Schenck was an excellent viola da gamba player of the Baroque era. He was of Dutch birth but was hired by the Elector Palatine Johann Wilhelm I in Dusseldorf. Schenck probably served there from 1696 until 1716 when the elector died. Composing music for his instrument and requiring exceptional skilled techniques, Schenck did a great deal to advance the standing of the gamba as a solo instrument and revivify levels of music in Holland particularly in the instrumental and operatic genres. ~ Keith Johnson, Rovi