Search results: Search results

372 results

Products

Carlo Gesualdo Da Venosa: Sacrarium Cantionum Quinque Vocibus

Ricercar

$20.99 Jun 24, 2014

Although the madrigals of Carlo Gesualdo da Venosa constitute the best-known part of his oeuvre, his religious music is no less important, revealing a completely different facet of the composer. Aside from the Responsoria (1611), of which Philippe Herreweghe recently made a magnificent recording (LPH 010), most of Gesulado's religious music was published in 1603 under the title Sacrarum cantionum. Unlike the Responsoria, intended for Holy Week services, the motets of 1603 are settings of texts for all circumstances of the liturgical year. For this recording, made in the Santa Trinità abbey church in Venosa, ODHECATON has enriched the sound palette of its men's voices with a few instruments, including an ensemble of violas da gamba. Liuwe Tamminga counterpoints this programme with selected pieces by Giovanni Maria Trabaci and Giovanni de Macque on an historical organ of the Venosa region.

View Full Page

Carlo Gesualdo Da Venosa: Sacrarium Cantionum Quinque Vocibus
Ricercar Jun 2014
CD
$20.99

Four Seasons/Cto Winds:vivaldi
Naxos Mar 1995
CD
$19.99

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons / Jeanne Lamon, Tafelmusik

Sony Masterworks

$17.99 Aug 18, 2011

Lamon's playing puts expressiveness before virtuosity, and she ornaments freely adding a refreshing touch of spontaneity. In a hugely overcrowded field, Tafelmusik has come up with a winner.

Recordings of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons tend to fall into one of two catagories. There are the star soloist versions, which spotlight the virtuosic, and highly marketable, talents of the big name violinists. And then there are the period instrument versions, in which greater emphasis is put on unusual textures and more authentic performance practice.

This new disc from the Canadian group Tafelmusik is an excellent example of the latter, and a distinctive feature of their recording is their adoption of a pitch roughly a semitone higher than usual with period groups in line with recent research into common practice in 18th-century Venice. They also make use of an archlute to add variety to the continuo, and the result is a bright, distinctive sound which brings freshness, clarity and variety of texture to the music.

The playing itself is incisive but free of the hard-driven tempi which sometimes mar authentic performances, and is imaginatively allied to the seasonal pictures painted in the sonnets on which the concertos are based (which are included in the CD booklet).

Lamon’s relatively small tone means that her instrument blends in with the ensemble rather than dominating it, highlighting the concerto grosso aspects of the works. Her playing puts expressiveness before virtuosity and is quite beautiful in the slow movements, which she ornaments freely adding a refreshing touch of spontaneity to music which is after all very familiar. In a hugely overcrowded field, Tafelmusik has come up with a winner in these highly satisfying and well-recorded performances, and the Sinfonia and Concerto for Four Violins are pleasing bonuses.

Performance: 5 (out of 5), Sound: 5 (out of 5)

-- David Michaels, BBC Music Magazine

View Full Page

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons / Jeanne Lamon, Tafelmusik
Sony Masterworks Aug 2011
CD
$17.99

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons & Other Concerti / Whelan, Chandler, La Serenissima

Avie Records

$19.99 Sep 01, 2015

Adrian Chandler, who founded the period-instrument ensemble La Serenissima 21 years ago, has produced a dozen enlightening, acclaimed, and award-winning albums for AVIE. After many years of anticipation, Ade turns his attention to the touchstone of Vivaldi’s concerto output, The Four Seasons. As one has come to expect, he brings something unique to an interpretation brimming with vitality and originality. Putting this most popular of classical works into context, Ade rounds out the recording with Vivaldi concertos for bassoon, including the famous La Notte, and world premiere recordings of two concertos for the violin in tromba marina, a hitherto obsolete instrument that was used during Vivaldi’s lifetime.

