Pierre Hantaï

The numerous instrumental pieces or 'Symphonies' found in the dramatic works of Rameau are remarkably effective on the harpsichord: the composer himself, with his transcription of 'Les Indes Galantes' invited other musicians to continue this tradition.

Seizing on the formidable array of material available in his operas: Platée, Zoroastre, Dardanus, Les Paladins, Pygmalion... Pierre Hantai and Skip Sempé, our finest exponents of this repertoire, take obvious pleasure in revealing, through the two harpsichords, the immense richness of this music, full of surprises and imagination.

"There is something abnormal in almost all Bach's flute sonatas', wrote Frans Brüggen in the booklet note for his recording of these pieces in 1976. It is true that the flute sonatas do not constitute a homogeneous corpus within the composer's output. Each of his pieces for flute corresponds to a different creative period, and Bach did not take the trouble to assemble them in a single manuscript." Hugo Reyne March 2009

These pieces were long thought to have been lost without trace, and yet, unnoticed by anyone, a copy had been gathering dust on the shelves of the Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris, with only the initials F.C. to identify.

Charles Bouvet has told the story of what induced him to take a closer look at this copy and why he was convinced (on the strength of both, internal and external evidence) that this was indeed the famous collection.

These are masterpieces, fully worthy to be mentioned in the same breath as the fourth book of pieces for harpsichord, of 1730, and some of the most beautiful moments in all Couperin's works, performed by two of the finest exponents of Baroque style: Philippe Pierlot and Pierre Hantaï.

Born in 1964 the French harpsichordist, Pierre Hantaï, gave his first concerts at an early age, alone or with his brothers Marc and Jérôme. He then spent two years studying in Amsterdam with Gustav Leonhardt, who subsequently invited him to perform under his direction. In 1983 Hantaï scored his first major triumph through taking first prize at the International Bach-Handel Competition of Bruges in Belgium; since then, Hantaï has collected an impressive number of honours and awards.

To celebrate Marin Marais' 350th birthday, Jordi Savall has made his first complete recording of Marais' most intricate work: the Suitte d'un Goût Etranger. As indicated in the detailed liner notes, these 33 pieces offer the quintessence of the art of Marais, with fascinating titles like La Rêveuse (The Dreamer), La Singulière (The Special), La Bizarre (The Weird), La Superbe (The Proud), including the final Badinage, full of nostalgia. No other work in the baroque repertoire surpasses this fabulous 'Suitte'.