Album: Mauro Giuliani, Country Dances, Études & Rossiniana (Newton Classics)

One normally thinks of the celebrated Spaniards when considering classical guitar music, but the 19th-century Italian Mauro Giuliani was highly regarded as a virtuoso and a composer.

This set draws together three different areas of his composition, performed by different guitarists. Tullia Cartoni presents a dozen Scottish and Irish airs: "Coming Through the Rye" sounds stilted, though "The Bluebells of Scotland" strikes a better balance between the folksy and the genteelly technical.

Played by Elena Càsoli, the études are teaching exercises possessed of a lilting formality that lends itself perfectly to the instrument. Massimo Scattoli's delivery of sinfonia pieces based on Rossini operas reveals a courtly sensibility expressed through pleasing flourishes.

Download this: The Bluebells of Scotland; Sinfonia after Semiramide