Sigiswald Kuijken

Sigiswald Kuijken (Dutch: [ˌsiɣɪsʋɑlt ˈkœykə(n)]; born 16 February 1944) is a Belgian violinist, violist, and conductor known for playing on period and original instruments.

He was a member of the Alarius Ensemble of Brussels between 1964 and 1972 and formed La Petite Bande in 1972.

Based on the results of research by Joshua Rifkin and Andrew Parrott on the authentic performance of Bach's masses, cantatas and passions, Sigiswald Kuijken limits the voices to one per part instead of a choir, although Bach himself sometimes extended to eight singers rather than a solo vocal quartet.

However, the critic of the Gramophone, reviewing one of the earlier releases, pointed out that the series as projected would not be a complete recording of the cantatas, and expressed the view that Kuijken's small-scale, one voice per part approach works well with some cantatas, but would be less suited to others.

Of the specific works reviewed, two featured choral movements, Herr, deine Augen sehen nach dem Glaube, BWV 102 and Wo Gott der Herr nicht bei uns hält, BWV 178.