Search - Antonio Vivaldi, Rinaldo Alessandrini, Patrizia Biccire :: Vivaldi - Gloria · Magnificat / Biccirè · Mingardo · York · Concerto Italiano

Vivaldi - Gloria · Magnificat / Biccirè · Mingardo · York · Concerto Italiano
Antonio Vivaldi, Rinaldo Alessandrini, Patrizia Biccire
Vivaldi - Gloria · Magnificat / Biccirè · Mingardo · York · Concerto Italiano
Genre: Classical
 
  •  Track Listings (29) - Disc #1

Don't let the startling double-time opening of this Gloria put you off--listen with an open mind and you'll be surprised how much sense it makes. Rinaldo Alessandrini's reading has many such surprises; some movements are t...  more »

     
   
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Synopsis

Amazon.com essential recording
Don't let the startling double-time opening of this Gloria put you off--listen with an open mind and you'll be surprised how much sense it makes. Rinaldo Alessandrini's reading has many such surprises; some movements are taken very quickly, others surprisingly slowly, yet his choices seem fresh rather than perverse. The Magnificat is lesser-known and thus less surprising, but it's every bit as lively. The soloists all sing nicely (though Biccire doesn't blend well in the soprano duet); the clear-voiced York and vigorous Mingardo provide imaginative ornaments. The excellent French chorus Akademia and Alessandrini's orchestra don't miss a single one of Alessandrini's beats. --Matthew Westphal
 

CD Reviews

Completely different - and good too!
TimPride | Winchester, England | 11/03/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I fell victim to the plugs at amazon.com and bought this CD on my first shopping trip. Vivaldi's Gloria has a particular resonance in our family, and I have at least 2 recordings of it already so that I can sing along. This version is quite extraordinary. Alessandrini has gone in with his own ideas, without sticking to what we expect to hear in this work, even in versions using instruments of the period. His approach is avowedly operatic, and that really does work. The opening movement rushes in, as if continuing a drama from somewhere "off-stage", but nowhere does it sound out of place. There are other illuminations, such as the sweeping lyricism of the "Domine Fili" or the tempo relationships at "suscipe". Sometimes it does not workfor example at "Domine Deus", where the alto soloist is stretched to keep the line going. Also, what happened to the obbligato oboe we are all used to in "Domine Deus"? The soloists are good, particularly Deborah York, whose expertise in this repertoire is well-known. All in all, a version you have to experience. Having said all that, the "Magnificat" is not quite such a thrilling experience, which perhaps says more about the music than the performers, who bring the same level of enterprise as earlier."
Same version but cheaper...
05/10/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)

"You can find another set of this extraordanary record/music for a lesser price here at Amazon. It IS EXACTLY the same set/record but it has another frontpicture but that one is a special disc with a bonus CD from Opus 111 and my suggestion, if you dont like to pay extra is that you seek for Alessandrini Gloria... the number of that one is OPS 1951... a superb disc."
Gloria to Rinaldo Alessandrini!
TimPride | 09/21/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Maestro Rinado Alessandrini just bursts in joy in this most joyous of Glorias. Don't be put off by the fast speeds, they have a reason and an organic logic. This recording is so beautiful and so exciting, that other recordings like Parrott's or Pinnock's just seem cartoons next to this. Don't miss the gorgeous young contralto Sara Mingardo in the solos. OPUS111 as usual frame this performance in superb sound and presentation. What a great label this is!"