Emmanuel Pahud - Telemann: Flute Concertos (2002)

Although there are many things to recommend from this Telemann Flute Concertos -- the sweet, smooth tone of flutist Emmanuel Pahud; the elegant accompaniment of the Berliner Barock Solisten; EMI's intimate sound -- the two best things about this disc are that it has two Telemann flute concertos that have never been recorded before and that it does not have the most-frequently recorded of all Telemann flute works on it. Because of the deterioration of the manuscript, the work that starts the disc had never been recorded before. But educated guess works by scholars revealed a work that is not only as lovely as any Telemann flute concerto, but a work whose opening bears an uncanny resemblance to the serene central movement of Bach's Harpsichord Concerto in F minor. And the third work on the disc is similarly a premiere recording of a hitherto unknown work that, while not perhaps as pretty as the first work, is still a welcome addition to the Telemann flute concerto discography. Thankfully, the disc does not include Telemann's Flute Concerto in A minor, a wonderful work but one that has appeared on nearly every disc of Telemann's flute concertos since the invention of recordings. This is well worth it for lovers of Telemann's flute music.