Vivaldi: Concerto per archi (2007)

At their very best, a good set of CD liner notes provides listeners with an historical background of the piece to which they are listening and perhaps a little bit of history about the performers. The notes included in this album by the Berliner Barock Solisten provide a very small amount of actual historical information and instead are used as a non-stop, self-congratulatory marketing tool, stopping just short of declaring it to be the best Baroque chamber ensemble in existence. This seems not only unnecessary (after all, ... Read More

At their very best, a good set of CD liner notes provides listeners with an historical background of the piece to which they are listening and perhaps a little bit of history about the performers. The notes included in this album by the Berliner Barock Solisten provide a very small amount of actual historical information and instead are used as a non-stop, self-congratulatory marketing tool, stopping just short of declaring it to be the best Baroque chamber ensemble in existence. This seems not only unnecessary (after all, if you're reading the notes you've probably already bought the CD), but also a bit off the mark. Sure, the performances of these seven Vivaldi concertos are lively, spirited, even jovial. But technical precision, ensemble cohesion, and intonation are nowhere near the high level achieved by other ensembles like the Venice Baroque Orchestra or the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra. Also perplexing is the assertion that the orchestra's musicians play on modern instruments. While there are a... Read Less