Humfrey

Can be recommended without reservation … the wonderful By beauteous softness, from Queen Mary’s Birthday Ode of 1689, given this performance, I could quite easily listen to for ever … there’s... — BBC Music Magazine More…

John Mark Ainsley brings the full range of his formidable musicianship to these hard-wrought but haunting masterpieces. His ringing high register and almost miraculously expressive pianissimo... — BBC Music Magazine, December 2005, 5 out of 5 stars More…

Mead’s theatrical experience comes through most clearly in his dramatic rendering of some of the songs from the odes…The stage songs are often presented with an affecting fluidity, as in William... — BBC Music Magazine, May 2023, 3 out of 5 stars More…

A major player in bringing European influences into postRestoration England, Pelham Humfrey deserves a wider audience. These agile and spirited performances do him excellent service. — BBC Music Magazine, May 2021, 4 out of 5 stars More…

Locke's five-part suite for the reconstituted royal wind band...it is performed here with nuanced shading and flawless technique...The aromatic tint of Westminster Abbey's bells and library... — Gramophone Magazine, July 2015 More…

If you think of lute songs as secular repertory, think again...Elin Manahan Thomas and lutenist David Miller illuminate this music's subtleties, infusing their reading with warmth and intimacy...this... — BBC Music Magazine, December 2010, 4 out of 5 stars More…

a nourishing anthology … performances range from good to excellent — BBC Music Magazine, September 2017, 4 out of 5 stars More…

The instrumental group of La Rêveuse is richly resonant, tautly coherent and capable of imbuing the music with energy and elegance. The sarabands, in particular, capture the dark fantasy in... — Gramophone Magazine, June 2007 More…