Jean-Marie Leclair was a master of fusing Italian and French idioms, conjoining the lyricism of the former with the dance momentum of the latter. Nowhere is this better exemplified than in his third book of violin sonatas. The sonatas in this album embody rich melodic beauty, drone and rustic elements – most vividly in the Tambourin of the C major sonata in which a hurdy-gurdy is employed– and demand tour de force virtuosity such as in the joyous Ciaccona of the G major sonata. De-scribed by Gramophone as ‘technically and musically a marvel’ (Naxos 8.572866), Adrian Butterfield completes his acclaimed traversal of Leclair’s Violin Sonatas Books Nos.1–3.

Jean-Marie Leclair’s violin sonatas embody a stylistic fusion known as les goûts réunis in which the lyricism and the virtuosity of the Italian school are integrated with the dance idioms of French Baroque music. In this volume, the music reaches new heights of technical complexity in its filigree ornamentation and continuous multiple stopping while still incorporating much wistful beauty. In the Sonata in D major, however, Leclair’s ambition expands yet further, as he combines innate lyricism and rustic drones in a prototype concerto form.

Jean-Marie Leclair epitomized the idea of an eighteenth-century virtuoso-composer, one whose compositional output largely reflects his activity as a performer. Whilst the French school possessed precursors such as Jean-Féry Rebel, it is very much to Leclair that it owes its genuine development. The virtuoso violinist became a highly sought-after teacher, and a full generation of musicians were recipients of his teaching. Leclair published twelve concertos for violin in two sets, Op. 7 and Op. 10. The Op. 7 collection, of which four concertos have been included in this recording, is without doubt partially made up of works which Leclair performed at the Concert Spirituel between 1728 and 1736. Today, we are aware of the sytle employed by Leclair in his violin playing through his own writings and concert reviews from the time. His uncompromising ideal of performance is of a truly Appolonian nature: precision and integrity in execution, economy with the use of effects, accurate intonation and nobility of expression - all features brought to this new recording by Fabio Biondi and his already legendary ensemble, Europa Galante. The scholar Louis Castelain of the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles provides the booklet notes.

With the four missing concertos, Leila Schayegh completes her series of recordings of all violin concertos by Jean-Marie Leclair with the third release. Leclair grew up in Lyon and was trained as a dancer and violinist, later concentrating entirely on playing the violin. In Turin he had lessons with the distinguished teacher and Corelli pupil Giovanni Battista Somis and then went to Paris, where he briefly held a position at the court of Louis XV in the 1730s. Leclair must have been fascinated by Italian culture and playing: the tempo freedoms in playing, the virtuoso aspects of violin technique, the expression that is strongly outward in Italian music - all of this is evident in his celebrated twelve concertos from opp. 7 and 10. Leila Schayegh teaches baroque violin at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis and has received numerous excellent reviews and awards with her recordings. Her second album of the Leclair concertos was awarded a Diapason d'or and for her recording of the solo partitas by Johann Sebastian Bach she received the Diapason d'or de l'annee! This third release and last in the series of Leclair's violin concertos includes Concertos Nos. 1 and 3 from Opera 7 and 10 respectively. On this album, too, the Swiss violinist, who plays a violin by Andrea Guarneri from the late 17th century, captivates the listener with her breathtaking artistry - as soloist she also takes over the direction of the La Cetra Barockorchester Basel.

The third of Jean-Marie Leclair’s four books of violin sonatas displays the qualities of exquisite Italianate lyricism and French dance idioms that made the earlier works such a stylistic triumph. However, the composer’s pervasive use of variation form in this book offers a new element, and the technical demands increase through continuous multiple-stopping, intricate figuration and the inclusion of rustic drones. Violinist Adrian Butterfield, who has been described by Gramophone ‘as technically and musically a marvel’ (Naxos 8.572866 / Violin Sonatas, Book 3, Nos.1–5and 8), is a leading exponent of Leclair’s music.