Les concertos et sinfonias pour cordes

Description

After the rediscovery of the Four Seasons in the 1950s, the Vivaldian resurrection continued with the concertos for violin(s) by the brilliant Venetian, followed by those dedicated to the flute, oboe, bassoon, cello, viola d'amore, mandolin, and lute, as well as concertante works with multiple soloists, and those with soloists without orchestra. Then came the time for vocal music, both religious and secular, and finally the operas. Works for string orchestra (in 4 parts) seem to have attracted performers much less. A few isolated pieces have appeared in various anthologies, and a few rare recordings have revealed those identified as opera overtures. The extreme variety of the 51 works presented here, ranging from study pieces for the orchestra of the Pietà, festive overtures of an unidentified opera, introductions to solemnities, concert pieces, to church concertos, seems to indicate a production spread throughout the composer's career. One can only admire the perpetual outpouring of invention that these unjustly neglected pieces embody. Even if, preserved in manuscripts, they do not seem to have been deemed worthy of publication by their author, they represent an essential and brilliant gem of Vivaldi's genius. The Italian ensemble l'Archicembalo, with its ideal dimensions (4 violins, 1 viola, 1 cello, 1 double bass, and the harpsichord, all period instruments), presents here the first complete recording of these magnificent works in an interpretation filled with the abundant, protean, and multicolored spirit of the Red Priest. (Jean-Michel Babin-Goasdoué)