Bach Cuiller

This is an outstanding recital of Bach chamber-music playing in which four concertos (Stradivaria could have fitted in one more, in truth) bask in their own colours with a rare combination of infectious energy, quicksilver alertness among a single-string ensemble and not a hint of the affectedness which has blighted so many performances of these works in recent years. …nothing can detract from the thoughtfulness, personality and fun which radiate from this wonderful recital.

This is an outstanding recital of Bach chamber-music playing in which four concertos (Stradivaria could have fitted in one more, in truth) bask in their own colours with a rare combination of infectious energy, quicksilver alertness among a single-string ensemble and not a hint of the affectedness which has blighted so many performances of these works in recent years. …nothing can detract from the thoughtfulness, personality and fun which radiate from this wonderful recital.

Unlike many of his contemporaries, Johann Sebastian Bach never intended to compose flute sonatas or partitas in sets of 6 or 12, as was customary at the time (and as he himself did for violin, cello and harpsichord). Bach's flute sonatas evolved over a roughly 30-year period between c.1717–1747 as he encountered the different types of flute in fashion at the time, and met several greatly skilled flautists. The question of which flautist and flute makers Bach may have known played a decisive role in choosing the programme on this recording. In preparation, Frank Theuns compared and assessed the playing qualities of various early eighteenth-century flute types.

Three instruments, three emblematic works, and three excellent soloists! With Sophie Gent on violin, Frank Theuns on traverso and Bertrand Cuiller on harpsichord, Les Muffatti offer a fresh interpretation of Bach's Triple Concerto, the Fifth Brandenburg Concerto and the Orchestral Suite in B minor. They provide a variety of orchestral textures, appropriate to the more soloistic style in the Brandenburg Concerto, and the alternating ripieno-tutti settings in the Triple Concerto and the Suite.