English Chamber Orchestra, Benjamin Britten - Bach - Brandenburg Concertos (1995)

Considering the vast array of recordings available of Bach's Brandenburg Concertos -- ranging from modernized performances by large ensembles to historical re-creations on original instruments in smaller numbers -- some listeners may seek a good compromise that simply does justice to the music without fussing about authenticity. Benjamin Britten's interpretations of the Brandenburgs occupy a middle ground between extremes, and these tasteful performances should satisfy all but the most partisan advocates of one performance practice over the other. Informed by the musicological discoveries of the 1960s in terms of rhythmic nuances and appropriate ornamentation, Britten's performances are rich with Baroque inflections without sounding unnaturally contrived. The scaled-down English Chamber Orchestra is lean, but the ensemble plays with all the warmth and resonance its modern instruments afford and avoids the pitfalls of experimenting with untried and temperamental Baroque instruments, all too common and painful in early music efforts of the time. As an added inducement, this London double decker also contains fine performances by Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields of the Concerto for violin, oboe, and strings in D minor and the Concerto for flute and strings in G minor, both reconstructions based on two of Bach's harpsichord concertos.