In the 1920s a saxophone craze swept across America, so much so that Kansas City made it illegal to play the instrument within the city limits from 10.30pm to 6am! It’s hard to imagine what Belgian instrument-maker Adolphe Sax would have made of this, though no doubt he would have been grateful that his brainchild received such widespread acceptance after being largely ignored by classical composers, with a few notable exceptions.

Sydney saxophonist Nick Russoniello, in a new take on historically informed performance, uses a now-obsolete 1926 Conn tenor instrument for his attractive showcase album, for which he is joined by the appropriately named Golden Age Quartet led by his violinist wife Julia. It includes two fun pieces by the “Kreisler of the saxophone” Rudy Wiedoeft, with Sax-o-phun featuring a variety of trademark tricks including slap-tongue, laughing effects, so beloved of Mack Sennett’s silent comedy films, and finger-busting runs.
On a more serious note, Russoniello arranges George Gershwin’s three piano preludes for sax and string quartet to excellent effect, and Czech composer Erwin Schulhoff’s Equisses...