Spectacular Virtuosity Michala Petri plays English recorder concertos - enjoyed by GERALD FENECH '... nimble fingering and miraculous breath control ...'

In the history of Western music, the recorder has been part of the scene for more than seven hundred years, during which time it has enjoyed an excellent relationship with English composers and musicians alike. It was played by amateurs and professionals, and even royalty had a special liking for it. Indeed, Henry VIII owned a sizeable collection of forty seven, and at one time the recorder was considered as the 'English' flute. With the onset of modernism, the instrument started to fade from the European 'scenario', but even so, its sounds still echo through the English countryside...

MALCOLM ARNOLD

GORDON JACOB

RECORDER MUSIC

ORCHESTRAL MUSIC

ENGLAND