While the majority of the composers presented here by the Brisk Recorder Quartet Amsterdam date from the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance up to Spanish and Portuguese baroque – Juan del Encina (1468- 1533), António Carreira (1520-1597), Francisco de Peñalosa (1470- 1528), Juan Vásquez (1500-1560), Pedro de Cristo (1545-1618), Diego Ortiz (1510-1570), Manuel Rodrigues Coelho (1555-1635) etc. – some are from more recent times, like Ferran Obradors (1897- 1945) or the rather less-Iberian Gijs Levelt (born 1973), a Dutch jazz trumpeter. But remember that the Low Countries spent many years under the Spanish yoke... We are treated to two different versions of Romanza belinfante, whose roots are most certainly Iberian. A little further back in time, but only a little, Juan Montes Capón Juan Montes (1840- 1899) offers a fairly interesting piece of "old-fashioned" music, also inspired by the rich tones of Hispanic folk music, a rather rare thing for the Romantic era. We make a quick return to the 20th century with Toek Numan (born 1971) and his Vientos ibéricos; Numan was famous as a composer of film music, but also possessed a fine and very varied repertoire which tended slightly towards minimalism. We finish with one of the great names in music from this part of the world: Cabezón, represented by father Antonio and son Hernando, two giants of the 16th century. As you can see, Brisk Recorder Quartet Amsterdam, founded 1986, doesn't limit itself to ancient courtly music, and won't hesitate to bring in any number of contemporary composers. The richness of sound provided by the instrumentation, from the highest sopranino to the deepest bass flute there is, is truly gobsmacking. © SM/Qobuz