Carol Henry Bates

French harpsichord music in the first decade of the 18th century

suite between the time of Jean-Henry d'Anglebert, on the one hand, and that of Couperin, on the other,2 Comprised almost exclusively of dances, these ten volumes reflect the trend toward some consistent order in the clavecin suite, a trend that was abruptly curtailed by Couperin's cultivation of the genre piece.3 After surveying the contents and internal organization of these ten collections, this article will examine the types of suite movements encountered therein.

Contents of the ten collections Francois Dieuparts Six suittes de clavessin4 may have been the first harpsichord book issued in this remarkably productive decade. No date appears on the title page but, since Estienne Roger of Amsterdam listed Dieuparfs volume in his catalogue of 1702, Marc Pincherle concludes that the collection was published sometime between 1700 and 17O2.5 Dieupart, who emigrated to England in 1700, reveals an international rather than a narrowly French perspective. The contrapuntal workmanship of his suites and their uniform arrangement (introductory movement, allemande. courante, sarabande, optional dances and gigue) demonstrate the composer's familiarity with German keyboard music. Moreover, combining various ingredients he consistently employs French overtures and turns to Italianate gigues. To increase the number 1 Louis-Nicolas Clerambault engraving by L'Empereur after an of performance possibilities, Dieupart published his anonymous portrait (Bibliotheque Nationale. Paris) suites with two separate parts for other instruments. One of these, for violin and flute', was virtually Although many writers have sketched in broad identical to the top line of the harpsichord score. The outlines the history of French harpsichord music, only other, for 'bass viol and archlute'. was a simpler, one has systematically traced the piece de clavecin from figured version of the harpsichord bass. When the its beginnings around 1630 through its decline in the suites were performed en concert, the other instruments harpsichord late 1700s. The most comprehensive study to date of not only reinforced the outer lines of the 6 1 part but also filled in the harmony. A table of this rich and varied legacy is one by David Fuller ornaments placed after the harpsichord score gives which shows that the first decade of the 18th century the name of each sign in English as well as in was one of the most productive periods in the history French. of the literature. Ten collections, all of them antedating Francois Couperin's first book of 1713, provide a The Pieces de clavecin of the well-known French remarkably unified picture of the French harpsichord organist Louis Marchand were published in two books
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Dandrieu's Livre de clavecin of 1704 contains 12 in 1702.7 The first volume contains nine pieces; the second, eight Neither book uses the term 'suitte', but pieces, all in D minor, and is arranged as follows two Fuller points out that the word 'livre' is, in this preludes, allemande, two courantes, sarabande, instance, analogous to 'suitte' 8 Marchand's two passacaille, gigue, two gavottes and two minuets.12 suites, in D minor and G minor respectively, unfold as Dandrieu here generally conforms to the prevailing follows prelude, allemande, courante(s), sarabande, French sequence but, by placing optional movements gigue and optional dances. The second book includes both before and after the gigue, utilizes an arrangement a poetic tribute to the composer by Monsieur de Saint encountered heretofore only in Clerambaulf s C-major Lambert, author of two important didactic booksLes suite The inclusion of two preludes in this first book is pnnapes du clavecin of 1702 and the Nouveau tratte de also noteworthy, none of Dandrieu's contemporaries I'accompagnement published five years later The latter incorporates more than one per suite His passacaille, is a comprehensive exposition of French figured-bass moreover, is the only such piece in the French harpsichord repertory of this particular decade practices. Around 1704 Louis-Nicolas Clerambault, also an Dandrieu's second livre de clavecin, in G minor, organist, issued his Ier livre de pieces de clavecin,9 his contains 11 pieces " Arranged in the 'classical' order, only publication for harpsichord This volume contains the four 'core' dances of the keyboard suite are here 14 pieces arranged in two key groups. The first suite, in preceded by a single prelude and followed by six C major, employs the same pattern of succession as optional movementsa chaconne, a rondeau, a that used by Marchand, except that optional dances gavotte and three minuets. Set in opposite modes, the appear both before and after the gigue That the order last two minuets presumably form a dance pair, the of pieces in French harpsichord publications did not first one being repeated after the second The use of always reflect composers' intentions is evident in parallel modalities within a suitea procedure Clerambaulfs second suite, this one in C minor. established by Jacques Champion de Chambonnieres Although the printed sequence is allemande, gigue, and Nicolas-Antoine Lebegueis one of several prelude, courante and sarabande grave, the performer features that distinguish Dandrieu's writing from that is instructed to play the movements as follows of his immediate predecessors. prelude, allemande, courante, sarabande grave and Dandrieu's third harpsichord collection, Pieces de giguein other words, in the traditional order clavecin courtes et factles de quatre tons differents, Jean-Francois Dandrieu was another of the several consists of 29 pieces arranged in four key groups (C, c, composers who cultivated the piece de clavecin in the d and D) The didactic purpose of this volume is quite first decade of the 18th century Three booksthe obvious' not only does Dandrieu provide examples of first of them available to the general public, the fingerings and ornaments in a brief 'Avertissemenf, second and third intended primarily for his students- but he also marks numerous fingerings in the pieces comprise Dandrieu's little-known but significant early themselves. Furthermore, whereas his first and second contribution to the French harpsichord literature The books correspond closely in content and distribution most thorough investigation to date of these interesting to other French harpsichord collections of this period, volumes is one by Brigitte Francois-Sappey10 who Dandrieu's third book is compiled rather differently concludes that Dandrieu published the first of his Presumably in consideration of the technical limibooks around 1704. The second and third volumes, on tations of his students, Dandrieu in this third volume the other hand, though probably composed within the gives but token representation to complicated dances next three years, were not published, it appears, until like the allemande and courante and favours instead sometime between 1710 and 1720 Several years later less difficult pieces like the gavotte and minuet As for Dandrieu apparently tried to dissociate himself from the sequence of movements in this collection, each of these youthful works, presumably because they the four suites begins with a prelude and ends with embraced a style by then considered obsolete Entitled either a minuet or a gavotte Dandrieu's inclusion of 'Premier livre', 'Second livre', and 'Troisieme livre' only six 'core' dances (one allemande, one courante, respectively, his harpsichord books of 1724, 1728 and two sarabandes and two gigues) prevents making 1734 include, however, several pieces that are simply generalizations about the arrangement of the interrecastings of the earlier works newly supplied with vening movements In three of the four suites, however, he places a 'core' dance immediately after descriptive titles."
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the prelude The fourth suite in this collection is works is the prelude in this book, for none occurs in unusual in that it incorporates a gigue14 with fort-doux either his 1724 or 1731 collection Eight of the ten indications and a bourree, the only such piece in pieces in Rameau's first book are traditional dances French harpsichord music of this decade Cast in but in later years the composer abandoned this parallel modalities, the two rigaudons of Suite I are emphasis in favour of less stylized dances and genre presumably to be linked in performance, the second pieces Only one descriptive piece, 'Venitienne', appears in the 1706 publication, it is in the tonic one being followed by a repetition of the first. 1 major Although pairs of sarabandes do not often Although Gaspard Le Roux's Pieces de clavessin * were probably composed before 1700, they were not occur in the French harpsichord repertory, Rameau published until 1705. In a brief preface that follows a includes one such set in his earliest collection Set in table of ornaments, this celebrated harpsichordist parallel modalities, they presumably form an ABA discloses the unusual format of his collection design, the first sarabande being repeated after the namely, versions for two melody instruments and second Included at the end of Rameau's publication is figured bass appear directly below most of the a table of ornaments harpsichord pieces (see lllus 1) These settings not In 1707 the renowned clavecintste Elizabeth Jacquet only give practical expression to the composer's desire de la Guerre published the final harpsichord collection for alternate methods of performance but also provide of the decade, namely, her Pieces de clavecin qui peuvent valuable insight into his transcription procedures Le se jouer sur le viollon 18 In this, her second harpsichord Roux further demonstrates the adaptability of his bookthe first one was issued in 168719-La Guerre pieces by appending to the collection a second includes 14 pieces that divide into two key groups (d harpsichord part for five of the solo works. The edition and G) Except for lacking an introductory movement, proper consists of 41 harpsichord pieces arranged in the suites conform to the prevailing French pattern seven key groups (d, D, a, A, F, ft and g) and a gigue in G They begin with the four 'core' dances, arranged in the major for two harpsichords The suites are not 'classical' order, and conclude with a variety of other constituted uniformly, a feature that distinguishes Le pieces 20 The suite in D minor, which opens with an Roux's volume from those of Dieupart, Marchand and allemande entitled 'La Flamande', is unusual in that it Clerambault Four of the suites, the odd-numbered contains a pair of gigues, the only such set in French ones, begin with preludes Only two suites have harpsichord music of the decade Like Dandneu and gigues, whereas five contain allemandes, courantes Rameau, La Guerre sometimes turns to the opposite and sarabandes Although the published order, as mode to provide tonal contrast in the suite in G major noted earlier, was not necessarily definitive, it is she casts the concluding movement, a rondeau, in the interesting to observe that the first suite ends with a parallel minor, in the suite in D minor the last two courante and the fifth with an allemande Seven movementsthe second ngaudon (which forms a compositions in Le Roux's collection have either dance pair with the preceding ngaudon) and the descriptive or dedicatory titles.16 Four are standard chaconneare in D major As do Dieupart and Le dance movements, their titles presumably patterned Roux, La Guerre reveals flexibility with respect to the on those of Chambonnieres. The remaining three' La instrumentation of her pieces. The title of the favontte', 'La Bel-ebaf, and 'La Piece sans Titre'on collection indicates that the compositions can be the other hand, are non-dance pieces, the first of many performed with violin accompaniment Although La such works with descriptive titles that were to follow Guerre suggests this option, she does not supply a in the 18th-century French clavecin literature separate part for the violin. Presumably the violinist would read from the harpsichordist's part and softly Comprised of a single suite in A minor, Jeanreinforce the treble line 1
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Phihppe Rameau's Premier livre de pieces de clavecin'

