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Johan Sebastian Bach’s Six Cello Suites are among the most impressive pieces ever written for this string instrument. The intellectual and architectural elements continue to have a contemporary appeal, with their rhythmic vitality and melodic intricacy. “It is like a great diamond, with so many different cuts that reflect light in so many different ways.” Says renowned cellist Mischa Maisky about the suites. Each suite has its own character. Anastasia Kobekina, who has made a name for herself in recent years with her seasoned playing, performs numbers 3 and 5: one suite in C major, confident in tone, the other dark and profound in C minor. Sept Papillons, a series of miniatures by Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho, in turn acts as a musical kaleidoscope. In an extremely poetic way, Saariaho exposes a whole range of new sound colours.