Top Bar
Musique Machine Logo Home ButtonReviews ButtonArticles ButtonBand Specials ButtonAbout Us Button
SearchGo Down
Search for  
With search mode in section(s)
And sort the results by
show articles written by  
 Review archive:  # a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Richard Harvey - Divisions On A Ground [Talking Elephant Records - 2020]

Originally released in 1975  Divisions On A Ground highlights the considerable talents of British recorder player Richard Harvey. Over the fourteen track album he, along with a small classical Ensemble, play work from the likes of Vivaldi, Matthyysz & Handle. And it’s a surprising varied & mood shifting album that highlights both Harvey skill and versatility as a recorder player. Here on Talking Elephant Records is a recent CD reissue of the album.

The reissue comes in a nicely presented digipak- this features the albums original cover artwork, which is an illustration of Harvey dressed in baroque dress sitting at a table with his recorder, script written music score, a chessboard, a few bottles of wine, and a few other items…it looks like an illustration from a 1970's fairy tale book. On the back we get the tracklisting/ credits, and a write-up about Harvey’s career- then on the inside there's a write-up about the history of the recorder, and the recorders played on the album- descant & treble….so all in all a compact, but very nicely presented bit of packaging.


The album was recorded in St Paul’s Church in Wimbledon Park between July & August 1974. For the recordings Harvey is joined by a small Ensemble taking in- Andrew Parrott: Harpsichord, Monica Hugget & Eleanor Sloan: Violin, Trevor Jones: Viola, Catherine Finnis: Cello, and Adam Skeaping: Violone. Through over the albums length each member of the ensemble appears & has their moment, the focus is very much of Harvey’s wonderful & highly accomplished recorder playing.

The album opens with a three-part Vivaldi work “Concerto In C Major, Op.44, No11”- in it's first part we find a wonderful ornate-yet-rollicking rendition of the work with Harvey's recorder playing flowing rapidly & vibrantly over a galloping blend of strings & harpsichord. But late tracks see the pace slowed for a more moody-yet-graceful blend of slowly cascading harpsichord & recorder. Over the remainder of the album, we have another three multi-part works- and these again show the shift in pace of all the players. We also get some nice stand-alone tracks like Godfrey Fingers “Division On A Ground” which features a very baroque melody that's jaunting yet slight sad- with the blend of elegant harpsichord runs & Harvey rapid pipework. Or there's Jacob Van Eyck’s “Variations on Amarilli Mia Bella”- and here we find just Harvey on his own piping out a complex, speed switching and virtuoso performance. 

The idea of recorder renditions of largely more known/ mainstream classical composers may sound like it’s going to be either stuffy or gimmicky- but due to the well & balanced selection, and of course Harvey’s often breathing taking-yet felt playing this is never the case. All in all, I was pleasantly surprised & rather taken by the album, and nice to see Talking Elephant Records stepping away from there normal folk/ prog reissuing to uncover & reissue this gem.

Rating: 4 out of 5Rating: 4 out of 5Rating: 4 out of 5Rating: 4 out of 5Rating: 4 out of 5

Roger Batty
Latest Reviews

Richard Harvey - Divisions On A ...
Originally released in 1975  Divisions On A Ground highlights the considerable talents of British recorder player Richard Harvey. Over the fourteen trac...
021023   Transtilla - Transtilla III
021023   Arash Akbari - Amnestic Cont...
021023   Sam Eastmond - John Zorn's B...
021023   Thieves Like Us - Thieves Lik...
290923   Terror At The Red Wolf Inn - ...
290923   The Iron Prefect - The Iron P...
290923   Vomir - Pathos
290923   Worship - Focus
290923   Whore's Breath - Static Black
290923   Occlusion - 58- 3 Signaux
Latest Articles

Lucky Cerruti - Of Not so Friendl...
New York-based Lucky Cerruti is one of the up-and-coming directors in the underground horror scene. Since 2019 the theatre actor turned director/ writer/prod...
210923   Lucky Cerruti - Of Not so Fri...
290823   The Residents - The Trouble W...
110723   Yotzeret Sheydim Interview - ...
250523   TenHornedBeast - Into The Dee...
050523   Bill Morroni - The Trials & ...
280323   Magnus Granberg - Finding Emo...
230223   Trou Aux Rats - The Funeral I...
020223   The Residents & Support - Liv...
300123   Worship - In Praise Of Walled...
201222   Blood Chalice - Into The Sin...
Go Up
(c) Musique Machine 2001 -2023. Twenty two years of true independence!! Mail Us at questions=at=musiquemachine=dot=comBottom