David Munrow is often credited as an essential force in the revival of old instruments for modern performance; while many felt that this would be a passing fad, old instrument performance seems as strong as ever today, some 30 years later. I first obtained an LP set of "The Art of the Recorder" in 1980; it immediately became and has remained one of my favorites. I've been waiting for a CD reissue of since I got my first CD player. In its LP form, the audio textures were novel and enrapturing to me even in its 1970's audio, and Testament has carefully transferred the EMI recording to compact disc.
Speaking as a music lover, the repertoire in "The Art of the Recorder" went a long way to feed my interest in early music, spanning from medieval to 20th century works, solo recorders to ensembles that represent all the musical instruments, including vocal selections from the late baroque. The performance practices may seem a bit dated now (perhaps the baroque era more than others), but it's played with liveliness and conviction from start to finish.
The CD set also includes 36 tracks from Munrow's "Instruments of the Middle Ages". In the LP form where I first knew it, Munrow narrates with descriptions of the instruments; the narration is unfortunately absent, and the audio transfer sounds fuzzy compared with my memory of the LP. But it's still nice to have if you want to hear a gittern contrasted with a citole.
If you collect period instrument recordings, I heartily recommend "The Art of the Recorder" for your library.