appeared in 1706, when he was 23 years of age The ten pieces in this publication are arranged as follows prelude, two allemandes, courante, gigue, two sarabandes, 'Venitienne', gavotte and minuet Except for placing the gigue before rather than after the sarabandes, Rameau here adheres to the favoured French sequence Unique among his harpsichord
186 EARLY MUSIC MAY 1989

Suite movements Table 1, which itemizes the contents of the ten books under consideration (but excludes Le Roux's gigue for two harpsichords), shows that the two kinds of introductory movements employed in the early 18thcentury French harpsichord suite are the overture and

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2 Allemande 'La Vauverf by Gaspard Le Roux, from Pieces de clavessin (Paris, 1705) (Paris. Bibliotheque Nationale)

the prelude. Only one composer, namely, Dieupart, cultivated the overture, and his six pieces are the. very first such works in the French clavecin repertory. Dieupart consistently appropriates the form established by Jean-Baptiste Lully and closes all but the second of his pieces with a slow passage reminiscent of the beginning. The prelude, on the other hand, appeared frequently and in many different forms in the French harpsichord literature of the early 1700s. Presumably modelled after the works of Louis Couperin, the four preludes of Le Roux are unmeasured and written throughout in semibreves, which have no set value but provide a basis for improvisation. The preludes in Le Roux"s first and fifth suites differ from Couperin's pieces, however, in that they occasionally include what look like thoroughbass figures. 'Since no notes are to be added', Davitt Moroney points out, these figures have no continuo function; rather, they 'define the harmonies which the printed notes must form'.21 The influence of both Louis Couperin and Elizabeth Jacquet de la

