Claude Balbastre: The Clavecin Pieces, Volume 1 / Christophe Rousset

Claude Balbastre, known as Marie Antoinette’s clavecin teacher, was born in Dijon in 1724. After moving to Paris, he made his debut at the Consère Spirituelle under the auspices of Jean-Philippe Rameau, a great composer from his hometown, and rose to the position of organist at Notre Dame Cathedral. However, the French Revolution turned his life upside down, and he was ousted from all public positions, leading to his final years in a state of disappointment. Still, with his unique “art of survival”, he acted in accordance with the regime by arranging the revolutionary song “La Marseillaise”, but he never enjoyed his past glory again. Looking back, there were many musicians in Japan during the last war who pandered to the military. Some criticized themselves, some did not even criticize themselves, and many of them became composers of popular songs after the war.

This recording by Christophe Rousset is so to speak “musical portraits” of eponymous pieces, a “mishmash” , with a single clavier sonata with violin accompaniment at the end of the CD.#baroque #balbastre #片山俊幸