January 2011
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34 Reads
A manuscript entitled La Convalescente. Sonnade. Del S. Couprin was discovered at the Sächsische Landes- und Universitätsbibliothek (Dresden) in 2005. The source contains the six opening movements of François Couperin's trio sonata L'Impériale, which the composer published in 1726 as part of his cycle Les Nations. The essay revolves around a textological analysis of the manuscript, which was copied by the violinist Johann Georg Pisendel during a trip to Paris in 1714, when he accompanied Prince Friedrich August there for celebrations on the occasion of the Treaty of Baden. The resulting, short-lived Catholic Alliance between the Habsburg Monarchy and France explains why Couperin chose the title L'Impériale for the revised version of the sonata. Also discussed are new perspectives, made possible by the dated manuscript, that allow a reappraisal of Couperin's stylistic evolution.