The Amorous Flute / David Munrow

At the time, everyone was stunned by his untimely death. He, David Munrow, left the world of ancient music in the 1970s like a flash. He wrote the famous book “Instruments of the Middle Ages and Renaissance” and recorded a disc of the same name. He left behind a total of 50 discs and appeared on television programs. His main field of activity was the music of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. He conducted works by Landini, Machaut, Dufay, Josquin des Prez, and other composers who were still rare at the time, and played all the wind instruments of the period at his disposal. He accomplished an enormous amount of work in a time that was never enough. Everyone had high hopes for his future work. I have already mentioned that I had the good fortune to dine with Frans Brüggen during his first visit to Japan. At that banquet, Brüggen spoke of Munrow that he is a good player. At the time, Munrow was still active.

There are not so many Baroque music recordings by Munrow left. One of the most famous is his recording of Telemann’s orchestral suite for a recorder with Neville Marriner. His other famous recordings include works by Daniel Purcell, Andrew Parcham, Charles Diupart, and Handel. There were also many works by lesser-known composers, including grounds (variations) by unknown composers. As for his recorder playing, it was unique and different from anyone else’s. He played with a slightly muffled non-vibrato sound, which could be described as amateurish. However, it was also very tasteful. #baroque #munrow #片山俊幸