Guerrethe only 17th-century French harpsichord composers known to have incorporated measured passages in otherwise unmeasured piecesis apparent in the single prelude by Rameau, where an initial unmeasured section is followed by a measured passage in 12/8 metre. It is interesting to note that although Couperin notates the unmeasured sections of his preludes in semibreves throughout La Guerre and Rameau use a variety of note values and thus give some rhythmic guidance to the performer. In Marchand's second book and in Clerambaulf s two suites the preludes are wholly unmeasured, like those of Le Roux. However, by employing mixed note values instead of an unrelieved series of semibreves, Marchand and Clerambault provide helpful interpretative direction. Clerambaulfs preludes, moreover, use vertical dotted lines both to mark coincidences between the hands and to indicate where certain pitchesespecially in the bassshould enter alone. Similar markings accompany the four unmeasured preludes in Dandrieu's third harpsichord book. Here,
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Table 1 Contents of the ten early eighteenth-century French harpsichord collections Dieupart Marchand
I II 1

Clerambault

Le Roux

Dandneu
I II 1 III 4

Rameau

La Guerre

prelude overture allemande (double) courante (double) sarabande gigue (double) minuet (double) gavotte (double) chaconne descriptive piece passepied rondeau ngaudon bourree passacaille
1

6
6 6 6
1 1

2 (1)

8 8 (1) 6 2 5 (3) 2 1 3 2

1 2 1 1 (1) 2 2

1 1 I 1 3 1 1

1 1 2 2 6 7 1

2 1 2 1 1 1

2
(1) 2 (1) 2 3 (1) 1

2
3 2 2 1 (1)

1 1

1 1

6 5
6

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1 1

2 2 1

1 2

Ex.1 Jean-Framjois Dandneu, Pieces courtes et faciles de quatre tons differents (Paris, c 1710-20), Prelude in D minor, opening
=6:

as seen in ex 1, dotted lines serve not only to mark concurrences between the hands but also to help delineate the metrical framework of each piece, for, despite their being notated throughout in semibreves, all four of Dandrieu's unmeasured preludes readily lend themselves to a strictly metrical interpretation Over against these pieces, the first measured prelude in the 18th-century French harpsichord repertory the one in Marchand's suite in D minoradapts well to a free rhythmic rendition (see ex 2).22 The free rhythmic style of Marchand's piece is not typical of the early 18th-century measured prelude, however, inasmuch as the three remaining pieces in this category all of them by Dandrieudemand rhythmic pre188 EARLY MUSIC MAY 1989

cision The large number of unmeasured preludes in the literature at hand is of special interest, for later French harpsichord composers gave considerably less attention to the form. Indeed, by the mid-1730s the prelude non mesure had become obsolete. Most of the allemandes in the ten harpsichord books being discussed correspond closely to their 17th-century prototypes. They are pseudopolyphonic, with occasional points of imitation, and exhibit continuous quaver and semiquaver motion without clear phrase delineation A number of early 18thcentury allemandes are altogether different, however Several of Le Roux's compositions, for example, as well as La Guerre's Allemande in G major are essentially homophonic with but little contrapuntal activity A few such pieces feature extensive melodic embellishment; the allemande in Le Roux's seventh suite is especially notable in this regard. Whether homophonic or polyphonic, most allemandes in the early 18th-century French harpsichord literature use the time signature C and are moderate in tempo Two pieces by Le Roux, however, as well as

Ex 2 Louis Marchand, Livre premier. Pieces de clavecin {Paris, 1702), Prelude in D minor, bars 1-8

Ex.3 Jean-Philippe Rameau. Premier livre de pieces de clavecin (Pans. 1706). Allemande II in A minor, bars 1-7

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Clerambaulfs Allemande in C major employ a C signature but are marked 'Gay(e)'. Several other allemandes, which move primarily in crotchets and quavers rather than in the usual quavers and semiquavers, are written in either (f: or 2 metre Although these time signatures might seem to suggest more animated movement, such is not necessarily the case For example, two of the three allemandes by Le Roux that are in 2 metre are marked 'Grave' Three other allemandes, moreoverthe two in Dandneu's second and third books and Marchand's piece in G minor are 'hardly to be distinguished from a normal allemande with doubled time-values and halved bars'.23 Fashioned quite differently from these pieces, however, is the second allemande in Rameau's book. Here, as ex 3 shows, the two-beat measures lend themselves readily to faster movement The Itahanate character of this piecewith its energetic rhythm, its sequential repetitions, and its descending series of 6th chords embellished by suspensionscontrasts markedly with the first allemande in Rameau's collection, which is conceived in the traditional French manner La Guerre's 'La Flamande', by contrast which is notated in C metre, combines time-honoured techniques like the style bnse with more progressive procedures such as chains of suspensions and 7th chords. All courantes composed during the first decade of the 18th century and those of the 17th-century French harpsichordists are very similar. Written in moderate

triple metre, principally in 3/2, they characteristically exhibit free contrapuntal textures, asymmetrical phrase structures, and complex rhythmic frameworks in which the intermittent use of hemiola tends to produce a sense of rhythmic instability Although the 17th-century courante was frequently cultivated in pairs, that of the early 18th century almost always appears singly Only three of the 26 suites at hand Dandrieu's first in D minor and those in the same key by Marchand and Le Rouxincorporate two courantes. It is noteworthy that in Le Roux's dance group the second courantewhich in keeping with its title, 'Courante luthee', features the broken style of lute musicdoes not immediately follow the first but occurs, rather, at the very end of the suite The one courante by Rameau is interesting in that it begins with a descending chromatic bass line and concludes with a chain of 7 th chords exhibiting root movement down a 5th and up a 4th All the courantes in the early 18th-century French harpsichord literature are uniformly structured; the sarabandes, however, are not. Those that conform to the model established by the 17th-century French harpsichordists are in slow triple metre, employ simple binary form, utilize four-bar phrases, incorporate feminine phrase endings, and reiterate standardized
EARLY MUSIC MAY 1989 189