View Full Page

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons & Other Concerti / Whelan, Chandler, La Serenissima
Avie Records Sep 2015
CD
$19.99

Vivaldi: La Stravaganza / Scandali

Brilliant Classics

$10.99 ~~$13.99~~ Save 20% Mar 24, 2023

This CD presents Violin Concertos from Vivaldi’s La Stravaganza Op. 4, transcribed for organ. These are contained in the collection known as Anne Dawson's Book and kept at the Henry Watson Music Library in Manchester (UK). The collection, compiled around 1720, contains, in addition to arias for voice and basso continuo, a number of compositions for keyboard instrument along with several transcriptions of concertos by various composers, including 10 by Vivaldi. They are closely related to the original score and show an evident process of adaptation to the possibilities and idiom of the keyboard instrument.

Organist Luca Scandali is one of Italy’s foremost scholars and keyboard players. For Brilliant Classics he recorded the complete organ works by C.P.E. Bach (nominated for the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik), Galuppi, Pasquini, Pellegrini and Padovano. He plays the Gaetano Callido organ from 1774 at the Church of San Venanzo, Albacina, Italy.

View Full Page

Sale

Vivaldi: La Stravaganza / Scandali
Brilliant Classics Mar 2023
CD
~~$13.99~~ $10.99

VIVALDI: FOUR SEASONS CHEVALIER DE SAINT-GEORGES

ERATO

$17.49 Nov 04, 2022

Renaud Capucon recognises Vivaldi's Four Seasons as "a highlight of the violin repertoire", but it has taken him some time to add it to his discography. "For years, I refused to play it," he explains. "I'd heard it too much in the corridors of the Metro in Paris and as holding music on the phone. But once I'd accepted to play it, I was blown away by the power of the music... I realised that it's famous because it's amazing! It's a masterpiece. I've now played it frequently with Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne and it feels fresh and new every time." He has chosen to complement Vivaldi's four concertos with two sparkling concertos composed in Paris some 40 years after Vivaldi's death. They are by Chevalier de Saint-George (1745-1799), born in Guadeloupe of French and African descent, who became a prominent and influential figure in Paris. He has been described in the New York Times as a composer who holds a "truly unique place in Western classical music history".

View Full Page

VIVALDI: FOUR SEASONS CHEVALIER DE SAINT-GEORGES
ERATO Nov 2022
CD
$17.49

Vivaldi, Reali, Bach: Specchio Veneziano / Le Consort

Alpha

$15.99 ~~$20.99~~ Save 25% Nov 12, 2021

Specchio veneziano or the Venetian mirror – this programme compares and contrasts two composers from the city of the Doges: on the one hand the celebrated Vivaldi, on the other a virtual unknown, Giovanni Battista Reali, who was born there in 1681, three years after Vivaldi, and died in 1751, ten years after his illustrious colleague. A violinist himself, he composed trio sonatas, including a very spectacular Folia, which Théotime Langlois de Swarte, Sophie de Bardonnèche, Hanna Salzenstein and Justin Taylor juxtapose with Vivaldi’s Folia, alongside other highly virtuosic pieces, many of them complete rediscoveries, since half of this program has never been recorded before.

View Full Page

Sale

Vivaldi, Reali, Bach: Specchio Veneziano / Le Consort
Alpha Nov 2021
CD
~~$20.99~~ $15.99

Pergolesi: Stabat Mater - Vivaldi: Nisi Dominus / Engeltjes, PRJCT Amsterdam

PENTATONE

$14.99 ~~$19.99~~ Save 25% Mar 22, 2024

PRJCT Amsterdam and its artistic director Maarten Engeltjes present two of the greatest vocal works of the baroque era: Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater and Vivaldi’s Nisi Dominus. While Vivaldi’s virtuosic piece contemplates the helplessness of people when God does not support their efforts, Pergolesi’s portrait of the weeping Mary at the Cross embodies what the “nameless” parents of a deceased child go through. In the Stabat Mater, Engeltjes’s counter-tenor blends together seamlessly and soothingly with Shira Patchornik’s soprano voice, resulting in an interpretation that is both profound and deeply relatable.

PRJCT Amsterdam is a young, innovative baroque ensemble centred around counter-tenor Maarten Engeltjes, and founded in 2017. Engeltjes is one of the most sought-after counter-tenors of today, working with several of the most esteemed early music groups and conductors. After having won multiple major baroque competitions, soprano Shira Patchornik is quickly establishing herself as an important singer on the opera and concert stage. All artists make their Pentatone debut.

