The last day of the Fête de la Musique de Tremblant (in fact, half a day), Monday 2 September 2024 saw the festival’s Quebecor stage give pride of place to one of the most delicate instruments there is: the harpsichord. A delicacy put to the test by the weather: it was chilly! A mere 8 degrees in the morning, and barely 12 by midday, by the time of the concert. In the end, the instrument held up very well. Perhaps that’s because the harpsichordist, Mélisande McNabney, knows it so well and can reassure it with her precise touch. Mélisande gave a top-class performance, despite the circumstances (you can guess that frozen fingers have to move more slowly), accentuated by beautiful introductions that told us some of the stories of women musicians at the Court of Versailles. An hour of serious but extremely enjoyable harpsichord playing (Mélisande’s smiling animation was a great help), which has certainly done much to democratise this instrument among a large audience. So hats off to the organisers of the Fête de la Musique, who dared to ignore prejudices (difficult instrument to approach, arid repertoire, etc.) by offering a public platform to this often ill-considered member of the keyboard family.
Baroque
