Garden of Early Delights - Pamela Thorby & Andrew Lawrence-King - The Irish Times

The recorder must now share a place with the piano and the guitar as the most tried-out instruments. But the sheer joie-de-vivre with which Pamela Thorby and her harpist partner, Andrew Lawrence-King, open this new disc in Diego Ortiz's mundanely titled Recercada secunda de tenore sets down a marker for the air of high-spirited celebration which is to follow, and which is a world away from what most budding recorder players ever imagine their instrument to be capable of. If you like free-as-a-bird recorder playing, this is for you. The always-invigorating selection includes virtuoso pieces by Jacob van Eyck, fantastical works by Castello and Fontana, and familiar heart-stirrers by Dowland.