Stereophile
Why should I bother with yet another recording of Vivaldiโs The Four Seasons you may ask.
Because baroque violinist Rachel Podger and Brecon Baroqueโs new, period instrument Channel Classics recording of Le Quattro Stagioni and three other violin concertos by Vivaldi is likely the freshest, most joy-filled, and best-recorded of the bunch. Podger, who plays with and directs her superb ensemble of eight, isnโt interested in knocking you over the head with pyrotechnic wizardry or some bizarre 21st century take on Vivaldiโs Top Hit of 1730. Instead, her sole desire, masterfully enabled by engineer Jared Sacks, is to honor the humor, invention, good spirits, and marvelous interplay of colors that have made Vivaldiโs irresistibly tuneful concerto a perennial classic.
Available in Stereo and Surround DSD, in download resolutions up to DSD 256 or DXD โ I auditioned it in DSD128. The recording puts a premium on color and space. Set down in St. Judeโs Church, London, which is completely not immune to the very occasional low rumble from passing traffic or, perhaps, the Underground, the recording optimally balances acoustic resonance with clarity of focus. With period instrument timbres far less homogenized than their modern counterparts. The sound of theorbo in the adagio of one of the recordingโs infinitely lovely companion concertos, Il Riposo per Il S.S. Natale, is to savor over and over. The recording puts a premium on color saturation, interplays and contrasts without ever drawing attention to itself. Made with the Horus Analog to DSD 256 converter and Pyramix Editing Software from Merging Technologies and Van den Hul cables, this native DSD production is demonstration class.
Itโs the playing, however, that puts Podgerโs version over the top. You may not know the program of The Four Seasons, but the ever-popular first movement, La Primavera (Spring), includes violins imitating trilling birds, and scoring designed to maximize the feelings of height, space, and the freedom that spring brings (for everyone except the seriously allergic). Having interviewed Podger, and found her every bit as charming as her playing, itโs clear that her hand-picked ensemble is filled with musicians who share her delight in music, sound, and life. With no pun intended, this is one of the gayest versions of La Primavera Iโve ever encountered.
With the second movement, LโEstate (Summer), populated by flies and mosquitoes, thunder from an approaching storm, and the inward ruminations of an occasionally bitten, storm-threatened shepherd; the third movement, LโAutunno (Autumn) centering around a drunken fool who so annoys the ensemble that they determine to do him in; and the close, LโInverno (Winter), replete with shivering limbs and chattering teeth that eventually warm by the fireside as raindrops hit the window pane, The Four Seasons is ripe with narrative and humor. Once you know what itโs about, you can savor all of that in this recording.
Because the three other concertos are not as well knownโVivaldi, after all, wrote at least 214 of his over 500 concertos for violin and orchestraโis no reason to write them off. The intentionally light scoring of the aforementioned Il Riposo (The Rest) allows for an overabundance of lovely, sweet felicities that transform time and space into a wonderland come true. Concerto LโAmoroso (The Lover) is just as sweet, while the closing Concerto, Il Grosso Mogul (The Great Mogul) is a grand, slashing tour-de-force. Most likely a fantasy written for a theatrical performance or opera set in India (by someone who had never visited India), it serves as a foil to the two short concertos that precede it, and enables us to rise from our seats refreshed and optimistic.
Jason Victor Serinus
- Source
One of the best interpretations I have ever heard.
In order to capture the great recording quality (DSD 256) in its entirety, high-quality equipment is required.
Andreas Schuster (verified owner) โ
Caveat emptor. I should have listened more carefully to the preview samples available. The album is beautifully recorded and I am sure that Rachel is an outstanding performer, however, the style of the interpretation turned out to be NOT to my liking. I donโt know if this is due to the choices of the violinist, conductor, or director, but the way the notes all seem to โslideโ into each other makes the violin sound whiny and obsequious. Listen to the first minute of this recording and compare it to the performance by Arabella Steinbacher (also on this store) to hear the difference. Choose the one that suits your taste, not the one with the most positive reviews, as that was the mistake I made.
Michael Naray (verified owner) โ
Thanks for your review Michael. If you wish we can swap the album out for something else that you may like. You may contact support with your order number for this offer.
Jonas Sacks (verified owner) โ
The expression of overexposure by Geoff Brown (The Times) hits the nail on the head. In combination with the historic instruments it is in parts over the top. Also tonally, some techniques of Ms. Podger are not working well making the thinner sound of this violin to thin and acute. This is boosted by the bright setup of this recording with prominent support miking, i.e. the cello at Spring-Largo. Neverless a fine, new and fresh interpretation of this popular piece.
I purchased the 24 nit 192k FLAC version of the album first which I can recommend strongly. Discovering the DSD streaming function from my NAS at the G3 update for my T+A player with the DSD 256 version ended in disappointment. This version sounds thin and sharp. In contrast to all other recordings in DSD and PCM that Iโve compared.
Eric Berger (verified owner) โ