Biber: Violin Sonatas

Andrew Manze is, in my opinion, one of the finest contemporary violinists, and his playing of this fiendishly brilliant and difficult music will simply amaze you. Biber was unquestionably the greatest violinist of the 17th century; his sonatas and other solo works were the most technically difficult. But they are also the most wonderful fun to listen to--the famous Sonata Representativa has the player imitating all manner of animal noises and other things. It's hilarious, gorgeous, and it's never been performed better. If this isn't quite simply the best record of Baroque violin music ever made, then I don't know what is. --David Hurwitz