Rachel Podger and members of the Brecon Baroque perform Fantasia Suite in A minor 1660: 3. Corant by English 17th century composer John Jenkins.

The work features on the new album The Muses Restor’d, which highlights English instrumental works of the 17th and early 18th centuries by Handel, Lawes, Blow, Locke, Purcell, Schop, Baltzar, Jones, as well as Jenkins.

Led by Podger, the musicians of Brecon Baroque are Reiko Ichise on six-stringed bass viol, Elizabeth Kenny on theorbo and Marcin Świątkiewicz on harpsichord.

The Muses Restor’d is out on Channel Classics from 24 May 2024.

Best of Technique

In The Best of Technique you’ll discover the top playing tips of the world’s leading string players and teachers. It’s packed full of exercises for students, plus examples from the standard repertoire to show you how to integrate the technique into your playing.

Masterclass

The Strad’s Masterclass series brings together the finest string players with some of the greatest string works ever written. Always one of our most popular sections, Masterclass has been an invaluable aid to aspiring soloists, chamber musicians and string teachers since the 1990s.

Calendars

American collector David L. Fulton amassed one of the 20th century’s finest collections of stringed instruments. This year’s calendar pays tribute to some of these priceless treasures, including Yehudi Menuhin’s celebrated ‘Lord Wilton’ Guarneri, the Carlo Bergonzi once played by Fritz Kreisler, and four instruments by Antonio Stradivari.