Eight solos Op. 1 (for German Flute and Basso Continuo)
Six solos Op. 4 (for German Flute and Basso Continuo)

I am constantly amazed and pleasantly surprised as to how many hitherto undiscovered Baroque era music rarities are now being exhumed from obscurity and most of all, benefiting from premiere recordings. One would think that after all these years of searching through archives, that each and every manuscript would have seen the light of day, and if not recorded, at least performed on stage.

English organist and composer John Stanley (1712-1786), a contemporary of Bach and Handel, has been rather ignored by the record industry and recording artists, with only a few miscellaneous organ pieces and concertos for strings seemingly available. Baffling when you consider that his music, including these delightful Flute Sonatas equally laid out over three or four movements, compares very well with the music from the Italian masters of the day, and is closer in style to the music of Corelli and Vivaldi than to his British compatriots Handel and Purcell.

Albanian flautist Daorsa Dervishi, with strong and committed support from Alessia Travaglini on viola da gamba and cello, and Nicola Bisotti on harpsichord, all practitioners and advocates for the HIP (Historically Informed Performance) movement, certainly reveals the refined elegance within these pieces. Expressive and stately Adagio movements are well counterbalanced by sprightly and animated Allegro movements, during which Daorsa Dervishi never seems to come up for air. The dynamic balance between the three instruments is always well judged, and projects a natural soundstage at all times.

If you're a Baroque music enthusiast who has been craving to hear something previously unrecorded, you can't really do much better than this. Efforts like this should always be supported if classical music is to remain relevant going forward.