French 17^th– and 18^th-century treatises on ornaments and embellishments prove that accented notes were at the time an essential part of a singer’s toolkit for expression. Whereas these treatises provide indications on usage of such accents, printed, engraved and manuscript sources either omit any indications for ornamentation, or else provide differing indications, thereby creating parallel sets of instructions. Given that the teaching of early music practices is based on a careful reading of theoretical sources, the inconsistency between theory and the written traces of accents in scores deserves closer study.

Through a comparative analysis of the positioning and frequency of the accent in keeping with the guidelines in treatises and practical exercises with singers and continuo players, this project allows students to understand better this rarely employed form of ornamentation and to integrate it into their musical vocabulary to enhance expression.

Although the repertory studied includes both published scores and manuscripts, the initial body of works examined will be selected pieces from Ballard’s Recueils d’airs sérieux et à boire, a series published monthly for almost 30 years (1695-1724) and a major source for documenting the changes in taste and practice. In light of the proven stylistic connections between the air sérieux and the genre of French tragédie lyrique, this project aims to demonstrate the pervasive presence of the accent in a wide array of vocal genres, thereby helping us gain fresh insight into the too rarely studied history of vocal music during the period between Lully and Rameau.