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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
According to Vivaldi scholar Michael Talbot, Vivaldi's cello concertos 'tower above' those of his contemporaries. Some of his most inspired compositions feature this instrument - whether as concertos or sonatas. Vivaldi wrote 27 cello concertos in all, and this first Naxos CD of the complete set contains no less than seven of them.
While there are several versions of these concertos on offer, I doubt if there is a better recording than this one or a better soloist to play them than Raphael Wallfisch. (David Watkins is another cellist who can conjure up a captivating and authentically Baroque sound at will.)
Talbot has drawn attention to the fact that in Vivaldi's concertos for 'lower' register instruments - bassoon and cello especially - the orchestration is fuller and more interesting in terms of its greater complexity. In this recording, the City of London Sinfonia offers a multi-dimensional bass, with theorbo, lute, harpsichord and chamber organ to reflect this greater interest, although, frustratingly, the accompanying notes give the barest details of instrumentation. (This is one area where higher priced labels consistently score over Naxos.)
Overall, however, this CD gives outstanding value and some enthralling sounds. (The Concerto in a is a neglected gem and something of a miniature - at 1'38, its last movement is only slightly longer than its sample track on Amazon! It also anticipates modernism in its insistent and repetitive phrase substituting for any recognisable melody.) Finding eminent soloists on budget labels like this makes such CDs frankly unmissable.
While there are several versions of these concertos on offer, I doubt if there is a better recording than this one or a better soloist to play them than Raphael Wallfisch. (David Watkins is another cellist who can conjure up a captivating and authentically Baroque sound at will.)
Talbot has drawn attention to the fact that in Vivaldi's concertos for 'lower' register instruments - bassoon and cello especially - the orchestration is fuller and more interesting in terms of its greater complexity. In this recording, the City of London Sinfonia offers a multi-dimensional bass, with theorbo, lute, harpsichord and chamber organ to reflect this greater interest, although, frustratingly, the accompanying notes give the barest details of instrumentation. (This is one area where higher priced labels consistently score over Naxos.)
Overall, however, this CD gives outstanding value and some enthralling sounds. (The Concerto in a is a neglected gem and something of a miniature - at 1'38, its last movement is only slightly longer than its sample track on Amazon! It also anticipates modernism in its insistent and repetitive phrase substituting for any recognisable melody.) Finding eminent soloists on budget labels like this makes such CDs frankly unmissable.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4 reviews
16 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Wonderful performances and warm sound
12 Dec 2005
Format:Audio CD
This is volume 1 of a 4-volume set on the Naxos label comprising all of Vivaldi's 27 cello concertos. I have only heard volumes 1 and 2, so cannot fairly evaluate 3 and 4 yet, but I can tell you that the first two volumes are terrific performances of this wonderful music. Vivaldi was very inventive in writing these, so they never seem repetitive, and the good blend of tempos keeps them from seeming either too hurried or too sedate. Raphael Wallfisch on solo cello performs with enthusiasm and precision, yet always tastefully in accord with how the music was written. The recording quality is very good too, warm and well-balanced. If you trust the writers of the Penguin Guide as I do to rate classical recordings, they sum up their attitude to all 4 volumes of these recordings with the statement: "a remarkable achievement, standing very high in the Vivaldi discography," and give their very highest "Rosette" rating to volume 3.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Excellent Addition to Any Classical Music Collection
27 Dec 2009
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
While Vivaldi remains most well known as a composer of his own instrument, the violin, his cello concerti are masterpieces of the baroque era and demonstrate his profound sensitivity and facility for writing for the cello. Although none were published in his own lifetime, Vivaldi's cello concerti are little gems of the baroque literature, and this recording does not disappoint. In this, the first of four volumes of Vivaldi's cello concerti, Rapael Wallfisch on solo cello, delivers a fresh and lively performance, beautifully balanced by the accompanying City of London Simphonia and Nicholas Kraimer on the Harpsichord. The quality of this recording is very high and the variety of textures and moods on display in these seven concerti are wonderful to behold and will delight even the most jaded classical music listener who thought that all Vivaldi sounds the same.
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Beautifully Played Concertos
21 May 2007
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Someone said that Vivaldi wrote the same concerto 500 times. That being said, these Cello concertos are beautifully played and very entertaining music. This group uses modern instruments, but they do a great job with the music. The words fresh and lively would describe this music well.
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