Here, offering a further six concertos, is the latest instalment in Naxos’s recording of Vivaldi’s 37 bassoon concertos; 39 if one counts two incomplete specimens. Those who have invested in earlier volumes in the series (see below), all recorded by the same forces, will know to expect the enjoyable, fluent performances that are to be heard here.

The Nicolaus Esterházy Sinfonia use modern instruments but, under the direction of Béla Drahos they play with a crisp articulation that is, for the most part, stylistically convincing. Benkócs is a very fine bassoonist indeed, both technically extremely accomplished and musically imaginative. The outer movements – all six are in three movements, fast-slow-fast – frequently call for considerable fleetness of finger and certainty of breath control and Benkócs is never found wanting. There is rapid-fire virtuosity when needed and many delightfully dancing passages. In the slow movements Benkócs plays with lyrical expressivity, elegantly poignant and reflective in music which, as so often in the slow movements of Vivaldi’s concertos has a distinctly operatic feel about it.

Every one of these concertos offers things of real interest – Vivaldi’s musical imagination seems unflagging. There’s the way, for example, in which the opening allegro of RV 477 contrasts the tenor and bass registers of the solo instrument; or the dotted rhythms of the bassoon in the largo of RV 499. Or, particularly pleasant, the final allegro of RV 494 which is full of ingenious twists and turns.

It is puzzling that Vivaldi should have written quite so many concertos for the bassoon – the bassoon wasn’t generally a fashionable solo instrument in this period. Perhaps he wrote them for a specific instrumentalist; if so the identity of that musician remains unknown; certainly Vivaldi demonstrates a thorough understanding of the instrument’s possibilities. Whatever the circumstances which prompted the composition of these concertos, they certainly constitute a rewarding body of music and one of the many demonstrations of Vivaldi’s remarkable ability to produce seemingly infinite variations (and there really is variety here) on a basically simple formula.

A graduate of the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, Tamás Benkócs is a member of the Budapest Festival Orchestra. I haven’t encountered any other recordings by him outside this Naxos series of the Vivaldi concertos. He is such a fine player that it is to be hoped that he will go onto record more of the bassoon repertoire.

The one reservation – though it is not one that spoils my pleasure in the CDs – that I about this series concerns the rather understated penny-plain continuo, where the concertos would certainly benefit from greater embellishment. Very decent as the contribution of the Nicolaus Esterházy Sinfonia and Béla Drahos is, I would love to hear Benkócs playing these works with one of the best specialist baroque ensembles.

On balance though, this is an eminently worthwhile and enjoyable series, and this latest volume continues the good work begun by its predecessors. The recorded sound is pleasingly clear and well balanced.

-- Glyn Pursglove, MusicWeb International

The publication of Vivaldi's Opus 3, 'L'estro armonico' - 'the Harmonic Inspiration', was the international breakthrough of Vivaldi that spread the composer's name and reputation across Europe. Although one would be hard-pressed to claim that none of the essential features of this collection of 12 concertos was unfamiliar to professional musicians of the day, the fact of their appearance in print at that time took Vivaldi's name throughout the musical world of his contemporaries including, of course, to JS Bach. The concept of transcriptions and differing instrumental timbres a day-to-day occurrence across Europe in the early 18th-century, but also the application and revivification of the music itself by modern-day performing musicians constitute a demonstration of the continuing validity of the practice, a relevance today wider in scope than the efforts, admirable though they be, of the historically informed performance practice of today's ensembles. It follows, therefore, that Armoniosa are at one level merely continuing a practice known and encouraged by Vivaldi and his contemporaries, a practice which, in many ways, would seem to have died out in our society's wider attempts at historical recreations of how music must have first appeared to our predecessors. Music is not similar to an immobile object in a museum. It music remains, as it has always done, a living organism in time, and it is this living quality that Armoniosa seek to revive for modern ears, mindful and always respectful of the originals, which are heard almost daily throughout the world, but which demonstrate that these living organisms can also be reborn through 21st-century ears in a manner which concentrates upon the essential qualities of Vivaldi's great music, and which is not hidebound by the straightjackets of history.

Peter Damm, who is one of the 20th century’s leading horn players, has built up an impressive discography in the course of the last three decades. These naturally focus upon his instrument: the horn. The present Edition brings together many of his recordings for the Eterna label. It illustrates the history of horn music through a large and varied repertoire such as is only rarely to be encountered. From chamber music to the great horn concertos, from the music of the 17th century to twentieth-century works, the spectrum is immense. Peter Damm was born in Meiningen (Thuringia) in 1937. After learning the horn at the College of Music in Weimar he began his artistic career in 1957 as solo hornist with the Gera municipal orchestra. In 1959, Damm was appointed solo horn with the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig, which at that time was making numerous Gramophone recordings. Damm’s first solo recording was in 1961 with the Gewandhaus horn quartet, playing Robert Schumann’s Konzertstück op. 86 for four horns under the baton of Franz Konwitschny; he first appeared on a chamber-music recording in 1964. In 1969 Damm was appointed solo hornist with the Staatskapelle Dresden. His cantabile style of playing placed Damm firmly in the Dresden tradition and became the hallmark of the Dresden wind section for almost forty years. During those years in Dresden Peter Damm was involved in more than 100 studio recordings with the Sächsische Staatskapelle. Famous international conductors such as Herbert von Karajan, Herbert Blomstedt, Bernard Haitink and Giuseppe Sinopoli were fascinated by Damm’s horn playing at first hearing. Peter Damm would always champion new music and the rediscovery of forgotten works from all eras in his work as a soloist on record releases. This applied in particular to the works of the Dresden court composers. Peter Damm celebrates his 80th Birthday on July 27th, 2017.

