Harpsichord curriculum › First pieces — short binary dances
Gavotte in D minor
form: simple dance · skill: two-voice playing, even touch, simple fingering
Gavotte in D minor
Louis Couperin · baroque · First pieces — short binary dances
Gavotte in D minor is one of the short binary dances a beginner starts with: two voices, mostly stepwise, the place to win an even touch and clean fingering. The first keyboard pieces are the short binary dances of the Clavier-Büchlein / Anna Magdalena Notebook: two voices, mostly stepwise, few or no ornaments — the place to learn an even touch and good fingering before counterpoint.
Why this piece, and where it sits
J.S. Bach’s teaching order (Clavier-Büchlein, Inventions & Sinfonias title-page, Well-Tempered Clavier) — for the canonical beginner-to-advanced keyboard syllabus (skill: two-voice playing, even touch, simple fingering).
Confidence: ⚠ form-heuristic — graded by musical form (no pedal to read); a score-level pass will refine this.
Score (PDF): open / download the score — the site’s own copy, source on IMSLP.
Score
To import into forScore on iPad/iPhone: open the score, then tap Safari’s Share button → Copy to forScore. The score arrives tagged with its title, composer and genre.