In 1696, the Salzburg court conductor Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber described his print of seven chamber suites (‘Partien’) for two string instruments and basso continuo as ‘artful vocal harmony’ in ornate Latin.

These trio sonatas are of a special kind, because the two upper voices are not limited to the typical imitations practised in Italy at that time. Instead, Biber allows the solo voices to shine in a different light in virtuoso interplay above the bass foundation, repeatedly in full-bodied polyphony or in chords.

In addition, new timbres are created through the use of the violin, viola and viola d‘amore in various combinations, and the ‘detuning’ of the strings (scordatura) to achieve different string tensions and thus give the instruments a sharper or softer sound.

This recording is the third instalment of the Biber recordings with Harmonie Universelle, following ‘Fidicinium Sacro-Profanum’ and ‘Sonatae Tam Aris Quam Aulis Servientes’.