When people spoke of the "great Bach" during the 18th century, they were not referring to Johann Sebastian but to his son, Carl Philipp Emanuel. He was one of the chief representatives of the Empfindsamer Stil (Sensitive Style) and was in the service of Frederick the Great as a harpsichordist and chamber musician for over 30 years before his appointment as municipal director of music in Hamburg. Contemporaries regarded Bach as a "genius of originality": his tendency to find unusual solutions and surprising turns of phrase made his music a genuine roller-coaster of moods and effects. He combines intellect with passion, popular writing techniques with a sovereign mastery of form.

Leila Schayegh and Jörg Halubek, two first-class interpreters, have embarked here upon a voyage of discovery through C. P. E. Bach's works for violin and keyboard instruments. The Swiss baroque violinist is distinguished by her round, singing tone, and her technique seems boundless. She has been a professor at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis since 2010 as the successor to Chiara Banchini. Jörg Halubek reveals himself to be a highly sensitive accompanist and musical partner on an equal footing at the harpsichord and the tangent piano. As a special rarity, they have recorded two sonatas in the continuo realisation by Johannes Brahms – a special greeting on the 300th birthday of CPE Bach in the year 2014!