Search - Vivaldi, Enrico Onofri :: Vivaldi: La Follia / Vln Sonatas

Arresting, but not their best...

Biberfan | Virginia, USA | 07/29/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm always a fan of Mr. Onofri. His release of Vivaldi sonatas with Imaginarium was certainly anticipated and welcomed.



First, the playing is always imaginative and first-rate. But I have two principal criticisms of this release.



1) The rendition of La Follia, the trio sonata by Vivaldi based on the theme made famous by Corelli, isn't as strong as Onofri's reading with Il Giardino Armonico. What it is is more delicate, perhaps more precise at parts... but it lacks the gravity that the piece assumed in the earlier reading on Teldec or the one by Musica Antiqua, Köln in their recording in the early 1980s.



2) The quality of the recording is lacking somehow. I'm not a recording engineer so I can't be too precise as to why; but I may have preferred things if the microphones were closer to the instrumentalists. In most recordings with a soloist or duo, the sound can emphasize those players (over the continuo) and in this one everyone seems to have equal footing, which is fine (and likely more authentic).



That said, the music making here is still up to a high standard. Whether you need this release is up to your enthusiasm for Vivaldi's string chamber music. This recording has works that you'll find elsewhere, such as one of the "Sonate di Dresda" as recorded by Fabio Biondi. I actually prefer Biondi's reading of the G minor work (RV 28) as it is played with more "power." In place of volume and unbridled energy, Onofri and Co. offer some interesting colors with harp in the continuo with a delicacy of articulation that few can match."