New recordings that stand almost on their own in an overlooked corner of Buxtehude's oeuvre.

Pieter-Jan Belder, "one of the world's most prolific harpsichordists" (Gramophone), now leads this comprehensive and often revelatory survey of Dieterich Buxtehude's surviving chamber music. Comprising eight musicians active on the Dutch early music scene, Ensemble Fantasticus presents the only complete recording of this music, making it an essential acquisition for all lovers of Baroque music. Detailed notes on the composer and works by Jon Baxendale complete the offer.

Buxtehude became cantor of St. Mary's Church in Lübeck in 1668 at the age of 31. This was to be his last ecclesiastical post. Bach made his famous journey on foot to Lübeck in 1705 - 37 years later - indicating the longevity of Buxtehude's career. His duties required him to concentrate on writing music for the church, and only later did he turn to chamber music (much as Bach did in his last decade). The seven sonatas of Op. 1 were published in 1694, with Op. 2 appearing two years later; these collections represent the only known examples of his music printed during his lifetime.

Buxtehude seems to have regarded the two collections as a unit, as can be seen from the study of their instrumentation and key structure. Seven may also be significant as it represents the number of notes in the diatonic scale and is also a number imbued with mysticism and symbolism. It also symbolizes the moods of the seven planets, which Buxtehude is said to have described musically when he saw the astronomical clock in St. Mary's Church.

Taken together, the 14 sonatas (all for one or two solo instruments plus continuo, with strings in mind) open up an unprecedented universe of rhetorical expressiveness that never ceases to surprise or move the listener. The collection also includes unpublished pieces that round out our understanding of Buxtehude as an instrumental composer: another 10 sonatas that are not easily dated within the composer's career, but full of striking ideas such as the Passacaglia for ground bass that underlies a trio sonata in A minor.

- Dietrich Buxtehude (ca. 1637-1707) was a Danish-German composer and organist. He is known for building a bridge between the musical traditions of the Renaissance and the Baroque and for influencing composers such as J. S. Bach and George Frideric Handel.

- Buxtehude was born in either Helsingborg, Sweden, or Helsingør, Denmark (the exact location is unclear), and spent much of his career in Lübeck, Germany, where he was organist at St. Mary's Church from 1668 until his death.

- Buxtehude's style combines intricate counterpoint with an expressive, almost improvisatory character, making him one of the most important figures in early Baroque music.

- This new recording presents Buxtehude's complete chamber music works, consisting of two sonata books and several sonatas in various instrumentations. The sonatas are for one or two violins, viola da gamba and harpsichord.

- Performed by the Ensemble Fantasticus, with (among others) violinist Rie Kimura and harpsichordist Pieter-Jan Belder.