Les Sauvages
About this arrangement
Rameau wrote it after a group of Native American chiefs visited Paris in 1725 and danced at the Théâtre-Italien. He included it in his Nouvelles suites de pièces de clavecin and later reused it in his opera-ballet Les Indes galantes.
Learn the refrain first, since it returns several times. Keep the left hand crisp and even, and loop the later sections at 50% where the leaps and arpeggios get wider.
Start with short loops.
Use the section list as a practice map. Start at 50% tempo, loop one section, then return to the full piece once the hand shape feels stable.
Choose Right or Left to focus on one hand. Wait for note checks the highlighted notes as you play them on the screen or a connected MIDI keyboard.
Before you practice.
01 What level is Rameau's Les Sauvages?
It's an intermediate piece. The rhythm is steady, but the leaps and quick harmonic changes in the later sections need care.
02 How long is Les Sauvages?
Our edition has 80 bars.
03 What should I practise first?
The refrain. Once it's secure, practise each contrasting section on its own and join them up.
04 Where does the title Les Sauvages come from?
It refers to the visit of Native American chiefs to Paris in 1725, whose dancing at the Théâtre-Italien inspired the piece.
