The life of Francesco Maria Veracini (1690-1768) could be summarized as the story of a violinist who was present in the main European cultural centres of the 18th century to show his instrumental mastery and virtuosity.
Everything seems to indicate that he had an eccentric and arrogant character, with enough intensity to make his way of playing something completely genuine. According to Burney, around 1733 there was no concert in London in which he did not participate with a violin solo. Giovanni Maria Casani, one of his teachers, expressed his opinion about him and his father: "Playing the violin together. One, old and full of honors, the other young and wanting to show the ease with which he overcame any slightest obstacle in the score. It was wonderful for everyone to listen to them, because the heart, and not just the bravery, guided and accompanied the fingers and the bow of these virtuosos".
The collection published in 1716 has twelve sonatas for violin or recorder and basso continuo, a "small essay on my musical studies", is dedicated with much gratitude to the Elector Frederick Augustus I of Saxony, who supported Veracini to secure a position as a violinist at the Dresden court, despite the fact that no violinist was needed at the time, a circumstance that produced more than notable tensions with Volumier, the conductor of the Dresden orchestra.
Muriel Rochat Rienth teaches the recorder at the Conservatoire de Fribourg (Switzerland). She plays exclusively recorder instruments made by swiss Ernst Meyer. She plays regularly the important recorder concertos by Vivaldi, Sammartini, Telemann with different swiss orchestras and is the director of her own baroque ensemble, La Tempesta Basel, awarded with the swiss ORPHEUS-prize. Recent concerts include performances at Zurich Tonhalle, Concerts de Saint Germain Geneva, ADMA Fribourg, Basle, Festival Sacr de Sion, Socit philharmonique de Bienne, Porrentruy, Lausanne and also in Italy (Festival Magnano/Piemont), Belgium, Spain and Austria (Baroque Concerts Graz). She is also active in contemporary recorder music: austrian composer Viktor Fortin wrote and dedicated her a Cantata, premiered by La Tempesta Basel in Lausanne and recorded by Radio Suisse Romande.
