François Couperin

François Couperin (1668–1733), known as "Couperin le Grand," was the most eminent member of a dynasty of French musicians and the foremost French composer of the Baroque era alongside Rameau. Organist of the Chapelle Royale at Versailles, he served Louis XIV and composed for the court, blending Italian and French styles with unmatched refinement.

His four books of Pièces de clavecin (1713–1730), comprising over 230 pieces organised into ordres, form the summit of French harpsichord music. Each piece bears an evocative title — Le Rossignol-en-amour, Les Barricades Mistérieuses, Le Tic-Toc-Choc — painting miniature sonic portraits with extraordinary poetry and finesse. His treatise L'Art de toucher le clavecin (1716) profoundly influenced keyboard technique, including that of J.S. Bach, who studied and admired his works.