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Reviewer: James
A. Altena
The list of Vivaldi’s works (on Wikipedia, admittedly not a perfect though a most convenient information source) that are listed as being specifically or alternatively scored for recorder include the sonatas RV 52, 54–59, 86, and 806; the solo concertos RV 441–445; and the concertos for multiple solo instruments that include one or two recorders RV 87, 92, 92a, 94, 95, 101, 103, 105, 108, 555, 566, 576, and 577. In addition, recordists also often play the sonatas featuring flute RV 48–51, 84, 800, and 809; the solo flute concertos RV 426–440, 750, and 783; and the concertos for multiple solo instruments that include the flute RV 88, 89, 91, 96, 98, 99, 100, 102, 104, 104a, 106, 106a, 107, 533, 570, and 572. Here are two releases that draw on Vivaldi’s solo recorder concertos RV 441–445, each featuring a long-time veteran among solo recorder virtuosos; Laurin plays all five works, but Harvey omits RV 445. Laurin also previously recorded RV 441, 443 and 444, along with RV 433, 434, and 439 from the flute concertos (on recorder), for BIS in 1991 with the Drottningholm Baroque Ensemble. (In RV 443 and 445, Laurin here adopts the alternative practice of interpreting the notation “alla quarta bassa” as permitting transposition of those works down a major fourth from sopranino to soprano recorder; hence the different key signatures for RV 443 in the two headnotes.) The respective interpretive approaches on these two releases are very different. Laurin and the 1B1 ensemble exemplify an approach now fashionable on one end of the period performance spectrum of the Baroque, with hard-driven tempos, punchy rhythms and accents, and emphasis on latent and passing harmonic dissonance pushed to the extreme edge, particularly in the opening work on this disc, RV 443. I suspect that the key to this aesthetic is suggested by a previous CD issued with these same performers, advertised in the booklet for this release, devoted to “Fifteen concerto movements for eagle recorder and strings by the Dutch composer Chiel Meijerring (b. 1954)” and titled Rock That Flute. Apparently such performers have decided to embrace the pounding drive and energy of modern rock music and apply that to Baroque music. By contrast, Harvey, Huggett, & Co., on a reissue of material originally recorded for ASV in 1998, are sweet-toned and soft-grained, erring perhaps a degree too much to port instead of starboard. The recorded sound provides a similar contrast: That of BIS has the hard-surfaced “in your face” feel of typical rock music recordings, whereas the acoustic of Altus is much warmer, closer to fuzzy velvet.
Both discs are well played by
their soloists and supporting ensembles for their respective alternative
outlooks. The new BIS release comes with a detailed booklet illustrated with
photos, while that for the Altus disc is adequate but far more modest. While
I find neither extreme here ideal, I find Laurin and 1B1 consistently more
interesting, if at times off-putting (the earlier recording with
Drottningholm is more ingratiating), with Harvey and the London forces
coming off as too relaxed, even somewhat bland and nondescript, though by
way of compensation they offer three works by contemporaries of Vivaldi.
(For a partial alternative, the Naudot and Sammartini Concertos, along with
the Vivaldi Concertos RV 87, 92, 94, 105, 108, 441, and 442, are also played
by Frans Brüggen in the 12-CD set devoted to that artist which I reviewed in
36:6.) To my surprise, I can locate only two other releases readily
available that include all five of Vivaldi’s RV 441–445 concertos: Michael
Schneider with his Capella Academica on CPO, and László Czidra with the
Nicolaus Esterházy Sinfonia on Naxos. Between these, my vote goes
unhesitatingly to Schneider; I have enthusiastically reviewed several other
discs of solo recorder concertos by him, and like those it is eminently
stylish and strikes a happy interpretive medium between the two items under
review here. By contrast, Czidra is much closer to Harvey in his approach,
though I personally find the timbre of his instruments a bit on the harsh
side. But your choice between any of these will depend on the aesthetic
outlook you prefer, and all can be recommended accordingly. You likely know
where you stand here. | |
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