Search - Rameau, Christie :: Suite for Harpsichord

William Christie is so familiar as the leading conductor of the French-baroque revival that we tend to forget that he was--and remains--a respected harpsichordist, as well. Here's a chance to hear for yourself: Harmonia Mundi's budget-priced Solothèque series ("One disc, one work") features Christie playing one of Rameau's best-known suites for harpsichord. The Suite in E Minor has nine brief movements, most of them dances, such as the suave allemande, the spirited rigaudon, and the gigue (a Frenchified jig). I could imagine a more energetic performance of those movements than Christie's, but I can't imagine one more elegant. Christie really shines in the suite's two most famous movements: the "Rappel des Oiseaux", whose quick repeated notes and twitters are meant to mimic the calls of birds, and the tambourin, whose pounding bass notes and jingly treble parts suggest a vigorous peasant two-step dance with (yes) a tambourine. --Matthew Westphal