This is a fantastic bargain. The Northern Sinfonia is a first rate orchestra and Creswick does an excellent job leading it. These are modern instruments, but the performances are inspired (but not led) by "authentic" performance practices, which means not much vibrato in the strings but fortunately not the "squeezing" on long notes that mars some period performances. The sound is full and real. (By the way, this omits a few stray concerto movements that appear on Leppard's classic recording, totaling maybe 5 minutes, but all the full concertos are here.) This was awarded three full stars (the best rating) and encomiums by the Penguin record guide (remember that?), and they were notoriously stingy with praise. It well deserves that. If you heard performances like this in concert you would be up on your feet and applauding.

I'm surprised this hasn't been reviewed yet. These are pleasant concertos... The back of the CD compares them to the Brandenburg Concertos, and though they aren't perhaps on that level, they are similar in that they are composed for diverse instruments -- oboes, bassoons, and flutes in addition to the usual strings, with organ on the very last track. My favorites are the first in B flat and the third in G. The last movement of the last concerto is an early version of a movement of one of his organ concertos, so if you have heard them, it will be familiar. In fact, if you liked the Water Music or the organ concertos, you will like this.