Although an exact chronology of the suites cannot be completely established, it is commonly agreed that they date back to the years when Bach was a Kapellmeister in Cöthen for either Christian Ferdinand Abel, a renowned gambist, or, more likely, for Christian Bernhard Linike, an excellent cellist. Luigi Piovano currently plays first cello with the Accademia Nazionalea di Santa Cecilia Symphony Orchestra and the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. He plays a Matteo Goffriller, c1720 for Suites 1-5 and a cello with 5 strings by William Foster III, 1795, for Suite No. 6.