Our journey takes US principally to the city of Genoa, for centuries an independent republic, held by Austria, seized by Napoleon, and later joined to Piedmont. Violinist, priest and most prolific composer, Antonio Vivaldi was born in Venice in 1678 and spent most of his life there, associated for much of the time with the Ospedale della Pieta, a charitable institution for girls, with a strong musical tradition. The music for the tour is taken from concertos for various instruments.

The Music • Violinist, priest and most prolific composer, Antonio Vivaldi was born in Venice in 1678 and spent most of his life there, associated for much of the time with the Ospedale della Pietà, a charitable institution for girls, with a strong musical tradition. The music for the tour is taken from his concertos for flute.

Recorded at Teatro Comunale, Ferrara, January 2008

Motezuma is Vivaldi’s only opera set in the New World. The manuscripts for this rarely performed and rarely heard opera were only rediscovered in 2002 and currently only one CD version exists recorded by Alan Curtis and Il Complesso Barocco.

Of the CD recording, BBC Music Magazine wrote: “The instrumentalists of Il Complesso Barocco are on excellent form as indeed is Vivaldi himself in a rewarding score”.

Alan Curtis, one of the leading experts of Baroque music, returns again with the same orchestra, renowned Baroque specialist Vito Priante and another expert cast for the World Premiere Recording on DVD.

Region Code: 0 (All)
Sound format: 16:9
Picture format: LPCM 2.0
Running Time: 153 min. + extras
Booklet notes: Ita / Eng / Fre / Ger
Subtitles: Fre, Eng, Ger, Spa, Ita

VIVALDI Oboe Sonatas: in B?, RV 34; in g, RV 28; in c, RV 53. Trio Sonata for 2 Oboes in g, RV 81. 1 Sonata in C for Vn, Ob, Org, and Chalumeau, RV 779 • Burkhard Glaetzner (ob); Ingo Goritzki (ob); 1 Karl Suske (vn); Christine Schornsheim (org, hpd); Thomas Reinhardt (bn); Siegfried Pank (vdg); Achim Beyer (vne) • CAPRICCIO 5016 (52:59)


This recording was originally released in 1988 as the chamber component of Burkard Glaetzner’s four-disc survey of Vivaldi’s oboe music. Be advised that oboe sonatas were not high on Vivaldi’s priority list; two of these five sonatas, RV 34 and RV 28, were originally intended for the violin. Nevertheless, reissuing this disc was probably a sound decision. Vivaldi’s oboe concertos are well represented on CD, but the sonatas not so much. Glaetzner’s recording of the C-Major Sonata, RV 779, was a CD first. Incidentally, the optional chalumeau in RV 779 is identified as a “bassoon ad lib.” Glaetzner is in fine form here, and the assisting artists are uniformly excellent. If this lightly explored corner of Vivaldi’s output piques your curiosity, you will not be disappointed by this disc.


FANFARE: George Chien

This Blu-ray Disc is only playable on Blu-ray Disc players and not compatible with standard DVD players.

Also available on standard DVD
The cast is the best we could possible want for Vivaldi nowadays: Ottavio Dantone's skilfull conducting brings the best out of this orchestral enchantment. Sara Mingardo brings her classy voice and remarkable stage presence to the role of the naive Statira. Delphine Galou’s bright tone and excellent agility combine with perfect diction. Roberta Mameli's crystal clear notes make of the role of Alinda a masterpiece of expressivity. Recorded in high definition, this production offers subtitles in Italian, German, English, French, Japanese, and Korean. Octavio Dantone is an Italian conductor and harpsichordist who is particularly noted for his performances of Baroque music. He has served as the Music Director of the Accademia Bizantina in Ravenna since 1996.

Antonio Vivaldi gave descriptive titles to seven of op. 8’s twelve concerti in its 1725 Amsterdam publishing, including the four concerti representing the seasons: la primavera, estate, autumno, l’inverno. + For the four seasons, Vivaldi included four self-penned sonnets, each divided thrice, reflecting each concerto’s three movements. + The 1725 publication indicated which musical passages are representative of which sonnet verses. + Heard on this CD are these rarely recorded sonnets, in the original Italian. + Different soloists for each of the seasons join the youthful musicians of EUBO.

This album is the debut release from the Irish Baroque Orchestra. The tracks chosen take the listener on a journey through the German courts of the 18th century. Concertos by Fasch, Telemann, Heinichen, Vivaldi, and Graupner have been chosen for this programme. “…what really makes the IBO so worth hearing is the unified artistry and joyous, focused energy of its music-making under Huggett.” (The Sunday Times)

In the first half of the 1700s, the aria with concertante trumpet was one of the ingredients that the public of the numerous Venetian theatres appreciated the most. + This is the first recording that makes available virtually all these still rather little-known vocal and instrumental works with trumpet that encompass Antonio Vivaldi’s entire career, works not only very interesting works from a musical point of view but also brilliantly written. + The oldest ones date from his Mantua period (1718-1720), the most recent ones belonging to the last phase of his operatic career (1732-1737).