French harpsichordists from the time of Louis XV extolled the exhilaration and nonchalance of their harpsichord, which crackled and grumbled, but also sang of sentiment like an opera orchestra. They broke away from dance suites through pièces de caractère (character pieces), a French specificity that draws on portraits of the salons held by ladies of the upper classes. Sentimens and Tendres plaintes respond with an ornamentalist’s talent to the bellicose progression of Cyclopes and Marche des Scythes! Clément Geoffroy performs a collection of this French harpsichord music that attains an exceptional level of subtlety and impetuosity, in the true “rocaille” style that marked its swansong.