Peter Dickinson must love his clavichord and its ability to bend pitches, because the music he writes and arranges for it is so vibrant and joyful, as are his performances throughout this release. Effective as his Five Diversions (1963) are for piano, the clavichord’s inflections of pitch add welcome textural differentiation between melodies and accompaniments. Five clavichord arrangements from the Duke Ellington songbook surely would have pleased the composer, particularly Dickinson’s loping, bluesy spin on ‘Don’t get around much anymore’. While Dickinson’s inventively jazz-tinged Suite for the Centenary of Lord Berners deserves a centre stage spot in the solo clavichord repertoire, the catchy tunes and sly harmonies might sound even better orchestrated. However, the frills and flourishes in Dickinson’s unbuttoned, witty set of variations on the venerable French ditty ‘Sur le pont d’Avignon’ are thoroughly embedded in harpsichord technique – or, more accurately, Jane Chapman’s assured keyboard prowess.

Those who heard Dickinson’s solo piano version of Bach in Blue may well prefer the darker hues of his violin, clarinet and piano arrangement, abetted by the Verdehr Trio’s intense interpretation. As a performer, Dickinson lavishes equal love on skilfully crafted yet more emotionally reticent multi-movement works by Alan Ridout and Alun Hoddinott. A Hymn for recorder and piano by Jeremy Dale Roberts is basically a simple, sombre funeral march that says what it needs to say in two minutes, although John Turner’s sensitive recorder virtuosity more effectively reveals itself in Dickinson’s Pastorale, Blues and Homage. A disc packed with unusual delights, well worth hearing.