Biber the most fanciful
A monumental composer at the crossroads of Italy and Germany

The sonatas of violinist-composer Heinrich Biber epitomise the 17th-century stylus fantasticus like no others. Best-known among them is the contemplative sequence commonly known as the ‘Rosary’ (or ‘Mystery’) sonatas, but in his other set of violin sonatas, published in 1681, Biber aimed to imitate the sound of large ensembles by means of a variety of innovative techniques and textures. This programme presents this extraordinary music alongside fascinating works by Biber’s contemporaries.