It was in Amsterdam in 1740 that a lawyer named Hubert Le Blanc published an astounding work that defended the use of the bass viol at a time when the violin and the cello were becoming more and more important in Parisian musical life. This recording provides a musical equivalent of his essay, depicting the initial success of the bass viol and of Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe (celebrated in the film Tous les matins du monde), its moments of glory and, above all else, the repertoire of the viol, violin and cello during the first half of the 18th century.

Jean-Baptiste Joseph Masse (c.1700s-c.1757) Ordinaire de la Chambre du Roi and member of the King's Bande of Twenty-Four Violins, as well as member of the orchestra of Comédie Française, was a French composer and violoncellist in the court of Louis XV. He published five volumes of sonatas. Books I, II and V are for two cellos and basso continuo. Books III and IV are for two cellos without a figured bass.

Jean-Baptiste Joseph Masse (c.1700s-c.1757) Ordinaire de la Chambre du Roi and member of the King's Bande of Twenty-Four Violins, as well as member of the orchestra of Comédie Française, was a French composer and violoncellist in the court of Louis XV. He published five volumes of sonatas. Books I, II and V are for two cellos and basso continuo. Books III and IV are for two cellos without a figured bass.