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We meet some of the major exponents of early music around the world, to find out more about their training, techniques and musical inspirations.

我們採訪了世界各地一些資深音樂人，讓讀者可以了解關於他們的對古樂的研究、演奏心得和看法，從而為大家帶來更多文化知識！

Updated on 8th April 2026

Benoît Dratwicki is a leading proponent of French opera from the 18th Century. An expert in Versaille’s Musique du Roi, he has been artistic director of the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles since 2006.

 

Dratwicki is also co-founder and artistic advisor of the Palazzetto Bru Zane in Venice and in a happy collaboration between the two institutions helped recreate over fifty French operas from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, which have subsequently been recorded under various record labels.

 

Dratwicki holds a degree in cello, bassoon, chamber music and music theory from the Metz Conservatoire and a PhD in Musicology from the Sorbonne in Paris. He uses his academic knowledge to inspire singers to perform in baroque style as well as furthering an understanding of the era through the publication of articles and essays.

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BD:Benoît Dratwicki
KY: Karen Yeung

Part 1: The Uniqueness of French Baroque Music & Language

 

KY: French baroque music has a very distinct style, when compared with the music of Germany and Italy. Why is this?

 

BD: I have done a lot of work on this question and I found a lot of the difference is due to the relationship between the music and the French language. In spoken French the accent usually falls at the end of the word and at the end of the sentence. This is the same for many European languages. However, for French this changes when a performer goes on stage. For language used in a theatrical setting, we put the accent at the beginning of the word or sentence.  

 

For example, usually we would say "Bonjour, monsieur”, but on stage, you would say, "Bonjour, monsieur." The first note of the sentence, the first syllable of the text has the main articulation. This is true in music too - think of the Habanera from Bizet’s Carmen, "L'amour est enfant de bohème...".

 

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This makes all the difference, because in German music, Italian music and English music the music is written with emphasis falling on the beats, but we are on the upbeats. 

 

However, French music with the emphasis falling before the main beat of the bar. This means the strongest harmonies are also on the upbeats.

 

In our National anthem, La Marseillaise, you might expect the main beat to fall on the first part of the word ‘enfants’ (children), but you can see that the second part of ‘enfants’ falls on the first beat of the bar, which is also the tonic chord.

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Click into the music score to listen.

KY: How did this feature develop historically?

 

This is linked to early dance. In the medieval period, all music sung in the vernacular was also danced, and all that was danced was also sung. So, it means that the accent of the dance and the accent of the language were in the same place – and that was always before the beat.

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Just listen to Bach, Mozart or Vivaldi, the emphasis always falls on the main beat. But if you listen to Rameau, Lully, or Marais, or Couperin, it's on the upbeat. If it’s not on the upbeat, this is because the music was written in a mixed style, incorporating elements of Italian and German musical traditions – sometimes called Les Goûts réunis. And so, you can appreciate when it's the Italian way, the emphasis is on the beat, or when it's the French style it's on the upbeat.

 

This is complicated for foreigners, but even in France, if you don't understand this question of language, it will be difficult to play French music very well. It is best if the performer knows a little bit of French and knows a little bit about dance. If you have these two key understandings then the music is logical. Without this appreciation - Rameau is a nightmare!

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Click here to continue to read about the interview.
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