Composer: Tomaso Albinoni, Antonio Caldara, Arcangelo Corelli, Giuseppe Tartini, Giuseppe Torelli, Antonio Vivaldi
Performer: La Serenissima, Rachel Chaplin, Gail Hennessy, Peter Whelan
Conductor: Adrian Chandler
Format: FLAC (tracks)
Label: Avie
Catalogue: AV2371
Release: 2017
Size: 1.41 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: cover
Caldara: Sinfonia in C major
01. I. Allegro
02. II. Andante, piano [e] staccato
03. III. Allegro
Corelli: Sinfonia, WoO 1, to the oratorio Santa Beatrice d’Este
04. I. Grave
05. II. Allegro
06. III. Adagio
07. IV. Largo assai
08. V. Vivace
Tartini: Concerto in E major, D51
09. I. Allegro
10. II. Grave. “Tortorella bacie…”
11. III. Allegro assai
Vivaldi: Concerto RV151 in G major for strings & basso continuo ‘Alla rustica’
12. I. Presto
13. II. Adagio
14. III. Allegro
Vivaldi: Bassoon Concerto, RV 467 in C major
15. I. Allegro
16. II. Adagio
17. III. Allegro
Albinoni: 12 Concerti a cinque, Op. 9 No. 3 for 2 Oboes in F Major
18. I. Allegro
19. II. Adagio
20. III. Allegro
Torelli: Sinfonia in C Major, G.33
21. I. Allegro
22. II. Adagio
23. III. Presto
Gramophone Award-winning Adrian Chandler and his period-instrument ensemble La Serenissima present The Italian Job, a feast of instrumental colour featuring oboes, bassoons, trumpets, trombone, timpani, strings and continuo, by some of the finest composers of the Italian baroque. The music on this recording comes from four cities, each with a rich musical heritage: Venice (Albinoni, Caldara, Vivaldi), Bologna (Torelli), Padua (Tartini) and Rome (Corelli).
The English, historical-instrument, Baroque ensemble La Serenissima (the term was a nickname for the city of Venice) has specialized in somewhat scholarly recordings that nevertheless retain considerable general appeal, and the group does it again with this release. The program offers some lesser-known composers, and some lesser-known pieces by famous composers like the tiny and fascinating Concerto alla rustica for two oboes, bassoon, strings, and continuo, RV 151. What ties the program together formally is that it covers a range of Italian cities that were becoming cultural centers as they declined in political power: not only Venice (Vivaldi, Albinoni, Caldara), but also Padua (Tartini), Bologna (Torelli), and Rome (Corelli). There are several works by composers known only for one or two big hits, and these are especially rewarding. Sample the opening movement of Tartini’s Violin Concerto E major, DS 51, with its unusual phrase construction and daringly chromatic cadenza passage: it has the exotic quality for which Tartini became famous, but it does not rely on sheer virtuosity. That work is played by leader Adrian Chandler himself, but he also chooses pieces for a large variety of other solo instruments: the Italian Baroque was about more than the violin. Each work on the album has something to recommend it, and collectively the performances may make up the best album of 2017 whose booklet includes footnotes.