Reviewed by Dave Massey

Whilst Camerata Romana give a technically competent performance of two movements from the Brandenburg Concertos (No's 2 and 3), their intonation kept me ill at ease with the recording, just wishing they'd stop and tune their violins. Thumbs down I think there but a hearty thumbs up to the two following pieces, the "Italian Concerto" and "Prelude In C". These are played on the cembalo (a kind of harpsichord) by no less a person than Christine Jaccottet with immense style and immaculate phrasing - they make the disc worthwhile in themselves. Again though, there are only two sacred works on an album of 17 pieces, one of which is the "Toccata And Fugue In D Minor", again a good recording with Hans Christoph Becker Foss playing it in a way that only a German could with delightful dynamics and voicings that bring a new insight to a piece of music that has been performed by many great artistes and which must be daunting to any organist. "Air On A G String" and several dance pieces are brought courtesy of the Royal and London Philharmonics respectively - not bad for budget discs, and that is an area in which Word have scored well in this collection as a whole.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

Interested in reviewing music? Find out more here.