The Chronicle Review Corner

This is another CD where Peter Sheppard Skærved gets to play on a great violin, in this case a Stradivarius from 1685. (What a gig to get).

The album contains 96 short tracks, which are all of the works for solo instrument contained in the Klagenfurt Manuscript, itself dated circa 1685 and which the violinist believes may have been composed by a nun. They’re all short pieces and while violinists may enjoy raptures at the sound, it’s basically nice background music, albeit Sheppard Skærved obviously plays well and enjoys himself.

The violin is from the historic instruments collection of the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester.

—Jeremy Condliffe