Each of these unique sonatas consists of four movements in the same sequence: balletto, corrente, giga and sarabanda – four favorite dance forms of the Baroque. The composer Bassani (ca. 1647-1716) worked back and forth in the musical establishments of Ferrara and Bologna. His Op. 1 "sonatas" are really instrumental suites. His decision to end each one with a sarabanda was not followed by subsequent performers, almost all of whom preferred the giga as a conclusion. Ensemble Armonico Cimento is one of Italy’s numerous successful Early Music groups, with members drawn from the famous Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, the Royal College of Music in London, and the École de Musique Ancienne in Geneva, Switzerland.