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"Four Stars ... gigues contrast a full legato with well-articulated and animated staccato while her preludes and sarabands draw out a resonance viol players would be proud of." - Early Music Today "... noteworthy for its fine sound and for the elegance and finesse of the playing. De Hoog has a light touch when playing chords ... another recurring attribute is her poised vigour in the quicker dances ... even at her most individual, (she) is entirely convincing." - Gramophone "Five Stars ... it's in the dances that de Hoog is outstanding. They retain their essential character ... but they're full of nuances in rhythm and phrasing ... the playing is full of understated imaginative detail ... among the very best of the 42 versions I find I've accumulated over the years." - BBC Music Magazine On this double album, renowned Dutch period instrument cellist Viola de Hoog performs the greatest of all solo cello masterworks, J.S. Bach’s extraordinary Six Suites for Solo Cello. Unique in the solo repertoire, the six suites represent the summit for all cellists. De Hoog plays a remarkable Baroque cello made in 1750 by the great Italian maker, Giovanni Battista Guadagnini; it proves to be ideal for Bach’s music. For the final suite, which demands a five string cello, she uses an equally rare Bohemian instrument dating from the late 18th century, whose unusually large size results in a rich sonority rarely heard in this unusual variant of the cello family. Recorded in the perfect acoustic of the 12th century Oude Dorpskerk in Bunnik, the result is deeply musical yet historically faithful, thoughtful yet inspired.