Vivaldi: The Four Seasons | Joshua Bell | Joshua Bell plays Vivaldi's Four Seasons and the...

Vivaldi: The Four Seasons | Joshua Bell | Wow!

classical music:

Vivaldi: The Four ...

	Vivaldi: The Four Seasons Joshua Bell SONY CLASSICS, 2008 average customer review:based on 12 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell, who has enchanted audiences for two decades with his breathtaking playing and tone of rare opulence, has recorded Antonio Vivaldi's concertos The Four Seasons. Widely considered as one of the premiere violinists of his generation, Bell is joined on this studio release by the celebrated musicians of the Academy of St.Martin in the Fields, who toured the work with him prior to the recording sessions. This recording of The Four Seasons is coupled with another masterpiece of Baroque virtuosity, Giuseppe Tartini's The Devil's Trill. The liner notes by Linda Kobler explain the curious genesis of Tartini's piece and the indisputable place of Vivaldi's concertos in the history of sonata composition.

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Joshua Bell plays Vivaldi's Four Seasons and the Devil's Trill Sonata

Although nearly everybody who owns at least dozen classical CDs, has already Vivaldi's Four Seasons in his collection. In spite of this, I do not hesitate to chose Joshua Bell's version with the excellent orchestra as a present, The most charming composition and particularly Bell's wonderful performance as soloist deserves it; not to forget that also on this CD he plays the without any flaw the technically extremely difficult Devil's Trill Sonata by Tartini. It is good to hear Bell also masterly performing Baroque music.

Wow!

Wow! I have bought 4 other versions of The Four Seasons, looking for, to my taste, the definitive version. This is it! The subtelty, nuance and pacing of Bell's version is perfect. That is where other versions fall down. I attended concerts by Joshua last year at the Disney Hall where he played the four Seasons and was mesmerized. Now it is available.

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Beautiful...

He's incredible. The sound that he creates flows right to the center of the soul.

wonderful rendition of an old favorite

this is a beautifully precise and moving version of vivaldi's much loved and most famous work. joshua bell never fails to please and the st. martin in the fields symphony does a lovely job as well. i have several versions of this work and so far this is my favorite.

Bell is a Great Fiddler...

... but why would he perform and market something so awkward and inappropriate to his technique? Might it be filthy lucre that he's expecting from another performance of Vivaldi's most overworked evocative masterpiece? For a fiddler with plenty of flair in his bow, Bell takes most of the tempi lumpishly slow - over 10% slower than most baroque violinists on recordings, of which there are dozens - and he seems to equate baroque style with odd exaggerations and specials effects. In short, this isn't even close to the top of the list of best performances of Vivaldi; number one, if anyone is willing to take my recommendation, is that of Fabio Biondi with the ensemble Europa Galante. "The Four Seasons" is the first disk of two in Biondi's generous recording of the whole of Vivaldi's Il Cimento dell'armonia e dell'inventione, available on the Virgin Veritas label.

If you want to hear Bell play well, listen to "The Red Violin," muisc by American composer John Corigliano.

And now for a wish list of anachronisms. How about:
1. Death of a Salesman staged in a Roman forum, with the actors in togas.
2. A remake of Rocky I in colonial Philadelphia, with John Dickinson replacing Apollo Creed and Ben Franklin played by Sly Stallone.
3. The Ring of the Nibelung reorchestrated to match the verve of Sweeny Todd.
All of which would sound about as plausible as Bell playing Vivaldi.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3

Tracks
Concerto in E Major for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 1, RV 269, "La Primavera" (Spring)/I. Allegro | Concerto in E Major for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 1, RV 269, "La Primavera" (Spring)/II. Largo | Concerto in E Major for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 1, RV 269, "La Primavera" (Spring)/III. Allegro | Concerto in G minor for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 2, RV 315, "L'estate" (Summer)/I. Allegro non molto | Concerto in G minor for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 2, RV 315, "L'estate" (Summer)/II. Adagio | Concerto in G minor for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 2, RV 315, "L'estate" (Summer)/III. Presto | Concerto in F Major for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 3, RV 293, "L'autumno" (Autumn)/I. Allegro | Concerto in F Major for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 3, RV 293, "L'autumno" (Autumn)/II. Adagio molto | Concerto in F Major for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 3, RV 293, "L'autumno" (Autumn)/III. Allegro | Concerto in F minor for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 4, RV 297, "L'inverno" (Winter)/I. Allegro non molto | Concerto in F minor for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 4, RV 297, "L'inverno" (Winter)/II. Largo | Concerto in F minor for Violin, String Orchestra and Continuo, Op. 8, No. 4, RV 297, "L'inverno" (Winter)/III. Allegro | Sonata in G minor for Violin and Basso Continuo, "Devil's Trill Sonata"

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