1000 & One

In Francis Poulenc's "Peasant Concerto" from 1928, the harpsichord, which had disappeared since Mozart's time, experiences a magnificent resurrection. With its melodic charm and fragrant grace, the piece seems to dream itself back to the French Rococo era – albeit with gentle irony. Charles Gounod's "Funeral March for a Marionette" – a piano sonata that the composer later transcribed for orchestra – must have appealed to Alfred Hitchcock greatly:...