Vivaldi : Concerti per vari strumenti - Alfredo Bernardini - Orchestra Barocca Zefiro - 2004.

Vivaldi : Concerti per vari strumenti - Alfredo Bernardini - Orchestra Barocca Zefiro
 

Paolo Grazzi and Alfredo Bernardini : oboe
Lorenzo Coppola and Daniele Latini : clarinett
Alberto Grazzi : fagotto
Stefano Montanari and Stefano Rossi : violin
Orchestra Barocca Zefiro
Alfredo Bernardini : Conductor
Year : 2004


Reviews :

BBC music magazine : George Pratt
Performance : *****
Sound : ***

A splendid account of seven concertos in coruscating colours including wind. Most spectacular is RV566 for pairs of violins, recorders, oboes and bassoon – a kaleidoscope of timbral variety and breathtaking verve. Zefiro have boundless energy in its fast movements and a fine sense of musical rhetoric as they hold up the pulse to reflect a momentary contrast in mood. Equally striking is their care for detail in the slow movement, two recorders floating effortlessly over bassoon and archlute. Alfredo Bernardini’s oboe is an original instrument from 1730, preserved not least because it is made of durable African hardwood. While museum curators might question playing it rather than preserving it as a permanent source of measurements for copying, it’s a privilege to encounter its warm and fruity tone. Zefiro’s mutual sensitivity is strikingly evident – the duet of oboe and violin in the familiar double concerto RV548, for instance, shows a remarkable marriage of minds. My only reservation lies in the close recording – the performers’ perspective – sometimes hardening tone. Otherwise, riveting.

Also :


Times on Line : Rick Jones
****

Vivaldi liked to share out the plums. A quarter of his 400 concertos are for unfashionable soloists such as oboes and clarinets, which had just been invented. Barocca Zefiro, an Italian band of period instrumentalists led by the oboist Alfredo Bernardini, open and close this new album with two pieces that pair the instruments in a quartet (RV559 and RV560).

The clarinets' clear sound bridges a gap between the low, rich chalumeau and the dazzling high trumpet, especially on RV560, where they trill bracingly in response to the finger-twisting runs from their double-reed co-soloists. The strength of the disc is the vibrant baroque colour in the instruments. The bassoonist Alberto Grazzi pumps out a beautiful woody mourning on RV497, Bernardini himself shows how his oboe bites on RV454 and the double oboes punch hard on the infectious RV534. An excellent recording.

More infos about Alfredo Bernardini and Orchestra Barocca Zefiro : Here

On this disc:

• Concerto for 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets, Strings and Continuo in C major, RV 559 
• Concerto for Bassoon, Strings and Continuo in A minor, RV 49707
• Concerto for 2 Violins, 2 Recorders, 2 Oboes, Bassoon, Strings and Continuo in D minor, RV 56610
• Concerto for 2 Oboes, Strings and Continuo in C major, RV 534 
• Concerto for Oboe, Violin, Strings and Continuo in B flat major, RV 548
• Concerto for Oboe, Strings and Continuo in D minor, RV 454 
• Concerto for 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets, Strings and Continuo in C major, RV 560

Happy listening!

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