Cantus has performed an invaluable service for fans of early music by assembling a CD that demystifies the assortment of archaic instruments found in historically correct performances of Medieval and Renaissance repertoire. For anyone who has puzzled over the difference between a shawm and a bombard, a vielle and a vihuela, as well as anyone just curious about the wealth of wonderful but unfamiliar sounds in early music, this CD is a treasure. The collection groups the instruments by families (bowed strings, plucked strings, keyboards, winds, etc.), and offers tracks not only of each instrument playing by itself, but with other instruments and with voices in the most common period groupings. The performances, mostly taken from recordings in the Cantus catalog, but some made especially for this project, are clean and direct -- nothing fancy, but just right for doing the job of familiarizing the listener with the sounds of the instruments.
The set comes with a fat booklet packed with excellent essays by José Carlos Cabello explaining the history, construction, and details of performance practice of the instruments, and the repertoire performed on the two CDs. The essays make an exemplary introduction to the roots of Western instrumental music. The booklet is illustrated with depictions of the instruments in the art of the period. Especially useful is Cabello's inclusion of the variant spellings one is likely to encounter, as well as the names of the instruments in various languages. The set should be of strong interest to anyone looking for a deeper appreciation of early music.