Vivaldi: Lost, found and performed

[doversoul1]

The modern premier of the ‘lost flute concerto’.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/jan/27/la-serenissima-review

An all Vivaldi concert may not be everybody’s idea but this sounds good. I was interested to read in this article that Vivaldi’s compositions were rarely performed more than once.

So when it comes to CDs, would you prefer all Vivaldi or a combination of various Baroque composers by one orchestra? I love Vivaldi’s music but he has been so far one of the ‘I’ll buy him (!) next time’ composers. Any good recommendations?

[MickyD]

Vivaldi is a favourite, as you might expect me to say. I love all the violin and string concertos, but find the most depth in the cello concertos - they are well worth seeking out. Christophe Coin did about nine of them with the AAM and Hogwood some years back and I like those performances very much. I've also recently been listening to all the sacred music in Robert King's big set for Hyperion and there are some stunning items in that. Sadly my budget cannot currently extend to the wave of operas on Naive, but Tito Manlio was a worthwhile purchase.

[mikerotheatrenestr0y]

Il giardino armonica did a 4 CD box-set of the Concerti da camera, which only seems to be available as expensive individual CDs now... but it is very exciting with the reduced forces. Carmignola and Marcon and the Venice Baroque Orchestra do an excellent job on late violin concerti [and, I think, the 4 seasons]. JUditha Triumphans, with Magdalena Kozena, is quite amazing too.

[MickyD]

Il giardino armonica did a 4 CD box-set of the Concerti da camera, which only seems to be available as expensive individual CDs now... but it is very exciting with the reduced forces. Carmignola and Marcon and the Venice Baroque Orchestra do an excellent job on late violin concerti [and, I think, the 4 seasons]. JUditha Triumphans, with Magdalena Kozena, is quite amazing too.

There are actually quite a few CDs of the Venice Baroque Orchestra doing Vivaldi on both Archiv and Sony - very fine performances indeed, in my opinion.

[LeMartinPecheur]

I have a fair-sized collection of concertos which I won't bore you with, but one startling vocal disc is Bartoli's 'The Vivaldi Album' collection of arias with Il Giardino Armonico.

Track 2, Dopo un'orrida procello, is a particular highlight with extraordinary whooping, rasping horn-writing alongside the vocal coloratura