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The short answer
Impertinence (Bourrée), HWV 494 is a bourree by George Frideric Handel from the Baroque era. PlayPiano puts it at Level 4, an estimate.
- bourree
- Baroque
- playful
Also known as Impertinence HWV 494 - Haendel.
History
Impertinence belongs to the group of Handel keyboard works that Terence Best traces through contemporary manuscript copies rather than surviving autographs. His edition includes it as No. 31. The editor warns that the collection's chronology largely rests on stylistic comparison, so a precise date should not be turned into a confident story about its creation.
Sources
What to listen for
One note launches a moving phrase
The single opening note leads into compact moving figures. Listen for the phrase continuing through them toward the first repeat close.
The second span begins higher
A higher starting gesture turns into a descending continuation. Compare its register and direction with the first repeated span.
A familiar shape returns higher
The opening contour returns at a higher pitch level before the final descent. Hear the familiar shape complete the longer response.
How to practise it
Keep the opening line clear when the lower voice becomes more active.
- Connect the short opening to the phrase.
- Keep lower rests in their own rhythm.
- Let the lower moving line remain clear beneath longer upper notes.
How hard is it
Compact bourree gestures require a dependable dance pulse, clear articulation and balanced coordination rather than merely quick note reading.
About this piece
- Licence
- Public Domain Mark
- Source
- musescore.com
More by George Frideric Handel
- Sonatina in B-flat major, HWV 585Level 5, estimatedWith Maestro
- Sarabande in D minor: source piano editionLevel 4, estimatedWith Maestro
- Passacaille, Suite No. 7, HWV 432Level 7, estimatedWith Maestro