View Full Page

Sale

Pergolesi: Stabat Mater - Vivaldi: Nisi Dominus / Engeltjes, PRJCT Amsterdam
PENTATONE Mar 2024
CD
~~$19.99~~ $14.99

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons / Bosgraaf, Ensemble Cordevento

Brilliant Classics

$13.99 Jan 28, 2014

Vivaldi's Four Seasons is one of the world's most popular and widely recorded collections of music, a set that instantly became an international hit after it was first published at part of the composer's Op.8 in 1725. No doubt it was its imitative directness -- extra musical occurrences/phenomena evoked in an extremely suggestive manner and even written into the score, such as 'the barking dog' or 'the drunkards' sleep' etc. -- that caused such as sensation in its time, effortlessly bridging the gap between the salons of the highborn and the alehouses of the lowly. Today nothing has changed: the concertos are performed both by great violin virtuosos and famous hard rockers; they are works that are constantly being presented in new guises through the re-imagining and re-working of the musical score.

Such is the standpoint adopted on this recording by Erik Bosgraaf, who has chosen here to adapt the violin part for recorder, explaining how 'the violin part can be played on the recorder with surprising ease, without many changes. In some ways it works even better than concertos Vivaldi wrote specifically for the recorder!' Years ago Bosgraaf performed The Four Seasons with a symphony orchestra; for the present album, however, he wanted to approach his ideal as closely as possible using Cordevento, a small baroque ensemble he founded himself, knowing all the musicians through and through. Bosgraaf's aim is to make the four legendary concertos sound as if they had been written for the recorder in the first place -- and the results are laudable, with the contrasts between the wind instrument and the accompanying strings revealing previously unheard stratifications and details. As the soloist himself puts it, 'Listen to Vivaldi with fresh ears and enjoy!'

Other information:
- Recorded 25--28 June 2013, Kruiskerk Burgum, The Netherlands.
- Erik Bosgraaf is considered one of the most innovative and versatile recorder players of his generation. His concerts are happenings, and offer fascinating combinations of classical and experimental music. His importance for the emancipation of the recorder (still often considered a stuffy and even childish instrument) is enormous.
- Bosgraaf's version of Vivaldi's Four Seasons (of course originally for violin and orchestra) is not a mere transcription for another instrument, but a recreation of a work of startling originality and power: listen to the furioso rendering of the Summer Storm!
- Bosgraaf's earlier recordings for Brilliant Classics have met with enthusiastic acclaim in the international press; this new album will strengthen his reputation as one of today's most fascinating out-of-the-box artists.
- Contains detailed notes in English, German and Dutch on the music and matters of interpretation.
- Contains the Four Seasons' sonnets.

View Full Page

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons / Bosgraaf, Ensemble Cordevento
Brilliant Classics Jan 2014
CD
$13.99

Vivaldi: Il Bajazet

Naxos

$19.99 Jan 16, 2026

Il Bajazet was commissioned in 1735 to open Verona's carnival season. Vivaldi chose a libretto by Agostino Piovene drawn from the well-known story of the defeated Ottoman sultan, King Bajazet, captured by Tamerlane who duly falls in love with Bajazet's proud daughter, Asteria. Vivaldi was in his late maturity when he completed the opera, modifying his music to suit contemporary taste, and using the pasticcio form, incorporating some arias written by other, mostly Neapolitan, composers. Repurposing of this kind was wholly acceptable at the time and such works enjoyed great popularity. The conductor and Vivaldi specialist, Federico Maria Sardelli, has integrated lost arias, clarified the use of historically appropriate orchestration, and brought the opera to rich theatrical life.

