Apollo Ensemble: Hans-Martin Rux, trumpet; David Rabinovitch, violin; Igor Ruhadze, violin; Tamara Mkrtychyan, viola; Sergei Istomin, cello; Kate Clark, flute;nOfer Frenkel, oboe; Annelies Schraa, recorder;...

Apollo Ensemble: Hans-Martin Rux, trumpet; David Rabinovitch, violin; Igor Ruhadze, violin; Tamara Mkrtychyan, viola; Sergei Istomin, cello; Kate Clark, flute;nOfer Frenkel, oboe; Annelies Schraa, recorder; Reine-Marie Verhagen, recorder; Marion Boshuizen, harpsichord.

This recording presents alternative versions of three famous works by J.S.Bach, indeed the Brandenburg Concertos of Bach are among the best known and loved pieces of 18th century.

"These alternative settings are all attributed to Bach himself. In presenting the pieces in unfamiliar versions, it is not our purpose to contribute to any debate about authenticity or legitimacy. Although there seems to be evidence that at least some of these versions do predate their better-known transcriptions, it is not on the basis of proposed greater authority that we wish to bring them to the public, our goal is an artistic one, namely: to confront the listener with an alternative perspective to the familiar version [with] greater transparency and a more perfect balance achieved by means of a reduction in the number of tutti parts, revealing the essential structural integrity of each of the pieces. It can be argued that the structure is somewhat veiled in the fuller instrumental versions." - Apollo Ensemble.