Le Fier Virtuose

One hundred and fifty years of harpsichord music at Versailles, under the reigns of Louis XIII, Louis XIV and Louis XV: French harpsichord music is inseparable from the Court, which gave rise to it's greatest performers. The Harpsichord Cycle at Versailles is an anthology of this extraordinary repertoire. The reign of Louis XIII (1610-1643) and the construction of the first Versailles (1624) saw the practice playing the harpsichord take hold in France and it immediately became the virtuoso instrument of the salons. The King's passion for music and ballet led him to compose himself. Here are masterpieces by the early masters, pieces from the famous ballets that the King danced, and even a work composed by the king himself, all brought together and exalted by the illustrious and virtuoso playing of Arnaud de Pasquale, who is compelling in this repertoire of the pioneers of the French harpsichord.