View Full Page

Vivaldi: Il Bajazet
Naxos Jan 2026
CD
$19.99

Mix & Match

Vivaldi in the North

Proprius

$20.99 Jun 20, 2025

The award-winning ensemble Hoor Barock is releasing a full album featuring the music of Antonio Vivaldi. The pride of Skåne, Hoor Barock, is the small baroque orchestra that has made a name for itself with it's passionate interpretations of baroque music. The group has been praised for it's virtuosity, sensitivity, stylistic brilliance, and joyful, playful approach to performance. Hoor Barock has four critically acclaimed recordings behind them and won a Swedish Grammy in 2020 together with Dan Laurin. In the new production "Vivaldi in the North," Hoor Barock's temperament and musicianship flourish in Antonio Vivaldi's beautiful and vibrant music. The album includes solo concertos and ensemble works with varying moods and characters. Featured soloists are recorder player Emelie Roos, baroque violinist Hannah Tibell, and lutenist Dohyo Sol. Some of the works on the album deserve special mention - the flute concerto "Il Gran Mogol" was discovered only fifteen years ago and is here recorded for the first time with a recorder instead of a transverse flute. The violin concerto in G major and the string symphony in B minor have a special Swedish (Scanian) connection, as the only surviving manuscripts are preserved at Lund University Library. Hoor Barock has previously recorded works from this nearby library and is keen to highlight the rich historical cultural heritage found there. Vivaldi's music was present in the Nordic countries during the Baroque era and continues to inspire us today. The ever-present drama in Vivaldi's music-whether depicting proud autumn storms, mirror-like icy landscapes, or exuberant dancing joy-can be found in the Nordic nature just as much as in the Mediterranean world of Venice.

View Full Page

Vivaldi in the North
Proprius Jun 2025
CD
$20.99

Sale

Vivaldi: Cello Concerti Vol 2 / Wallfisch, Kraemer
Naxos Feb 1995
CD
~~$19.99~~ $13.99

Vivaldi: Complete Sonatas for 2 Violins and B.C. / L'Archicembalo

Brilliant Classics

$16.99 ~~$21.99~~ Save 20% Sep 24, 2021

Antonín Vivaldi (1678-1741) was 27 years old when his Opus 1 collection of 12 sonatas first appeared in print in 1705. Whether or not they represent his earliest acknowledged compositions, they certainly mark the start of a glittering career, bearing already identifiable Vivaldian fingerprints while also drawing on a heritage of Italianate chamber music exemplified by the trio sonatas of Corelli. The form of these early works resembles a suite rather than the three- and four-movement pieces determined by tempo marking which soon became standard practice for the sonatas and concertos composed by Vivaldi in such profusion. In all but three of the Opus 1 Sonatas, a freely developed prelude introduces a sequence of three dance movements such as sarabandes, gigues and gavottes. Solemnity and lively intimacy sit side by side, in an ingenious synthesis of church and chamber modes of expression. Vivaldi’s Opus 1 reaches a grand climax with a free-standing set of variations on the most popular melody in 18th century Italy, ‘La Folia’. This grave and antique chord-sequence of Spanish origin inspired the 20-something composer to handle the familiar instrumental line-up in a bold new way, liberating the bass line from a supporting role and giving some especially brilliant canonical dialogues to the two violins. The sonata demonstrates the degree to which vocal writing inspired Vivaldi’s slow movements and paved the way for his future ventures in opera. The album is completed by two sonatas from the Opus 5 collection published in 1716, and six more sonatas without an opus number (RV 60, 68, 71, 71, 74 and 77 in the Vivaldi catalogue), all scored for the same combination of instruments.

View Full Page

Sale

Vivaldi: Complete Sonatas for 2 Violins and B.C. / L'Archicembalo
Brilliant Classics Sep 2021
CD
~~$21.99~~ $16.99

A Musical Journey: The Four Seasons - Austria, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Scotland

Naxos AudioVisual

DVD

$13.99 Jun 25, 2013

Our journey takes US to places in Austria, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and Scotland, largely following the order of the seasons, from the hope of spring to the snows of winter. Violinist, priest and highly prolific composer, Antonio Vivaldi was born in Venice in 1678 and spent most of his life there. The most popular of his 500 or more concertos, then and now, has been the Four Seasons, eventually published in 1725, each concerto accompanied by an explanatory sonnet.

