François Couperin's piece for harpsichord, "Les Barricades Mistérieuses" or "Les Barricades Mystérieuses" ("The Mysterious Barricades"), has caught the imagination of many artists, writers and musicians. These pages are devoted to charting the works it has inspired.

 

The pages are still under construction and I have a number of entries to add. But if you know of any references to the piece in novels, poems, paintings, or other pieces of music, I would be grateful to be informed about them. You can contact me at the following email address: sevnine AT miami DOT edu.

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The Piece

François Couperin's piece for harpsichord, "Les Barricades Mistérieuses" or "Les Barricades Mystérieuses" ("The Mysterious Barricades") was published in 1717, as the fifth piece in his VIth Ordre de Clavecin in B flat major. The sublimity of the music, in conjunction with its mysterious and evocative title, has fascinated and inspired its listeners. You can listen to it here. 

Written in the style of a lute piece, the work is in a rondeau form and employs a familiar ground-bass that accounts for its characteristic and familiar harmonies.

[To be expanded]