In their twenty-year existence, the Fine Arts Brass has gained a reputation for presenting a blend of virtuosity, musicianship and stylish entertainment. Their previous discs on this label, Music from the English Courts (NI 5546) and Mussorgsky - Pictures at an Exhibition (NI 5645), have already shown that they can produce a quality product in the recording studio.

Baroque Brass opens with Handel's Arrival of the Queen of Sheba from the oratorio Solomon. For me, this is the only track that doesn't work; the tempo sounds too fast for the trumpets and unfortunately the intonation suffers. Two works by Vivaldi follow, the Concerto in C major for two Trumpets & Strings and the Concerto in D minor for two Violins, Violoncello & Strings. What a contrast! The playing here is of the first order; crisp, bright trumpets with the string parts stylishly played here by horn, trombone and tuba. The ever-popular Adagio of Tomaso Albinoni comes next; ironically, this, his best-known work, was actually by somebody else and was reconstructed from Albinoni fragments by the Italian musicologist and critic Remo Giazotto (b.1910). The rest of the disc is left to the genius Johann Sebastian Bach. Arrangements of Badinerie, Wachet Auf, Wir eilen mit schwachen, Concerto in A minor for Violin & Strings, Air on the G String and Brandenburg Concerto No.2, all played with style and panache.

Most of the works here are arranged by Stephen Roberts, the quintet's horn player, who also supplies some well-written and informative insert notes, with trombonist Simon Hogg chipping in with an arrangement of Bach's Air on the G String. The one work I had not heard played by a brass group before was the Concerto in A minor for Violin & Strings. This is a wonderful arrangement by Michel Torrelis and Michel Barré.

Overall, this is an excellent acquisition for the brass enthusiast and could prove to be very useful as an educational resource. My good lady wife assures me that it's very good at relieving the stresses of ironing. What better recommendation could anyone have!

Ian Duckworth