The works that are featured on the present disc were all written during an extremely fertile period in the history of the mandolin. The inventive inquisitiveness of Baroque musicians took them in the direction of the subtlest of sonorities, and no sound was more subtle than that of the mandolin. This brings us to the end of our fascinating exploration of the world of the Italian Baroque. The works by Capponi, Romaldi and Susier have long been familiar to the Baroque ensemble Artemandoline, and their performances come up to the very highest expectations. This unpublished music has been overshadowed for far too long but will impress its present-day listeners with its blend of grandeur and charm, qualities that its performers have brought to light to perfection. This ambitious program is magnificently interpreted and well calculated to seduce its listeners. The Italian sonata constitutes an independent genre in the musical life of this period and quickly became an integral part of court entertainments in the palaces of the peninsula.