

Marin Marais

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Composer's Artistic Vision

Couperin did not disapprove of his instrumental music being used for songs, as he stated in the preface to his Troisième livre de pièces de clavecin.

Composition History

Couperin published his compositions relatively late in his career, with his first book of harpsichord pieces appearing when he was forty-five.

Composer Biography

François Couperin, a French Baroque composer, served as organist of St Gervais in Paris since 1685 and organiste du roi (royal organist) from December 1693.

Instruments

Three different harpsichords were used for this recording, including a copy of a 1716 Donzelague, a 1993 instrument after a 1624 Ioannes Rückers, and an anonymous 17th-century French harpsichord.

Historical Context

The sonata La Steinkerque was composed shortly after the Battle of Steenkerque, a French victory in the Nine Years' War fought in 1692.

Compositional Technique

Couperin initially presented his trio sonatas under an Italian-sounding assumed name to gain acceptance, as he admitted in his preface to Les Nations.

Recording & Production

The recording took place across three different venues: the Couvent des Dominicains de Guebwiller, the Galerie Dorée of the Banque de France, and the Temple Saint-Pierre in Paris.