François Couperin, known as le grand to distinguish
him from an uncle of the same name, was the most distinguished of a
numerous family of French musicians, officially succeeding his uncle and
father as organist of the Paris church of St Gervais when he was 18. He
enjoyed royal patronage under Louis XIV and in 1693 was appointed royal
organist and, belatedly, royal harpsichordist. As a keyboard player and
composer he was pre-eminent in France at the height of his career. He
died in Paris in 1733.
Church Music
Couperin composed church music for the Royal Chapel under Louis XIV. The surviving Leçons de ténèbres are possibly the best example of this form of composition—settings of the Lamentations of Jeremiah for
the Holy Week liturgy. The first two of the three are for soprano solo
and continuo (the vocal part of the second pitched slightly lower than
that of the first), and the third is for two sopranos and continuo.
Chamber Music
Couperin’s chamber music includes L’Apothéose de Lully (‘The
Apotheosis of Lully’), a tribute to the leading composer in France in
the second half of the 17th century, Jean-Baptiste Lully. A tribute to
the Italian composer Corelli, L’Apothéose de Corelli, is part of a larger collection of ensemble pieces under the title Les Goûts réunis (‘Tastes
United’). It was an exploration of the rival French and Italian tastes
in music, a quarrel in which Couperin remained neutral. The Concerts royaux represent another important element in Couperin’s music for instrumental ensemble.
Harpsichord Music
Couperin’s compositions for the harpsichord occupy a very important
position in French music. His 27 suites, most of them published between
1713 and 1730, contain many pieces that are descriptive in one way or
another. These richly varied suites, or ordres, represent the height of Couperin’s achievement as a composer and arguably that of the French harpsichord composers.
