Concert champêtre

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The Concert champêtre is a harpsichord concerto by Francis Poulenc, which also exists in a version for piano solo with very slight changes in the solo part.

It was written in 1927-28 for the harpsichordist Wanda Landowska who said she "adored" playing it as it made her "insouciant and gay!" (Ivry 1996) Landowska was responsible for the composition of several other new pieces of music for the instrument, notably Manuel de Falla's harpsichord concerto and his El retablo de Maese Pedro (at the premiere of which, at the salon of Winnaretta Singer, Poulenc and Landowska met for the first time).

After a private performance in which Poulenc played the orchestral parts on the piano, the piece's public premiere was on May 3, 1929 at the Salle Pleyel in Paris, with Landowska playing the solo part and the Paris Symphony Orchestra conducted by Pierre Monteux. The work is scored for an orchestra of two flutes, piccolo, two oboes, cor anglais, two clarinets, two bassoons, four French horns, two trumpets, trombone, tuba, timpani, xylophone, side drums (with and without snares) tambourine, triangle, bass drum, cymbals and strings (the usual two sections of violins, violas, cellos and double basses--Poulenc stipulates eight each of first and second violins, and four each of violas, cellos and basses).

The piece is in three movements:

Allegro molto - Adagio - Allegro molto
Andante: Mouvement de Sicilienne
Finale: Presto très gai

The piece alludes to music of the Baroque period, when the harpsichord was a common instrument, both in terms of its melodic and harmonic language and in its structure: the last movement starts with a quotation from the Harmonious Blacksmith air and variations (final movement of harpsichord suite no.5 by Handel).

A typical performance of the Concert champêtre lasts around twenty-five minutes.

Like many harpsichord works from the 20th century, this piece was written for the revival harpsichord which was prevalent at the time, rather than historic instruments from the 17th and 18th century, which would need to be amplified to be heard in an orchestral setting.