thus resembles the ternary designs of the period, its middle section is considerably longer and more developmental, however, than that of the typical three-part form. In Le Roux's second suite the unusual feature of the sarabande, a simple binary structure, is its being marked 'Gaye' Of the early 18th-century French harpsichord composers, only threeLe Roux, J J J |J J> J Clerambault and Rameauincluded a pair of sarain the first section but substantially alters and bandes in a single suite And of these only Rameau eventually discards it altogether in the second The cast his two pieces in opposite modes petite reprise plays a decisive role in this dissolution The gigues in the harpsichord books being examined process As seen in ex 4, it bears little resemblance to also reveal various approaches About one-third of the the initial rhythmic idea Dieupart shows originality in pieces are modelled after the two main kinds of gigues the sarabande of his third suite by building upon a cultivated by the 17th-century French harpsichordists 'running' quaver bass and by employing rounded- According to Fuller, the first of these types was binary form 24 the last six bars of the first section are imitative, 'moved chiefly in quarters and eighths', and restated at the end of the second. began 'with a rhythmic pattern
Ex 4 Elizabeth Jacquet de la Guerre, Pieces de clavecin qui peuvent se jouer sur le viollon (Pans, 1707), Sarabande in D minor, bars 25-8 |j J> J J J J I
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rhythmic patterns, patterns that sometimes result in hemiolas The two sarabandes of La Guerre hold special interest because they display greater rhythmic latitude than do those of her contemporaries In her Dminor sarabande, for instance, La Guerre clearly establishes the pattern

The most innovative of all sarabande composers of the early 18th century, however, was Le Roux, whose pieces utilize a variety of formal schemes The sarabande of his seventh suite, for example, is followed by a set of variations That of his sixth suite, on the other hand, is designated 'en rondeau' Despite its title, this piece does not use a recurring refrain but instead employs a rounded-binary design Apparently the idea of restating part of the thematic material of the first section in the closing measures of the second one 'appeared so novel to Le Roux that he labelled [this piece] "sarabande grave en rondeau"' 25 While the second sarabande in Le Roux's third suite is also designated 'en rondeau', it is more difficult to classify Here the complete return of the initial eight bars after an 18- bar digression yields an ABA scheme This piece
190 EARLY MUSIC MAY 1989

or some modification [thereof], usually in the form of a snatch of unaccompanied melody, in the manner of a fugue'. The second type could be either imitative or nonimitative, 'showed a preference for movement in halves and quarters', and generally 'began with a chord lasting a half note or dotted half-note' 26 The first of these two types was cultivated by a number of early 18th-century harpsichord composers, but the second found less favour The former is perhaps best represented by the gigue in Marchand's suite in D minor, the latter, albeit faintly, by the same composer's gigue in G minor Both of these French types were normally in 6/4 metre and featured dotted rhythms. The giga of the Italians, by contrast, showed a preference not only for 6/8 or 12/8 metre but also for movement in even quavers In addition, the Italian type differed from the French by being essentially homophonic Clerambaulfs Gigue in C minor, the beginning of which is shown in ex 5, and La Guerre's second gigue in D minor are good early 18th-century French representatives of this species Although Dieuparf s gigues likewise manifest Italian influence, their contrapuntal workmanship demonstrates his indebtedness also to the German keyboard repertory Whatever their stylistic heritage, almost all of the gigues are simple binary structures, the only exception being three pieces by Dandrieu His gigues in G minor and in C major, designated 'en rondeau', are ternary forms, the former follows the repetition scheme II v4il BA'W, the latter, a simple ABA design The gigue in D major of Dandneu's third book, on the other hand.

couplets as follows RC\RC2R'R This rondeau structure is rather unusual in that it closes with two statements of the refrain, the first is a varied return, the second, an exact repetition of the original presentation The early 18th-century gavotte shows less structural variety than does the minuet Of the 22 gavottes 15 are in simple binary form, the remaining seven employ 1 4 * ~ } - ^ 1 rondeau structure Each of the gavottes en rondeau displays the same pattern of alternation, namely, RC\RC2R, and in most of these pieces the refrain comprises two four-bar phrases, the second being a tr varied repetition of the first28 The adjoining couplets J i correspond in length to the refrain and are either 3EE through-composed or repetitive Rameau's gavotte is interesting in that it has a Double de la Basse, a variant not of the entire piece but of the refrain only. It seems employs a rounded-binary structure The optional movements in the suites being that at the performer's discretion the double can be 29 considered range from traditional dances used exten- substituted for the second or third refrain statement sively by the 17th-century French harpsichordists to Of the remaining movements in the suites at hand new types of pieces that ultimately assumed an the chaconnes merit special attention. Cultivated by important role in French harpsichord music of the several composers in a variety of ways, they lend 18th century The first category of more traditional themselves readily to a comparative study As might be pieces includes the minuet, gavotte, chaconne and expected, a majority of the chaconnesthree of the passacaille, the second includes the ngaudon, rondeau fiveemploy rondeau form One of these pieces, and descriptive piece. Although the bourree and Marchand's Chaconne in D minor, builds on an eightpassepied are also represented in the collections bar refrain that alternates with four contrasting under study, neither of these dances appeared couplets Like the grand couplet in many 17th-century frequently in French keyboard music of either the 17 th chaconnes en rondeau, the refrain consists of two fouror the 18th century and for that reason they are not bar phrases, the second being a variant of the first discussed here As seen in ex 6, both phrases display chordal texture Outnumbering all other optional movements in the and utilize a 30fixed pattern in the bass, namely, early 18th-century French harpsichord suite are 1-7-6-4-5-1 Ranging in length from 16 to 19 bars, minuets and gavottes Although their 17th-century the four couplets are variously constituted' the first prototypes were almost always in simple binary form, and third are chordal and feature sarabande rhythms, only two-thirds of the minuets and gavottes composed Ex 6 Louis Marchand, Livre premier, Pieces de clavecin, in the early 1700s are thus constituted The remaining Chaconne in D minor, bars 18 one-third employ rounded-binary, ternary or rondeau form Rounded-binary structure occurs only twice, in i the last minuet in Dandneu's suite in G minor, and in the single minuet by Rameau Ternary form, on the other hand, is used in six works, all of them minuets Although two of the six pieces exhibit a simple ABA design, the remaining four incorporate additional repetition, the most common scheme being \\.A II BA II " The only early 18th-century minuet that can be ^ ^ ^ considered a genuine rondeau is the one in F major L (Suite V) by Dieupart Unlike many dances of this period that bear a 'rondeau' designation but are actually ternary in structure, Dieupaifs piece employs a recurring refrain that alternates with two contrasting

