Louis-Antoine Dornel - Complete Trio Sonatas Op. 3 (L'Orfeo Bläserensemble)

Information

Composer: Louis-Antoine Dornel

• Trio Sonata No. 1 in D minor
• Trio Sonata No. 2 in C major (orig. D major) “La Triomphante”
• Trio Sonata No. 3 in A minor (orig. B minor)
• Trio Sonata No. 4 in F major (orig. G major)
• Trio Sonata No. 5 in D major (orig. E major)
• Trio Sonata No. 6 in A minor
• Sonata No. 7 in A minor (orig. B minor) pour trois dessus

L'Orfeo Bläserensemble

    Carin van Heerden, oboe

    Philipp Wagner, oboe

    Elisabeth Baumer, oboe

    Matthias Müller, viola da gamba

    Jean-Christophe Dijoux, harpsichord

Date: 2026

Label: CPO

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In his 1750 contribution to the Encyclopédie, Jean-Jacques Rousseau famously dismissed the sonata as an unnatural fashion destined to fail, underestimating a genre that had already taken firm root in France. Decades earlier, in 1713, Parisian composer Louis-Antoine Dornel published his Opus 3, a collection of seven masterfully crafted trio sonatas designed for versatile instrumental combinations including transverse flutes, violins, and oboes. Once widely played by diverse musicians, Dornel's refined collection became a historical rarity. Today, the Orfeo Wind Ensemble has championed its revival, bringing these delicate French-style works back to life with a persuasive artistry that might have converted even Rousseau himself.

Louis-Antoine Dornel (c. 1680–c. 1755) was an acclaimed Parisian organist, composer, and music theorist of the French Baroque era. Believed to have studied under Nicolas Lebègue, Dornel held prestigious organ posts at major Parisian churches, notably defeating Jean-Philippe Rameau for a position at Sainte Madeleine-en-la-Cité in 1706. As maître de musique for the Académie française from 1725 to 1742, he composed sacred motets performed at the Concert Spirituel. Highly regarded by contemporaries, his surviving oeuvre includes theoretical works, organ pieces, harpsichord music, and versatile chamber compositions, such as his celebrated trio sonatas (Opus 1 and 3) and flute suites (Opus 2).

Founded in 2009 by members of the L’Orfeo Barockorchester, the L’Orfeo Bläserensemble (Orfeo Wind Ensemble) is a chamber group directed by oboist Carin van Heerden. Emphasizing a chamber-music approach to wind literature, the ensemble debuted on disc in 2010 with the complete wind octets and quintets of Josef Mysliveček. They have graced major international stages, including the donauFESTWOCHEN im Strudengau as well as the German Mozartfests in Augsburg and Würzburg. Recently, the ensemble turned its focus to Georg Philipp Telemann, performing his works in Linz and Magdeburg, and recording a three-volume album series of this repertoire for the cpo label since 2018.