The situation regarding instrumental music was less clear-cut during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries than it later became: early instrumental forms developed from vocal ones, vocal works could shed their words, a canzona was not to be sung but played, keyboard music was sometimes written out in parts that could be played by separate instruments, part-books for unspecified instruments abounded—and so forth. This programme by the Amsterdam Loeki Stardust Quartet (ALSQ) is assembled within the Italian area of this 'free zone' and it adds the names of Guami, Conforti, Battiferri and Merulo to The Classical Catalogue, Merula and Cima appear only on the ALSQ's previous recording ((CD) 414 277-2OH, 8/86), Trabaci is represented only by harp solos, and no item by any of the others has any alternative version.

Whole consorts (amongst which the string quartet may in this sense be included) focus the mind on the music, since they are less able than 'broken' ones to divert the ear with changes of timbre. This is especially true of recorders, whose pure sound is overlaid with next to nothing by way of overtones, and particularly telling in contrapuntal music such as that in this recording; the individual voices stand out with total clarity. In terms of musicality, precision and spot-on intonation (maintained throughout even the longest notes), if there is a better recorder ensemble than the ALSQ I have yet to hear it, and here it is reproduced with as splendid sound and balance as you are likely to encounter in a long time. If you enjoy hearing in clear detail the spinning of lines into unfamiliar webs of aural beauty, this record was made for you.

John Duarte, Gramophone [2/1992]