Concerto No. 1 in G Major
Concerto No. 2 in D Major
Concerto No. 3 in A Major
Concerto No. 4 in E Minor

This is how every recording of Baroque music should sound. Alive, bright, up close and personal as if the musicians are in the room. The instrumental balance in this recording is exemplary. Most recordings shove the flute right in your face and recess the harpsichord so far back that you can barely hear it. But here the dynamic blend of all instruments is perfect, with the harpsichord clearly audible. Baroque chamber music at its finest has an air of caprice, quirkiness and eccentricity and here, even the cover image exudes these features.

The Concerts Royaux by French composer François Couperin (1668-1733) were produced around the time that Johann Sebastian Bach was 30 years old and could somehow be compared to his Orchestral Suites or Brandenburg Concertos, but on a smaller scale. In typical French fashion the melodic lines are highly ornamented and manifest a less stoic character than their German counterparts. Stephen Schultz (Baroque flute), Jory Vinikour (Harpsichord), Alexa Haynes-Pilon (Viola da gamba) and Mindy Rosenfeld (Baroque flute), all play with a confidence bordering on a joie de vivre which befits this music very well.

The exceptionally vivid audio recording was produced at, of all places, Skywalker Sound (of Star Wars fame), by two-time Grammy Award winner Jack Vad. As mentioned above, it recreates the intimacy of a Baroque soirée. All you're actually missing is the powdered wig and the fancy shoes.