View Full Page

A Musical Journey: The Four Seasons - Austria, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Scotland
Naxos AudioVisual Jun 2013
DVD
$13.99

Vivaldi, Scarlatti, Caldara: Cantatas / Ose, Cencic, Ornamente 99

Capriccio

CD + DVD

$20.99 ~~$27.99~~ Save 25% Nov 13, 2012

Max Emanuel Cencic has become one of the best countertenors of his time. Cencic is a former member of the Vienna Boys’ Choir and has had a successful career, regularly performing at some of the world’s most famous opera houses as well as recording for Capriccio and other labels such as Virgin Classics.

Capriccio now presents Cencic’s 3 previous CDs of cantatas by Vivaldi, Scarlatti and Caldara on the label in new packaging and a bonus documentary DVD which includes interviews and video clips.

View Full Page

Sale

Vivaldi, Scarlatti, Caldara: Cantatas / Ose, Cencic, Ornamente 99
Capriccio Nov 2012
CD + DVD
~~$27.99~~ $20.99

Vivaldi & Bach: 12 Concertos, Op. 3, "L’estro armonico" / Alessandrini, Concerto Italiano

Naïve

$21.99 Jul 01, 2022

By its title and its twelve violin concertos, Vivaldi’s L’estro armonico immediately captures the imagination. Rinaldo Alessandrini and his Concerto Italiano, with the addition of high-calibre keyboardists, present the full collection with the six additional adaptations for keyboard by Bach. This Opus 3 published by Vivaldi in 1711 vibrates with the virtues of a poetic energy taken to the highest level of expressivity, embodied in the subtle and virtuosic exchanges between a string orchestra and four, two, then one solo violins. The stylistic principles developed in each piece were completely new and inspired for the time, the virtuosity intense, and the success considerable, rapidly reaching beyond the frontiers of La Serenissima. Which is how Bach, seven years younger than Vivaldi and drawn to the polyphonic dimension of these “multi-voiced” pieces, adapted several of them for organ and harpsichord.

View Full Page

Vivaldi & Bach: 12 Concertos, Op. 3, "L’estro armonico" / Alessandrini, Concerto Italiano
Naïve Jul 2022
CD
$21.99

Domenico Scarlatti: Complete Keyboard Sonatas, Vol. 1

Music and Arts Programs of America

$64.99 Apr 01, 2010

Scarlatti's 555 keyboard sonatas are single movements, mostly in binary form, and are almost all intended for the harpsichord. Some of them display harmonic audacity in their use of discords, and also unconventional modulations to remote keys. Only a small fraction of Scarlatti's compositions were published during his lifetime; Scarlatti himself seems to have overseen the publication in 1738 of the most famous collection, his 30 Essercizi ('Exercises'). These were rapturously received throughout Europe, and were championed by the foremost English writer on music of the eighteenth century, Dr. Charles Burney. The many sonatas which were unpublished during Scarlatti's lifetime have appeared in print irregularly in the two and a half centuries since. Scarlatti has, however, attracted notable admirers, including Frédéric Chopin, Johannes Brahms, Béla Bartók, Dmitri Shostakovich, Heinrich Schenker, Vladimir Horowitz and Marc-André Hamelin. The Russian school of pianism has particularly championed the sonatas. Frédéric Chopin, as a piano teacher, notably wrote: 'Those of my dear colleagues who teach the piano are unhappy that I make my own pupils work on Scarlatti. But I am surprised that they are so blinkered. His music contains finger-exercises aplenty and more than a touch of the most elevated spirituality... I maintain that the day will come when Scarlatti's music will often be played at concerts and that audiences will appreciate and enjoy it'. [Courtesy of Wikipedia]. There has never been a complete recording of all Scarlatti sonatas played on the piano, although Naxos currently has such a project underway, in which each CD is allocated to a different performer. The Music & Arts project will be the only complete edition played on the piano by a single performer.

View Full Page

Domenico Scarlatti: Complete Keyboard Sonatas, Vol. 1
Music and Arts Programs of America Apr 2010
CD
$64.99

Vivaldi, A.: Concertos - Rv 455, 540, 552, 558, 576 / Sinfon
Berlin Classics Aug 1993
CD
$21.99

The Art of Vivaldi's Lute / Bach Sinfonia

Sono Luminus

$18.99 May 31, 2011

A varied and entertaining programme which gives a good impression of Vivaldi's writing for the lute.

