Released 1981 by Stolat, New York SZM0109 by arrangement with PWM. Warsaw, Poland
A Polskie Nagrania Production
No further documentation about the instrument or recording engineers.
Art Direction: Fred Holtz

Side 1:
F. Couperin: Second Livre de clavecin Ordre No. 11: Les Fastes de la grande et ancienne Menestrandise
00:00 Premier Acte (1’32)
01:38 Deuxième Acte (2’36)
04:19 Troisième Acte and Quatrième Acte (6’12)
10:34 Cinqième Acte (2’00)

Rameau:
12:39 Pièces de Clavecin: Les Cyclopes (3’25)
16:05 Pièces de Clavecin: Le Rappel des oiseaux (3’07)
19:16 Nouvelle Suite de pieces de clavecin.Second Livre: La Poule (3’03)
22:25 Pieces de Clavecin Tambourin (1’20)

Side 2:
Handel: Suite No. 7 in G minor for harpsichord, HWV 432 (18’40)
23:55 Ouverture- Adagio
28:17 Andante
31:15 Allegro
33:10 Sarabande
37:15 Gigue
38:32 Passacaille

In the 17th and 18th centuries, the harpsichord
stood in the center of musical life. It was used
as the basso continuo for almost every ensemble;
it was the most popular instrument for
.accompaniments as the piano is today; and in
the hands of such composers as Couperin, Bach,
Scarlatti, Handel and Rameau. It became a beautiful
and expressive solo ·instrument. The two
keyboards on the harpsichord made it, like the
organ, ideal for contrapuntal music, certainly a
requirement in the Baroque era. It had the
capacity for grandeur and drama, rhythmic
precision, lightness and humor, and rich
ornamentation.
Ai; was typical in the Baroque period, various
schools of composition and performance developed
around the harpsichord in the musical centers
of Europe, two of the most important being
Italy and France. After the death of Jean Baptiste
Lully, whose Italian style had dominated French
music for many years, composers such as
François Couperin, and Jean-Philippe Rameau
began to change this austere baroque style, resulting
in the intricate, ornamental rococo style
that reigned in France during most of the 18th
century.

#ElżbietaStefańskaŁukowicz