Ex 5 Louis-Nicolas Clerambault l e ' livre de pieces de clavecin (Pans, c 1704), Gigue in C minor, bars 1-3

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EARLY MUSIC MAY 1989

191

the second and fourth are imitative and devoid of stereotyped dance rhythms. Dandneu's Chaconne in C minor is more compact than Marchand's and divides into five sections, namely RC\RC2R Like Marchand, Dandrieu uses two four-bar units to fashion his refrain, the second unit being a varied presentation of the first He does not, however, employ a fixed pattern in the bass. Both of the couplets in his chaconne are eight bars long and utilize the principal rhythmic motive of the refrain Despite these similarities to the refrain, the couplets differ by being contrapuntal rather than homophonic The one other chaconne en rondeau is La Guerre's Chaconne in D major, the form of which is C1C2C1C3C1C4C1C5C1 Considerably longer than most other grands couplets, the chaconne refrain (C1)31 comprises 14 bars, two of them being of double length because they are hemiola patterns (see ex.7)32 The refrain is noteworthy also in being throughcomposed' it does not depend on the repetition either of phrases or of bass patterns, except for concluding with a varied repetition of bars 8-11. Although many French composersMarchand and Dandrieu among themuse only chordal textures in their chaconne refrains, La Guerre employs both imitative and homophonic writing. Her exploitation of the low register of the keyboard is in keeping, however, with an established practice. Contrary to the usual French

custom of indicating refrain repetitions by means of renvois, La Guerre writes out and varies the first three recurrences of the refrain and designates only the final return by a renvot Containing from 12 to 15 bars, the contrasting couplets (C2 through C5) are throughcomposed and exhibit contrapuntal textures 33 The Chaconne in F major of Le Roux, whose structural ingenuity has already been noted, juxtaposes rondeau and ostinato procedures The piece divides into two parts, each containing 68 bars The first part builds on a refrain and four couplets, the second, on ostinato patterns The eight-bar refrain of part one consists of a single four-bar phrase that is repeated with variation Like the refrains of many 17th-century chaconnes en rondeau, it displays homophonic texture and utilizes the bass pattern 3-45-1. Every recurrence of the refrain is written out and varied. Ranging in length from six to eight bars, all four couplets begin imitatively and thus contrast effectively with the refrain The second part of the chaconne utilizes fourbar phrases throughout, and in free succession employs three ostinato patterns, namely, the descending tetrachord, the ascending pentachord, and the figure 1-7-6-3-4-5-1. Although entitled 'Chaconne en rondeau', the one remaining chaconnethat in G minor by Dandrieu fuses ostinato and rondeau procedures. Divided into
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Ex 7 Elizabeth Jacquet de la Guerre. Pieces de clavecin qui peuvent se jouer sur le violloa Chaconne in D major, bars 1-14

192

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four-bar units, the bass utilizes one principal ostinato, the figure 1-7-1-5-6-4-5-1; this figure is varied in the course of the work and presented in free succession with other fixed patterns The upper part, on the other hand, employs an eight-bar melodya four-bar phrase repeated with variationthat recurs with figuration every other eight bars in the manner of a refrain By presenting the third and fifth statements of this melody in B f c major and in D minor respectively, Dandneu enhances the refrain procedure Another of Dandneu's compositions that uses ostinato patterns is the Passacaille in D minor Like his chaconne, it builds primarily on one bass figurein this case, the ascending pentachordwhile drawing upon other patterns as well, most notably on various forms of the descending tetrachord, Dandrieu and La Guerre were the only 18th-century French harpsichord composers before Francois Coupenn to include the rigaudon in their suites. Each of them wrote a pair of ngaudons in which the second piece contrasts in mode to the first In simple binary form, all four compositions are notable for thin textures and tonal simplicity. Dandneu's ngaudons are unusual in that they cadence in the tonic at the end of the first section Unlike La Guerre's pieces, which use contrasting moods and thematic ideas, those of Dandneu employ similar rhythmic and melodic motives Although several early 18th-century French composers utilized rondeau structure in their dances, Dandrieu and La Guerre were the only harpsichord composers of the first decade to cultivate the rondeau as an independent form Their pieces, in fact, are the first of many such works that eventually entered the 18th-century French clavecin repertory The Rondeau in D major of Dandrieu, despite its title, displays a simple ABA design His rondeaux in G minor and C major, on the other hand, as well as the single rondeau of La Guerre build on a refrain and two contrasting couplets. In all of these compositions the refrain comprises two four-bar phrases, the second being a variant of the first The couplets, also eight bars long, are through-composed Unlike Dandrieu, who indicates repetitions of the refrain by means of renvots, La Guerre writes out every refrain statement and alters the third presentation by embellishing both the melody and the bass In the original publication, it should be noted, La Guerre's rondeau ends with an incomplete measure and custos (on d") at the conclusion of the embellished refrain statement (see bar 40 in the

Pupitre edition) I believe that this piece should be extended by reiterating the initial presentation of the refrain The resulting scheme, RC\RC2R'R, is the same one used by Dieupart in his menuet en rondeau in F major, where in the original print only the final refrain recurrence is indicated by a renvoi. To be complete this article must also mention the four non-dance pieces that bear descriptive titles Two such compositions by Le Roux'La Bel-ebaf and 'La favontte'are in simple binary form. Although they differ in metre and tempo, they employ the same rhythmic idea and derive cohesion from its constant reiteration 'La favoritte' gains additional unity by using similar melodic motives throughout Then there is Le Roux's 'La Piece sans Titre', whose seemingly jocular title may in itself indicate the composition's non-dance origins. Ternary in form, this piece follows the repetition schemell AII .BA'W. Its middle {B) section is noteworthy both because its imitative texture contrasts sharply with the homophonic outer sections and also, as ex 8 shows, because it concludes with a transition to A' that features imitative treatment of an idea derived from the composition's opening motive Italian influence is apparent in the final section of the piece, where sequential repetitions extend the motivic material (see bars 26-32 in ex.8) The fourth composition that is not a dance is Rameau's 'Venitienne', whose rondeau design is RC\RC2R. The refrain is comprised of two eight-bar units, the second being a varied repetition of the first The couplets, 16 and 20 bars long respectively, are through-composed. Cuthbert Girdlestone points out that, had Rameau wanted to evoke a particular person or thing, he would have entitled this composition 'La Venitienne'. Girdlestone believes that the rondeau 'was intended', rather, 'as a kind of gondolier's song, a barcarolle'3* The preceding discussion clearly shows that the early 18th-century French harpsichord composers followed a common practice with regard to the content and distribution of the suite Almost all of them regularly employed a nucleus of four specific dancesthe allemande, courante, sarabande and giguethat were practically always arranged in the 'classical' order This dance nucleus was generally preceded by an introductory movement and followed by a variety of other pieces. Only three early 18th-century French harpsichord collections do not conform to this pattern. They are (1) Dandrieu's Pieces de clavecin courtes etfaales de quaere tons differents, which contains
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Ex 8 Gaspard Le Roux, Pieces de clavessin (Pans, 1705), suite vn. "La Piece sans Titre'. (a) bars 1-5 (b) bars 20-32

