With the world-famous gambist Rainer Zipperling (Ricercar Consort, among others) and his longtime chamber music partner Sabine Bauer Bach’s sonatas are in competent hands. Conceived as trio sonatas, they place the harpsichord on a par with the viol. Because of the low range of the viol part, an area of tension is created that again and again poses a special challenge to performers and listeners alike.

Rainer Zipperling and Sabine Bauer offer an alternative version of the great B-Minor Flute Sonata BWV 1030 in addition to the usual canon of the Viola da gamba Sonatas BWV 1027–1029. The former traces back to a source of the first movement that is in another key, a key that is well playable for the viol. An additional feature of the SuperAudioCD production on AEOLUS is the use of a claviorgan for the D-Major Sonata BWV 1028. The present recording of the Viola da gamba Sonatas is the first of a series of releases of Bach’s sonatas on AEOLUS that will be continued with the Violin Sonatas and Flute Sonatas.