Vivaldi, Manze, Academy of Ancient Music - Concert for the Prince of Poland

Here, at a bargain price, is a real treat: the lively, elegant, musically alert Andrew Manze leading and playing a handful of wonderful Vivaldi concerti preceded by a little Sinfonia. The concerti, all backed up by the usual strings, are for various combinations of instruments. Two are straight violin concerti (playful and bright). One is for violin and three echo violins that repeat what the lead violin has done, but at a distance from the other performers (very entertaining). The most beautiful is for lute and viola d'amore (a gentle, dark texture). The CD ends with one scored for recorders, chalumeaux, mandolins, therobos, cello, and special violins, which is a riot of sound, with a particularly jaunty first movement. The disc's title refers to a visit to Venice in 1740 by Frederick Christian, the Prince Elector of Saxony, during which Vivaldi's music was performed. He was a lucky prince, and we're lucky to have this CD. As usual, Manze and the Academy of Ancient Music are superb. --Robert Levine Amazon.com

Vivaldi: Toe-Tapping Permitted

As the other reviewers clearly note, this is an excellent recording. I have always been a big fan of the Harmonia Mundi label. Beautiful sound production, first-rate musicians, almost always with a period-instrument approach or focus, and, I must superficially admit, fantastic album covers! Although Vivaldi is often overlooked among the list of "great composers," at least as written about by Harold C. Schonberg and Michael Steen, he (Vivaldi) certainly ranks among the Beethovens of this world. (I know, there is only one Beethoven.) Is it because Vivaldi is instantly likable, even to those who do not generally listen to "classical" music? Is it because Vivaldi found his vein of gold and mined it throughout his entire oeuvre, rarely diverging from a "sound" that is so quintessentially his? I don't know.

The thing that brings me here to waste precious time, and write a review of this recording, is the First Movement (Allegro molto) of the Concerto in C Major, RV 558. This is Track #16 on the record. Rhythmically it is a true toe-tapper. The mood is shiny, and will brighten even the darkest day. This joyous shade of feeling is Vivaldi's stamp. If not for anything else, buy this record for this track. It alone is worth the price of the entire album! November 26, 2008

Vigorous, but not tedious

This is how I like my Vivaldi: strong but not big-boned, fast and not staid, and with a handy dash of fantasy.

Manze and the Academy of Ancient Music pull this off to great effect: revel in concerto rv558.

Whereever you are on the spectrum of classical music, this CD will do you good!

There's nothing more to be said! August 28, 2007

Music for a historical event

Most Vivaldi recordings contain programs selected either by the medium (all bassoon concertos, for example) or by the opus number (all the concertos from Opus 8). This one is utterly unique, and that fact--in addition to the splendid performances--makes it especially interesting. The CD contains music performed (and at least partly written for) a specific event in Venice--a visit by Prince Frederick Christian, the son of the King of Poland. He was known to be very interested in music, so 3 special concerts were offered during his visit. One of these, on March 21, 1740, was organized and directed by Vivaldi.
The evening's program included a vocal piece--a serenata called "The Chorus of Muses" by the great playwright Carlo Goldoni--with its sections introduced by four concertos composed by Vivaldi. (The music of the serenata is lost, and even the name of the composer is unknown.)
Vivaldi's contribution to the evening was commissioned by the Pietà, the orphanage whose all-female orchestra he had made famous earlier in his career. These concertos may very well be his last works, because soon after the festive performance, he moved to Vienna, where he died in poverty the following year.
So listening to this recording not only lets us hear fine performances of some late Vivaldi works (still amazing for the variety of scoring and compositional approaches after having composed so much music over so many years), but it also transports us, in a kind of musical time machine, to a period and lifestyle that has certainly disappeared in the last 250 years. We know from his diary that the Prince particularly enjoyed one "echo" concerto (in which several instruments were seated at a distance for special echo effects).
It is an unusual and delightful way to encounter Vivaldi. January 12, 2007

What elegance and grace is contained here

The Academy of Ancient Music has done a wonderful job with this CD of the 4 Concertos written by Vivaldi in honor of the vist of Prince Frederick Christian, Prince of Poland, to Venice. The works were spread out over several evenings so that they could be enjoyed by the illustrious guests. The Academy of Ancient Music does a superb job with this collection of music that required use of instruments rarely used today.

Sinfonia in G major dazzles us with joyful pomp. The third movement echoes the Autumn section of the Four Seasons by capturing the sound of the harvest folk dance.

Violin Concerto in E-flat major is incredibly well constructed, almost mathematical in composition, with passages building one upon the other. The first movement builds gradually but the third movement slips and slides like children in a playground.

Concerto in D minor has courtly beinnings. Like much of Vivaldi, the violins sometimes are allowed to take the foreground with a somewhat rustic power, yet they are usually balanced by the pure elegance of the other instruments and melodies that echo with intensity. The lute accompanies the violin and other string instruments with its Renaissance sound. Lute strings individually plucked slow the piece and increase the intensity of anticipation in the second movement.

In Concerto in A major, Vivaldi uses violins with three echo violins. In the CD program they explain that when this piece was played for the Polish Prince, the primary violinist was visible but that they echo violinists were hidden around the concert hall, which I can only guess was a delightful and playful game to play with the listening audience of the time. In this concerto, the violins sound so birdlike as they echo each other's songs back and forth. In the final movement, Allegro, the violins boldly and sweetly play their echo game, no longer playing birds but mellowing into instruments of joy.

In Violin Concerto in C Major we hear graceful refrains that build like the Spring section of the Four Seasons.

In the Concerto in C Major we hear the finest piece on the whole CD in terms of complexity and orchestration. The recorder is used along with instruments called chalumeaux and theorbos. The grand march sound of the Allegro molto subsides long enough to hear the wonderful wind instruments complimented by mandolins, giving a delightful break from the violins. I think this concerto is my favorite on the CD, with the warm sounds of rare instruments permeating the piece.Yet, how can one pick a favorite from this wonderful collection of music.

Vivaldi is so elegant, so graceful and balanced. I love his music because it puts demands only on my ear the way Matisse puts demands only on my eyes. He transports me. October 12, 2005

Diversity is your best bet

The final work on this superb CD is one of Vivaldi's true masterworks. Like his incredibly famous Four Seasons, this work has true inspiration and a sound that is second to none. This Concerto in C is written for an astonishing array of diverse instruments. My favorite is the one that sounds just like a clarinet, although the clarinet, as we know it today, was not invented until decades later. This is a work that musicians just seem to absolutely adore. This is my third recording of this piece and in each case the performance has had amazing enthusiasm. It is a work that should be in everybody's library. Unless you have a strong dislike for the baroque or Vivaldi, you should enjoy this music. The rest of the music here is standard Vivaldi. It is interesting and has wonderful sounds, but not really inspired. However, at the budget price, the CD is well worth the money for the one masterpiece it has.
September 3, 2005

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