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only a handful of 'core' dances, (2) Le Roux's Pieces de clavessin, which favours a nucleus of three dances the allemande, courante and sarabande; and (3) Dieuparf s Six swttes de clavessin, which, in keeping with German practice, consistently uses the gigue as the concluding movement Despite their general similarity of content and distribution, the ten harpsichord books at hand exhibit considerable formal diversity From unmeasured preludes to descriptive pieces, they are a compendium of both the old and the new Although the increased number of rondeau designations in this period may suggest a common adoption of rondeau procedure, an examination of the pieces themselves has demonstrated how loosely this appellation was applied. Only a few dancesgavottes and chaconnes in particularemploy genuine rondeau structure Unlike the 17th-century French harpsichordists who were largely insulated from foreign influence, the early 18th-century composers freely incorporated features of the Italian style into the basic traditions of their predecessors Apparent primarily in matters of texture and harmony, this foreign influence substantially increased the number of options available to composers. After 1710 French harpsichord music became
194 EARLY MUSIC MAY 1989

increasingly diverse Several composers did, indeed, continue to cultivate the suite as a composite musical form and, influenced by their immediate predecessors, relied primarily upon titled dances and traditional ordenngs A larger group became inspired by Francois Coupenn's popularization of the genre piece, however, and wrote suites of a more modern kind. These suites, containing few, if any, dances and following no consistent organizational plan, demonstrate a growing interest in motivic unification, increasing popularity of rondeau form, and a new penchant for descriptive writing Still other composers, perhaps stimulated by
Dieuparf s Six suittes de clavessin or La Guerre's Pieces de clavecin qui peuvent se jouer sur le viollon, explored the

possibilities of the accompanied keyboard piece. All ten early 18th-century collections examined in this article are significant for an overall understanding and evaluation of the French harpsichord literature Not only did they markedly advance the trend toward standardization of the dance suite initiated by the late 17th-century French harpsichordists, but by their formal and stylistic innovations they also influenced the efforts of an emerging new generation of composers Our heritage, as a consequence, is a remarkably uniform yet unusually vaned repertory, one worthy of increased attention, enjoyment and performance 35

Carol Henry Bates, a graduate of Wheaton College (Illinois) and Indiana University, is Teaching Associate at the University of South Carolina m Columbia

