Vivaldi: The Four Seasons

by Joshua Bell

Overview

Mighty fine playing. Bell has the lightness and quickness of mercury in passagework, and a smooth and sweet lyricism no less divine in the slower sections.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/02/2008
Label:	Sony Classics
UPC:	0886971101324
Rank:	5045

Tracks

1. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~La Primavera: Concerto No. 1 in E major, Op. 8, No. 1, RV 269. 1. Allegro
2. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~La Primavera: Concerto No. 1 in E major, Op. 8, No. 1, RV 269. 2. Largo e pianissimo sempre
3. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~La Primavera: Concerto No. 1 in E major, Op. 8, No. 1, RV 269. 3. Allegro
4. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~L'Estate: Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 8, No. 2, RV 315. 1. Allegro non molto
5. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~L'Estate: Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 8, No. 2, RV 315. 2. Adagio
6. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~L'Estate: Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 8, No. 2, RV 315. 3. Presto
7. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~L'Autunno: Concerto No. 3 in F major, Op. 8, No. 3, RV 293. 1. Allegro
8. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~L'Autunno: Concerto No. 3 in F major, Op. 8, No. 3, RV 293. 2. Adagio molto
9. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~L'Autunno: Concerto No. 3 in F major, Op. 8, No. 3, RV 293. 3. Allegro
10. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~L'Inverno: Concerto No. 4 in F minor, Op. 8, No. 4, RV 297. 1. Allegro non molto
11. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~L'Inverno: Concerto No. 4 in F minor, Op. 8, No. 4, RV 297. 2. Largo
12. The Four Seasons (Il quattro stagione), concertos (4) for violin, strings & continuo ("Il cimento" Nos. 1-4) , Op. 8/1 - 4~L'Inverno: Concerto No. 4 in F minor, Op. 8, No. 4, RV 297. 3. Allegro
13. Sonata for violin & continuo in G minor, B. g5 ("The Devil's Trill")

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Joshua Bell   Primary Artist,Violin
John Constable   Harpsichord,Continuo
Academy of St. Martin in the Fields   Orchestra

Technical Credits

Hayley Madden   Session Photographer
David Lai   A&R
Linda Kobler   Liner Notes
Antonio Vivaldi   Poetry
Dennis Collins   Liner Note Translation
Alex Miller   General Manager
Roxanne Slimak   Design,Art Direction
Reinhard Luthje   Liner Note Translation
Leslie Collman-Smith   Marketing
Steven Epstein   Producer
Elizabeth Wright   Product Development
Timothy White   Photography
Richard King   Engineer

Editorial Reviews

The Academy has a way with Baroque and Classical music. They remain firmly within interpretive bounds. But they don't forget sound and feeling. And just the same can be said of the soloist, Mr. Bell. We have here a top-drawer recording of "The Four Seasons." The first concerto, "Spring," is crisp, fresh, and delicious. It combines the "lyrical" and the "chordal," the "horizontal" and the "vertical." It is both grand and nimble — just as Vivaldi wants it to be.