The "French Connection" mooted by this release is pretty thin. It rests partly on a trio of Vivaldi's "Paris" concertos for strings and continuo, so called because they come from a Parisian manuscript. That wasn't surprising, for there eventually was quite a vogue for Vivaldi's music in France, with publishers issuing genuine and spurious collections of his work. Beyond that, there are pieces that have alleged hints of French style, such as dotted rhythms or dance-like movements resembling those of a French suite. It doesn ...
Read More
The "French Connection" mooted by this release is pretty thin. It rests partly on a trio of Vivaldi's "Paris" concertos for strings and continuo, so called because they come from a Parisian manuscript. That wasn't surprising, for there eventually was quite a vogue for Vivaldi's music in France, with publishers issuing genuine and spurious collections of his work. Beyond that, there are pieces that have alleged hints of French style, such as dotted rhythms or dance-like movements resembling those of a French suite. It doesn't add up to much; there's a lot more French influence in Bach's music than there ever was in Vivaldi's, and Vivaldi was popular among the Parisians precisely because his music was exotic. That said, this is an attractive collection of Vivaldi concertos for various instruments, with several lovely examples of the composer's ever-innovative treatment of the bassoon beautifully rendered by bassoonist Peter Whelan. A lot of the credit goes to the engineers, working in an old hospital...
Read Less
Portions of content provided by Rovi Corporation. © 2024 Rovi Corporation.