'D R. Fuller, Eighteenth-Century French Harpsichord Music (PhD

diss , Harvard U, 1965) ! This article does not attempt to establish a definitive chronology of the ten collections under consideration Some were undoubtedly written in the late 1600s Others were composed in the opening years of the 18th century but not published until a later time Despite varying circumstances of formulation and promulgation, however, all ten collections found circulation within the first decade of the 18th century and for that reason are included here The 'Geoffroy 8 MS' (Pans Bibliotheque Nationale [F-Pn], Fonds du Conservatoire, D Fuller, French Harpsichord Music, l, p 233 Res 475) has been excluded from consideration even though it may 'The year of publication cannot be fully established from the title fall within the chronological scope of this study (Martine Roche page In the note preceding his revised edition of Clerambaulfs believes that the MS was completed sometime between 1689 and harpsichord pieces, Thurston Dart indicates 'After Roussel's (the 1702, 'Un livre de clavecin francais de la fin du XVIIe siecle', engraver's] name appears 1703, at the foot of the page 1704, and Recherches sur la musique francaise classique, vn (1967), p 62 ) For one both dates appear to have been corrected on the page from 1702' thing, its contents'seem not to have circulated at all' B Gustafson, SeeL-N Clerambault, Pieces de clavecin, ed P Brunold, rev T Dart French Harpsichord Music of the 17th Century a Thematic Catalog of the (Monaco, 1964) 10 Sources with Commentary (Ann Arbor, 1979), l. p 108 Then, too, as B Francois-Sappey, 'L'Oeuvre de clavecin de Jean-Francois David Fuller observes, 'some of the compositions are so excessively Dandneu (1682-1738) trois livres de jeunesse', Recherches sur la odd as to make one wonder whether they are experiments, spoofs or musique francaise classique. xiv(1974), pp 154-235 The first modern very wrongly copied' see Fuller's review of J R Anthony, French scholar to establish the existence of Dandneu's three early books Baroque Music from Beaujoyeulx to Rameau. in JAMS, xxvm (Summer was Paul Brunold 'Trois livres de pieces de clavecin de J F 1975), p378 Dandneu', Revue de musicologie. xm (1932), pp 147-51 His findings 3 are summarized and updated by Francois-Sappey, who also includes The term 'genre piece' is here used according to the definition an analysis of Dandneu's early pieces For supplementary insights given by Cuthbert Girdlestone, who divides French harpsichord as well as information about a recently discovered composite compositions of the early 18th century into two broad categories as publication of the three early books see B Frangois-Sappey, Jeanfollows '[There are] the pieces derived from dances, with no aim Francois Dandneu (Pans, 1982), pp73-6, 115-21 other than to evoke, in addition to their musical entertainment, a kind of vicarious pleasure of the dance, and what may be called "Francois-Sappey. 'L'Oeuvre de clavecin', pp 156-66 genre pieces, whose extra-musical appeal consisted in calling to '^Interestingly, only the initial printing of this volume (Pans mind some external object person, thing, situation, event The Bibliotheque Nationale [F-Pn\. Vm71877) includes the two minuets division was not hard and fast, some dances had evocative names, "In her article (p 178) Francois-Sappey considers the untitled and many genre pieces, even when not called dances, were cast in piece in G major found at the end of this suite a middle section (or obvious dance rhythms' Jean-Philippe Rameau his Life and Work (New trio) of the preceding minuet, she therefore tallies only ten pieces in York, 2/1969), pp 14-15 this collection In her modern edition of Dandneu's early books, 4 For a modern edition see [Frangois] Dieupart. Six suites pour however, she lists the piece in G major as a separate minuet, not as a clavecin, ed P Brunold, rev K Gilbert (Monaco. 1979) Dieupart's component of the preceding one Jean-Franc,ois Dandneu. Trots suites are in A, D, b, e, F and f respectively Of the composers whose livres de clavecin de jeunesse, ed B Francois-Sappey, Publications de works are considered, only Dieupart uses the word 'suitte' in the title la Societe Francaise de Musicologie, 1st series, xxi (Pans, 1975) 14 of his publication The term is encountered elsewhere only in Cunously, in her article on Dandneu's early harpsichord books Dandneu's Pieces de clavecin courtes et faciles de quatre tons differents, (p 195) Frangois-Sappey states that this composition has no title but where each key group bears a 'suitte' designation, and in that its dotted rhythm brings to mind a canane or perhaps a gigue Clerambaulr/s second group of pieces where the heading 'Augmen- Accordingly, in her modem edition she editorially supplies the title tation de la Suitte en C solutb mol'sets off three pieces apparently 'Canane ou Gigue' Carl Dolmetsch indicates, however, that in the added at a later time only extant copy of the music [GB-HAdolmetsch, MS II B16 1) this ! M Pincherle, 'Les Pieces de clavecin en sonates'. introductory piece clearly bears the title 'Gigue' and that this caption was chapter \n Mondonville Pieces de clavecin en sonates. Publications de laundoubtedly 'engraved at the same time as other such titles in the Societe Franc.aise de Musicologie, 1st series, IX (Pans, 1935), p 18, book' (personal letter to the writer, 30 April 1986) fn 1 "For a modern edition see Gaspard Le Roux, Pieces for Harpsichord. 'According to Pincherle, ibid. Roger's catalogue assigns two ed A Fuller (New York, 1959) "One of the titles, 'Allemande Grave la Lorenzany' (Suite II, different numbers to these suites, the first indicates the price of the complete work, the second, the price of the keyboard score without movement 1), may not have originated with Le Roux Albert Fuller the other instrumental parts These two purchase options clearly points out that, although all three extant copies of the music give support the performance methods described above David Fuller, the title 'Allemande Grave', only one has the additional designation la Lorenzany1, and this has been added by hand (see the however, expresses musical reservations about the performance of Introduction' in Fuller's modern edition of the Le Roux pieces, Dieupart's pieces in concerted style Among other things, he notes little discrepancies between the instrumental parts and the pv) keyboard version' that look carefully calculated to improve the bass "See Jean-Philippe Rameau, Pieces de clavecin ed K Gilbert Le for a continuo accompaniment intended to substitute for the pupitre, lix (Pans, 1979) keyboard original At other points, the continuo line jumps an "The pieces were issued in a double volume together with La EARLY MUSIC MAY 1989 195

octave over the harpsichord bass, producing ugly doublings' Fuller does not rule out the possibility that Dieupart's suites may indeed be 'true examples' of the accompanied keyboard piece but is inclined toward a performance either by solo harpsichord or by melody instrument and continuo See Accompanied Keyboard Music', MQ, lx (April 1974), pp 233-4 Kenneth Gilbert mentions the possibility of performing the suites with one or both treble instruments and continuo and suggests that 'if a harpsichord is used instead of, or in addition to, an archlute, it would play from the figured bass part rather than from the wntten-out keyboard version' Gilbert also notes that in the violin part each suite is preceded by transposition instructions for alternate performance on a recorder See the 'Revisor's Note' in Dieupart. Sur suites pour clavecin 'See Louis Marchand, Pieces de clavecin, ed T Dart (Monaco, 1960) A revised edition (by Davin Moroney) was issued after completion of this article

