*** Vinyl LP ***

Vivaldi was one of the first composers to focus on the transverse flute as a viable solo instrument, and he may have even been the first to dedicate a whole publication to the flute family. His Opus 10 was published by Michel-Charles Le Cène in around 1728, though in reality many of the works in the collection were revised versions of earlier compositions, with Vivaldi capitalising on the popularity of the flute and rewriting material previously used for other instruments. Adding descriptive elements to the movement names, often connected to natural phenomena – such as ‘La tempesta del mare’ – was another way of boosting sales, something the composer had already discovered with his publication of The Four Seasons some years earlier. Vivaldi wrote over 500 concertos during his lifetime, and his expertise in this field is particularly evident in the exchanges between the ritornello and the orchestral tutti: while the ensemble comes together perfectly in the tutti, the soloist is really given a chance to fly in the soaring ritornelli, showcasing the instrument to its fullest.

Performing these works is Italian flautist Mario Folena, principal flautist of the Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto since 1982. He has previously collaborated with many prominent ensembles, including I Solisti Veneti and I Filarmonici di Verona, and is a respected teacher of the Baroque flute, having given summer courses at the Fondazione Cini in Venice and the conservatoires of Padova and Parma. He is joined by L’Arte dell’Arco, led from the front by violinist Federico Guglielmo, whose exuberant and thoroughly researched Vivaldi performances have previously garnered high praise.

LP version of one of the most successful Vivaldi recordings in the Brilliant Classics catalogue