Michel Blavet was the best French flutist of the 1730s. Quantz admired him, and Frederick the Great tried and failed to hire him. He was largely self-taught and held the flute to the left.

L’Henriette is the first of his Op. 2 sonatas (Apple labels it No. 2). The heart of it is the third movement, an aria named after the sonata: a simple rondeau tune that keeps coming back, each time a little more ornamented.

Blavet wrote it for flute and continuo, so harpsichord and cello. The harp on Allume is a reasonable stand-in, as both are plucked, and it makes the sound warmer and rounder. Luce plays it plainly. The ornaments sound like part of the tune.

Listen on Apple Music