This master's thesis examines the cycle Les Quatre Nations by Armand-Louis Couperin and explores the stylistic and performance characteristics that reflect the influence of different European national musical styles. The aim of the thesis is to present the composer's role within the French harpsichord tradition of the eighteenth century and to analyse the ways in which Italian, English, German, and French stylistic elements are represented in the individual movements of the cycle.
The theoretical part presents the development of the French harpsichord tradition, the life and work of Armand-Louis Couperin, the characteristics of the individual national styles, and the fundamental principles of Baroque performance practice. Particular attention is given to ornamentation, articulation, phrasing, tempo, and agogic considerations.
The analytical part includes a formal, stylistic, and performance-based analysis of the individual movements of Les Quatre Nations. The analysis shows that Couperin does not directly imitate individual national styles but rather incorporates their characteristic features into the framework of the French harpsichord idiom. The Italian style is primarily reflected in cantabile melody and virtuosity, the English style in clarity and balance of musical expression, the German style in contrapuntal texture and motivic development, and the French style in its dance character, elegance, and distinctive performance practices.
The findings confirm that Les Quatre Nations represents an interesting example of the interaction of various European musical influences in the late French Baroque period and constitutes an important contribution to eighteenth-century French harpsichord literature.
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