This album, recorded in 1988, is a sonic representation of Watteau’s Pilgrimage to Cythera (a variant of The Embarkation for Cythera which you can see at the Louvre), owned by the Prussian king Frederic The Great, an avid painter. What better to illustrate the works of Johann Philipp Kirnberger, a violinist, choirmaster and musical advisor to the court of the flautist king? Trusting in the consistency of tradition, we can assume that Kirnberger was Johann Sebastian Bach’s student in Leipzig. Other than the Sonatas For Flute that we find here, which he wrote for his royal employer, Kirnberger is known among musicians for his various uneven temperaments that he composed and which are used today by historically informed performers. Such is the case for the Belgian flautist Frank Theuns, founder of the Les Buffardins ensemble (2007) with whom he has tirelessly recorded the 18th century flute repertoire (Haendel, Sammartini, Kirnberger, Quantz, Hotteterre, Montéclair, Boismortier, Blavet) for Accent (label). In this early recording, Frank Theuns plays on a modern copy of a Belgian traverso from around 1720. He is joined by harpsichordist Ewald Demeyere playing on a copy of a 1778 instrument and by Richte van der Meer using a baroque cello by a Parisian luthier from 1720. © François Hudry/Qobuz