In their extensive booklet note as well as in the varied programme they’ve assembled, violinists Robert Mealy and Julie Andrijeski make a cogent case for the importance of the Italianate school that flourished in the 17th-century Viennese court of the Holy Roman Emperors. Many of the composers employed by the court (or whose music found its way there) were, in fact, Italian-born. Giovanni Valentini was among the first; arriving in 1614, he became Kapellmeister in 1626. His sober Sonata a 4 is full of charming echo effects, heightened here by the contrast between the violins’ glistening strands, the bass dulcian’s reedy richness and the trombone’s lyrical resonance.

Of course, Mealy and Andrijeski are building upon a foundation laid solidly by Nikolaus Harnoncourt, who recorded quite a bit of music by Schmelzer and Fux in the early 1970s (reissued as ‘Music from the Hapsburg Court’ – Teldec, 3/95). Fine as Harnoncourt’s performances are (and they still provide enjoyable listening nearly half a century later), they’re simply outclassed by the finesse, flexibility and expressive detail of Quicksilver’s interpretations, as is evident when comparing the two ensembles’ versions of Fux’s Sonata a 4.

Throughout the programme, Quicksilver seize on the music’s dramatic qualities. Try, for example, the recitative-like passage at 2'37" in the Buonamente, which is played as communicatively as if there was a text, or to how they treat the silences in the delightful Rosenmüller Sonata, especially the surprising pause at 3'40" with its suggestion of operatic action.

If I had to choose the crowning work of the dozen here, it would be Johann Caspar Kerll’s Passacaglia, which I know from pianist Daniel-Ben Pienaar’s spellbinding account (Avie, 6/20). Avi Stein, Quicksilver’s harpsichordist, plays it more swiftly, emphasising the music’s inexorable course which somewhat lightens its considerable expressive weight, but I find it magnetic nonetheless.

Quicksilver’s two previous albums received glowing reviews in these pages (Acis, 2/12^US and 4/15^US). If you enjoyed those, this newcomer won’t disappoint, and if you’re unfamiliar with the ensemble, well, this is as good a place as any to start.