The Cuckoo (Le Coucou) is an intermediate level keyboard piece dating from 1735 in which the call of the cuckoo is imitated. In some ways this makes i Show More...
The Cuckoo (Le Coucou) is an intermediate level keyboard piece dating from 1735 in which the call of the cuckoo is imitated. In some ways this makes it an early example of programme music. Whilst originally intended and played on a harpsichord it is often played on the piano. The realisation plays back at 120 quarter note (crotchet) beats a minute. The score detail in place is appropriate for the music to played on a piano or keyboard. If opportunities arise do play it on the organ. Keyboard players need to approach this work with a lightness in their touch and keep their fingers as close as possible to the keys.The tempo needs to be constant possibly with a slight slowing down at the cadence points. The ornamental notes are probably best omitted while the piece is first being studied. The ornamentation in baroque keyboard music is a specialist subject in itself and the suggestions in the sheet music download are intended to encourage a practical, consistent and above all rhythmic approach. Louis Claude Daquin was a French composer and famous as an organist and harpsichordist living and working in Paris. He is particularly associated with the baroque and style galant contexts in music history. The rondeau form involves a principal theme or refrain alternating with sections known as episodes or couplets. ABACA would accurately reflect the form of the work although the phrase structure is irregular. The A sections are 23 bars long, B is 19 bars and C as much as 27 bars. The rondeau form was particularly popular with French baroque composers especially Lully, F. Couperin & Rameau. Close
