This attractive recording is strongly Oxford orientated. It is the joint enterprise of the University, the Ashmolean Museum and Isis Records. The soloist, Martin Souter is an alumnus of the University and half his programme is devoted to Handel who first performed his oratorio Athalia in the city's Sheldonian Theatre in July 1733. Handel, unlike Souter, however, declined his doctorate, apparently on the grounds that he was ''overwhelmingly busy''.
Souter plays a 1772 Kirckman harpsichord which has been in the possession of the Ashmolean since the late 1940s. It is a fine-sounding instrument though I found the slightly over-resonant balance lacked intimacy, reminding one too often of its museum status; the recording, an effective one in most other respects, was in fact made in the Ashmolean. The programme is evenly divided between Handel and Domenico Scarlatti. Handel is represented by two Suites—in E major including the celebrated Air and Variations The Harmonious Blacksmith, and G minor with a fine opening Overture and concluding Passacaille. Nine Scarlatti sonatas from the 1738 Essercizi make up the remainder of the recital. These include one in G major, (Kk14) which became widely known through performances and an old HMV recording by Dame Myra Hess (EMI 5/91), as well as several less often aired pieces.
The recording is very much a performance, an aspect of the approach which I enjoyed. Over 70 minutes of music were put down in under three hours so inevitably there are a few splashes, split notes and so forth; but all things considered the result is quite an achievement and occasional mishaps are likely to spoil the enjoyment only of perfectionists. Souter's playing usually brings the character of the music to life with spirit and conviction, though I did feel a degree of rhythmic rigidity in his interpretations. Perhaps, circumstances being what they were, he was just playing safe, which is understandable but I found myself longing for a little more in the way of flexibility, especially in the Handel pieces, and for more bravura in the Scarlatti.
In summary, this is an entertaining disc entirely free from dullness. The sound of the harpsichord itself is pleasing and it possesses a distinctive character. I feel readily inclined to overlook the shortcomings already discussed and to recommend warmly this spirited playing.'