This splendid recital contains very well-known pieces (or astute arrangements of those) as well as rarely heard baroque tunes.
Well-known pieces are the excerpts of ‘The Danserye’ by T. Susato, the Trumpet Voluntaries by J. Clarke (The Prince of Denmark’s March) and J. Stanley (Trumpet Tune), the Prelude in D from the ‘Te Deum” by Marc-Antoine Charpentier (the Eurovision theme), the Contrapunctus IX from ‘The Art of the Fugue’ by J. S. Bach or ‘The Trumpet Tune and Ayre’ and the ‘Music for the funeral of Queen Mary’ by H. Purcell.
Those are all brilliant and very appealing tunes, with H. Purcell’s funeral music capturing perfectly the mourning mood.
Giovanni Gabrieli’s ‘Canzona per Sonare a 4 – La Spiritata’ shines by its virtuoso and radiant echo plays.
Samuel Scheidt’s first three movements of his ‘Suite’ are more intimate melodies, but his composition ends with a brilliant evocation of a ‘Battaglia’ with vivid echo plays.
Johann Pezel’s ‘Ceremonial Brass Music’ stands out with its solemn tunes and rhythmic changes (Bal, Gigue).
William Byrd (not an ‘Anonymous’ composer as indicated on the verso) in his ‘An Elizabethan Suite’ switches between more intimate (The Irish Ho-Hoane, A Toye), vivid/virtuoso (Musicadin, The Irish Dumpe) and solemn (Alman) parts.
The ‘Five Dances’ of Anthony Holborne excel by their melodic lines, vivid echo plays (2 – The Choise) and dancing rhythm (5 – The Faery Rounde).
Matthew Locke’s ‘Music for his Majesty’s Sagbutts and Cornetts’ presents six different melodic tones: elegiac, rhythmic, solemn, pure melodic, intimate and vivid ones.
This recording with stunning virtuoso playing by ‘the London Gabrieli Brass Ensemble’ is a must have for all lovers of classical music.
