Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges: 10 Sonatas for Harpsichord

Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Les 10 sonates pour clavecin [10 Sonatas for Harpsichord], is a world premier recording of previously unpublished works, performed by harpsichordist Anne Robert on BNL 112934 (2006). The liner notes observe:

“The works that were published during Saint-George's life time, except for those in the BNF [French National Library], remain unfairly in the shade together with his 10 surprising Sonatas for harpsichord. They are polished and audacious, engaging, and astonishingly modern.”

Ms. Robert is a Harpsichord Professor at the Conservatory of Besançon, France. She also records CDs on the BNL label, performs extensively at important music festivals, gives concerts in the villages of Franche-Comté, and plays for children in hospitals, according to the liner notes of the CD.

The sonatas on this recording were found by her at the French National Library. They are not the only unpublished works Anne Robert has unearthed from libraries. For example, she has played and performed an unpublished work by Boccherini after discovering it in manuscript form in the Public Library of Besançon, the liner notes report. The notes continue:

“At the pianoforte, Anne Robert followed the courses of Paul Badura-Skoda. She played and studied the historical instruments of the most significant European Museums: Berlin, Brussels, Paris, Vienna. She is the 2005 prize winner of the Foundation Marcelle and Robert De Lacour. She has also taught Musicology at the University of Franche-Comté.”

The website of Anne Robert is in French, but no language skill is needed to operate the music player beneath the Saint-Georges CD cover, allowing one to hear a brief audio sample of Sonata No. 1 in C Major. The Saint-Georges Harpsichord Sonatas page of AfriClassical.com provides a link to an audio sample of Sonata No. 2 in G Minor of nearly four minutes. The sample can also be found at the Audio page of the website.