Album: Alison Balsom, Sound the Trumpet (EMI Classics)

Trumpeters were the star musicians of the Baroque era, their shiny, golden tones vital to evoking the glory of victory and the majesty of kings.

Here, accompanied by the English Concert under Trevor Pinnock, Alison Balsom focuses on trumpet showcases by the two notable British composers of the period, Handel and Purcell, including the former's “Water Music” and the latter's “Fairy Queen” suite. For historical accuracy, she plays the valve-less “natural” trumpet: it really does appear to offer a more direct access to the human voice, a quality confirmed when she duets with countertenor Iestyn Davies on Handel's “Eternal Source of Light Divine” and Purcell's glorious “Sound the Trumpet”.

Download: Sound the Trumpet; Sento la Gioia; Suite in D “Water Piece”