Review:

on 2011-05-12 CharlesMartel Said:

This is really weird. No not the album, the man or the music. For a long time I thought I had this album on CD somewhere in my collection. Then, when I went searching for it, it turned out that I did not. I could have sworn I had it. Maybe somebody took it. Now that is truly weird! Had this been some embarrassing piece of teeny bop shit from my dim and distant youth, I could have perhaps understood it, but it is not. This is Vivaldi for Christs sake. One of the greatest of all Baroque era composers. And this is his most famous work  the "Four Seasons". It says so on the front cover in English, German and Italian.

(Oh, by the way, the front cover of my copy is different. Otherwise, the label and the catalogue number are the same. It is the same recording, same date, same time, same performers. Just a different cover. Now this is getting weirder and weirder. It is beginning to sound like something out of the Twilight Zone.

Anyway, enough of the weirdness. Let's get back to what is really important, the music. And what music! This is truly beautiful classical music from one of the greatest of the baroque era composers. Vivaldi, along with Handel, represented pretty much the best of early eighteenth century music orchestral music. This CD is an absolute peach. Not only is the music therefore, but it is also artfully performed featuring the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Zubin Mehta.

Thankfully it contains just the "Four Seasons" suite so there is nothing else to distract the listener from the holistic nature of that work. The pieces on here, three for each season, each represents a different variation on the theme with pace and tonal changes incorporated. The libretto is justly famous and as widely regarded as being an outstanding moment of classical composition. If Vivaldi had never done anything else in his life, he would still be ranked among the best because of this alone.

Every time I hear those opening strings of the first movement of "La Primavera", I get transported away to somewhere else. That is the true mark of a great piece of instrumental classical music, or any instrumental music for that matter. Of course everybody has heard this, but as with so much classical music, most simply do not know what it is and cannot put a name to the piece whenever they hear it. Well take it from me, this has to be one of the most beloved pieces of classical music around. And deservedly so. All twelve movements are unique in their own way, but are held together with grace and dignity by that underlying score.

A lot of people rather fear classical music and resent the involuntary way they have been exposed to it. But that kind of smacks of a musical exclusiveness which has unjustly excluded some fine music from various people's collections. It renders the person who thinks that way no better than the elitist who feels that classical music is too sublime, too ethereal, too perfect to be shared with ordinary plebs. Just as I would criticise such a person for ignoring all other than classical music, those who do not listen to it at all are equally at fault. So all you classico-phobes, start your classical collection with this. Deep down you know you want to, but you just dont know where to start.
Rating: 7/10