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Guerre's six Sonates pour le vtollon etpour le clavean According to the Louis Coupenn, for example, frequently employs the term grand title page before the harpsichord pieces, the two collections could couplef for the chaconne refrain and differentiates the remaining sections by means of numbers Marchand, on the other hand, omits be purchased either separately or as a unit "For a modern edition of both books see Elisabeth-Claude specific reference to the refrain but, like Coupenn, numbers the Jacquet de la Guerre, Pieces de clavean, ed C H Bates, Le pupitre, contrasting couplets In La Guerre's Chaconne in D major, by lxvi (Pans, 1986) The 1687 book, which for many years was contrast, the refrain constitutes the first couplet !2 presumed lost, is discussed in C H Bates, 'Elizabeth Jacquet de la In these hemiola patterns La Guerre replaces the basic crotchet Guerre a New Source of Seventeenth-Century French Harpsichord pulse of the refrain with a minim unit and thus effects a change from Music', Recherches sur la mustque francaise classique, xxn(1984), pp 7-3/4 metre to 3/2 Although subsequent statements of the refrain are 49 identical in length, the fourth contains two additional bars because 20 Several scholars have mistakenly stated that La Guerre's of the different barring of the hemiolas Here, because La Guerre harpsichord pieces of 1707 were engraved in a rather random order, retains the basic crotchet unit instead of changing to a minim pulse, one that presumably did not reflect her intentions regarding the hemiola patterns embrace two bars rather than one performance This error stems from Paul Brunold's modern edition, "Perhaps the most noteworthy feature of La Guerre's chaconne is which, besides including only 12 of the 14 pieces, substantially its rhythmic organisation, which at the beginning of the fourth altered La Guerre's ordering without explanation Elizabeth Jacquet couplet shifts from simple to compound triple metrespecifically, de La Guerre, Pieces de clavean, ed P Brunold (Pans, 1938) This from 3/4 to 9/8 (Interestingly, to indicate the shift to triple division altered arrangement was carried over into Thurston Darf s revised of the beat, La Guerre uses the signature 6/8) The triple beat edition, which made use of the printing plates designed for Brunold divisions introduced in this couplet are earned over into the Although in Darf s edition the table of contents does indeed indicate penultimate statement of the refrain Although this presentation the original sequence of the pieces, the layout of the music begins and ends in 3/4 metre, it unfolds primarily in 9/8 and thus corresponds to that in Brunold's publication Included at the end of contrasts markedly with the four other refrain statements Dart's edition are the two pieces omitted by Brunold Elizabeth "See Girdlestone, op at, p 18, as well as Appendix B, p 596 Jacquet de La Guerre, Pieces de clavecin, ed P Brunold, rev T Dart "This article consists of revised and expanded material from the (Monaco, 1965) writer's doctoral dissertation, The Instrumental Music of Elizabeth2I D Moroney, 'The Performance of Unmeasured Harpsichord Claude Jacquet de la Guerre (Indiana U , 1978) Preludes', EM, IV (April 1976). p 145 22 Wilh Apel states that this prelude 'is probably the first example of the type that Francois Coupenn calls mesure in his L Art de toucher le clavean (1717), but which must nevertheless be played "d'une maniere aisee sans trop s'attacher a la precision des mouvements" ' (in a free manner without attaching too much importance to the exact time) The History of Keyboard Music to 1700, trans and rev H Tischler (Bloomington, 1972), p 719 23 D Fuller, French Harpsichord Music, I, p 259 Fuller's observation is made in reference only to the Marchand allemande but seems applicable as well to the two Dandneu pieces "Some writers prefer the term 'incipient ternary'
25

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J R Anthony, French Baroque Music from Beaujoyeulx to Rameau D Fuller, French Harpsichord Music, l, p 274

(New York, rev 2/1978), p 257

26

"Ternary form is used in Marchand's second minuet in G minor, in Clerambaulfs second minuet in C ma]or, in Le Roux's second minuet in A minor, in the pair of minuets in Dandrieu's first book, and in the first minuet in Dandrieu's second book Interestingly enough, four of these works bear a 'rondeau' designation Although the cited minuets of Marchand and Clerambault employ the repetition scheme A BA . Darf s modern editions of these pieces utilize formats that do not correspond fully to those in the original sources Some analysts may see in these two minuets a roundedbinary rather than ternary structure 28 Marchand's Gavotte in D minor, Rameau's Gavotte in A minor. Le Roux's gavottes in A minor and D major, the initial gavotte in Dandrieu's first harpsichord book, the single gavotte in Dandrieu's second book, and the second gavone in D minor in Dandrieu's third book "Kenneth Gilbert, in his edition of Rameau's pieces (open, p IX), observes that the 'Fin' marking at the end of the first statement of the refrain (bar 8) may indicate that the double should 'not necessarily come at the end of the piece, but perhaps after the 1 st Reprise' (I e , after the first contrasting couplet) '"According to David Fuller, most refrains in the 17th-century French chaconne-en-rondeau literature comprise one or two four-bar phrases and utilize stereotyped bass patterns, the most common of these is 3-4-5-1 French Harpsichord Music, l, pp 101-2 ] 'The terminology used by French harpsichord composers to delineate the sections of the chaconne en rondeau varies considerably 196 EARLY MUSIC MAY 1989

VIRGINIA PLEASANTS FORTEPIANO

Mozart among His Contemporaries

Mozart Kozeluch Clementi Wagenseil Dussek Purcell Room 14 June 1989 8.00pm

RENCONTRES INTERNATIONALES DE MUSIQUE BAROQUE ET CLASSIQUE BEAUNE 89.

JUNE 30-JULY 22

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"Hocpicef de Beaune". IS. C.

PROGRAM
FRJ 30 - Gustav Leonhardt, harpsichord - Sigiswald Kuijken, violin - Wieland Kuijken, viola da gamba. COUPERIN SAT 1 - Collegium Vocal Gaud Choir and Orchestra I Dir. Philippe Herreweghe. BACH -Cantatas" Agnes Mellon, soprano - Gerard Lesne, alto - Christophe Prigardien, tenor - Peter Kooy, bass SUN 2 - Bicentenary of the French Revolution: Performance "La Republicaint" Hiline Delavauh. mezzo FRJ 7 - La Grande Ecurie et la Chambre du Roy. Dir. Jean Claude Malgoire. MOZART "Symphonies" SAT 8 - Recreation : "Banquet of the Vow or of the Pheasant". Music at the Court of the Dues of Burgundy in 15.C. Ensemble Gilles Binchois I Dir. D. Vellard (costumed representation with dinner and wine includedfrommanuscritps ofl5.C.) DUFAY.. RECORDING by VIRGIN CLASSICS SUN 9 - Recital Katia Ricdaretti. soprano. HAENDEL, VIVALDI. BELLINI, ROSSINI, DONIZETTI SAT 15 - HAENDEL Opera "Aci, Galatea e Polifemo" (original version 1708). London Baroque I Dir. Charles Mediant. Lorna Anderson, soprano - Carolyn Watkinson, mezzo David Thomas, bass (with The British Council) SUN 16 - BERLIOZ "Symphonie Fantastique". Leningrad s Kirov Symphony Orchestra I Dir. Valeri Gergiev FRI21 - MOZART "Concertos for violin and Orchestra". Orchestre National de Chambre de Toulouse I Dir.A violin. Augustin Dtunay SAT 22 - HAENDEL "Ode for St. Cecilia's Day" I Dir. Rent Jacobs Nederland Bachvereniging Choir and Orchestra. Lena Lootens, soprano Howard Crook, tenor

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EARLY MUSIC MAY 1989 197