Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach

The French ensemble Nevermind (flute, violin, viola da gamba and harpsichord) pays homage to J.S. Bach’s second surviving son with a terrific trio of his quartets and a couple of sonata movements. Emanuel wrote the quartets at the height of his powers, and they display all the imagination and invention you might expect of a Bach. Bridging the gap between the Baroque and early Romanticism (Beethoven was 18 when Emanuel died), this music seethes with life. Anna Besson’s gorgeous Melzer flute (after a Carlo Palanca original) crowns an ensemble that is underpinned by Jean Rondeau’s characteristically poetic harpsichord playing.