The title of this disc leads one to expect pieces with a solo part for the lute. One wonders why three compositions have been included without a lute part. The reason is that in the motet and the two sinfonias the basso continuo is performed on theorbo, a lute with longer bass strings. This is joined by the lute in the motet. That results in a characteristic sound which is more intimate than with a harpsichord playing the bass part. Intimacy is a feature of this recording anyway. Some fast movements are played in a more moderate tempo than we are used to hear in Vivaldi's music, in particular in performances by Italian ensembles.

The fact that Vivaldi wrote a number of pieces for instrumental ensemble with a solo part for the lute is remarkable. Since the renaissance the lute had mainly been used as a solo instrument, to accompany singers and as part of an ensemble of various instruments. When the concertante style emerged in the early 17th century the lute - and in particular the theorbo - was used in the basso continuo. Compositions for lute solo with other instruments were rare in Italy. Most pieces of this kind were written by composers north of the Alps, in particular in Germany. It is assumed that the Concerto in D (RV 93) and the two trios were composed around 1730 when Vivaldi is thought to have stayed in Prague for a while. That could explain the solo role for the lute. The trios are obviously meant as chamber music, but the concerto is also likely to have been intended for a performance with one instrument per part, as on this disc. The lack of a part for the viola is in indication of this.

The Concerto in d minor (RV 540) is a special case; it is Vivaldi's only concerto for this combination. He was one of the first composers to write any concertante music for the viola d'amore. In his oeuvre we find six solo concertos and a concerto da camera with a viola d'amore part. Furthermore he used it as an obbligato instrument in arias in some vocal works. In the concerto the viola d'amore and the lute are treated on equal terms in the fast movements. In the largo the focus is on the viola d'amore whereas the lute is reduced to playing arpeggios.

The Sinfonias which open and close this disc belong to a considerable number of pieces which are referred to as concerti ripieni. They are scored for strings and b.c. and don't include any solo episodes. They are mostly very short - every movement taking barely two minutes or less. That depends on the choice of tempi and here these are mostly on the moderate side. It works quite well in the Sinfonia in d minor (RV 127) but less so in the Sinfonia in g minor (RV 157) where I find them just too slow.

In the trios and the concertos the tempi of the fast movements are also moderate. It lends them much grace, which suits these pieces well. Ronn McFarlane gives very fine performances of the solo parts. The violin and viola d'amore parts are also nicely played. I am less pleased by William Bauer's vibrato now and then in the largo of the Concerto in d minor.

Lastly the motet: it is very much in the style of Vivaldi's chamber cantatas. Like these the motets were first and foremost vehicles for the soloist to show his or her skills. Jennifer Ellis Kampani's skills are considerable as she convicingly deals with the many coloraturas, in particular in the opening aria. She has a pleasant voice which is perfectly suited to this repertoire.

It rounds off a programme which is varied and entertaining, and gives a good impression of Vivaldi's writing for the lute. The performances generally focus on the more intimate and graceful side of Vivaldi's oeuvre. There are no exaggerations as one meets them now and then in Italian performances of this repertoire.

-- Johan van Veen, MusicWeb International

View Full Page

The Art of Vivaldi's Lute / Bach Sinfonia
Sono Luminus May 2011
CD
$18.99

Vivaldi: Orlando Furioso / Fasolis, I Barocchisti [Blu-ray]

Dynamic

Blu-Ray

$36.99 Oct 19, 2018

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

Also available on standard DVD
Antonio Vivaldi’s three-act opera Orlando Furioso is set to an Italian libretto by Grazio Braccioli and is based on Ludovico Ariosto’s epic poem of the same name. The opera alternates arias with recitative, and is set on an island at an unspecified time. The story line combines several plot lines from Ariosto: the exploits of the hero Orlando are detailed, as well as the tale of the sorceress Alcina. Orlando is performed in this production by Sonia Prina, and Alcina by Lucia Cirillo. Recorded at the 43rd Festival della Valle d’Itria, this production is the first video recording of this rare opera. Subtitles are available on this release in Italian, German, English, French, Japanese, and Korean.

