Pièces de clavecin en concerts, RCT 7–11

This is the only chamber music Rameau ever wrote, and it turns the usual Baroque trio texture inside out: instead of the harpsichord providing a quiet bass accompaniment, it carries a fully written-out, virtuosic obbligato part, while the violin and viola da gamba are the supporting players. The five suites, each of three or four short movements, are named after real people, places, and character types from Rameau's Paris, giving each piece a precise personality rather than an abstract mood. Rameau himself noted that the works could be performed either as chamber music or by harpsichord alone, and he supplied instructions for adapting them either way.

What to listen for

In the Fifth Concert, the opening movement, La Forqueray, is written as a fugue, meaning each instrument enters in turn with the same subject and the three voices weave together in close imitation. Then the second movement, La Cupis, shifts the texture entirely: the harpsichord takes a rapid, ornamental melody at the top while the other instruments drop back, making the contrast in weight and density very clear. Watch also for how each named movement settles into its own rhythmic pattern, making the transitions between them feel like turning from one portrait to the next.

Recommended rendition

The recording by Trevor Pinnock, Rachel Podger, and Jonathan Manson (Channel Classics, 2002) has been frequently cited for its balance between the three instruments and its clarity of articulation.

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