View Full Page

Vivaldi: Orlando Furioso / Fasolis, I Barocchisti [Blu-ray]
Dynamic Oct 2018
Blu-Ray
$36.99

Vivaldi: Sleep

Signum Classics

$19.99 May 21, 2021

Following the huge success of their recent album release 'Timelapse' (Jan 2021), Orchestra of the Swan presents Vivaldi Sleep, a project that was initiated by the orchestra during the first national lockdown of 2020. Eleven artists from a broad range of genres - including klezmer, folk, electronica and jazz - were invited to add a solo part in response to the orchestra's recording of the second movement of Autumn from Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Guest artists recorded their solo parts at home and were given free rein to start prior to the orchestra's recording and continue after it had finished if they wished. Manipulation of the source material was also allowed. Formed in 1995, Orchestra of the Swan is a British chamber orchestra which, under the artistic direction of David Le Page, is passionate about audience inclusivity and blurring the lines between genres through it's adventurous and accessible programming. This album demonstrates this ethos exactly.

View Full Page

Vivaldi: Sleep
Signum Classics May 2021
CD
$19.99

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons & More on Organ & Violin / Gorol, Heinke

MDG

SACD

$24.99 Oct 21, 2022

Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" is one of the greatest evergreens of all time. The sound painting of the Venetian violin virtuoso simply casts a spell over everyone. David Gorol and Theophil Heinke go one better: Their arrangement for violin and organ makes use of the richness of sound of the queen of instruments and adds a whole new dimension to Vivaldi's already broad palette. In addition, there is the A minor Concerto, which Bach had already transferred to the organ. The fact that a historical jewel, the famous Trost organ in Waltershausen, can also be heard in its original sound makes this brand-new Super Audio album a triple listening pleasure. Above all, Vivaldi's sound extremes are considerably expanded with the organ: it thunders and flashes in the summer thunderstorm, it's a joy; the horns blow cheerfully for the hunt, and at the latest when the birds warble in spring, one no longer wants to miss the flute stops of the listed instrument.

The adaptation is by no means trivial: the highly virtuosic violin part, which David Gorol presents on a modern instrument with somnambulistic certainty and a fine feeling for the drama of the score, remains untouched. In favor of a brilliant expression, a retuning to the historical pitch of the organ was dispensed with - a challenge for Heinke, who thus has to orchestrate in extremely unusual keys. As an encore, Gorol and Heinke also offer the distinctively arranged A minor Double Concerto. Here, the violin performs directly with the second soloists part played by the organ.

View Full Page

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons & More on Organ & Violin / Gorol, Heinke
MDG Oct 2022
SACD
$24.99

Scarlatti: Sonate a due clavicembali

Tactus

$21.99 Nov 21, 2025

For many decades, students of Domenico Scarlatti, including me, have been debating about the relationship between most of Scarlatti's Sonatas and Flamenco dance. Silvia Rambaldi and Andreina Di Girolamo deserve our praise for presenting a practical demonstration that moves beyond the boundary of words, uniting dance and harpsichord performance, by means of the collaboration of the dancer Rita Marchesini, who is an expert on both Baroque and Flamenco dance. And since very often within certain Sonatas there is an alternation between the Andalusian style and the Italian one, the dancer, with her performance, demonstrates that it is possible to "play" with both styles appropriately. (Emilia Fadini) This interesting production on the harpsichord sonatas "encrypted" by Domenico Scarlatti is accompanied by a DVD rom containing the video of the sonatas for two harpsichords filmed in the performance "La festa dorata dell'anima", in which Rita Marchesini (historical dance and flamenco) and Alberto Rodriguez (Andalusian guitarist) join the harpsichordists Andreina di Girolamo and Silvia Rambaldi in this "field demonstration" of the influence of Italian and Spanish dance on the works of the great composer. The comments in the interview with the late Emilia Fadini are not to be missed.

View Full Page

Scarlatti: Sonate a due clavicembali
Tactus Nov 2025
CD
$21.99

Mix & Match

Chiaroscuro - Vivaldi / Guimond, Lussier, Arion
Early-music.com Sep 2008
CD
$18.99

Vivaldi: Opera IV "La Stravaganza" - concerti 1/6
Tactus Jan 1996
CD
$21.99