Customer Reviews

25 Vivaldi Favorites

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I don't know how SPJ Music Inc., based in the world-famous town of Hauppaage, NY, manages to do it, but they have released at least 24 of these "25 XXXX Favorites" CDs, and all those that I have heard are superb collections. OK, many of the performances on this album are by ensembles that few will have heard of in North America, such as the Wurttemburg Chamber Orchestra, Musica di San Marco, and I Musici di Zagreb, and maybe they are a bit old (no recording dates are given), so SPJ probably doesn't have to pay much in the way of royalties. But this collection of works by Vivaldi is truly second to none.

Wait till you hear track 6, "Et in terra Pax from 'Gloria', by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, for instance, or track 14, from Stabat Mater Dolorosa, sung by Margarethe Bence with the Alto Pro Music Orchestra of Stuttgart. We are transported into the heights of the etherial world of sacred music, right up into the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, yet with that unmistakable touch of Vivaldi, who could be both consumately sacred and masterfully secular as he wished -- or even both at the same time. As has been proven again and again in the 20th century, Vivaldi was one of the greatest composers in history, and every classical music lover should have this CD in his or her collection.

I have a lot of Vivaldi recordings by period music ensembles like the virtuosic Il Giardino Armonico (who recorded the two best DVDs of Vivaldi works in existence, one with Cecilia Bartoli) and the somewhat more conservative Europa Gallante, led by Fabio Biondi. Then there are CDs by individual masters like Andrea Marcon (with the Venice Baroque Orchestra) and the immortal Nigel Kennedy (with the English Chamber Orchestra). Older classics re-released on CD include recordings by the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields, the Orchestra of the 18th Century, and the Romero family (Los Romeros). And the list goes on and on. All are superb recordings that have given me hours of pleasure.

But this "bargain" CD rates right up there with the best of them, and I highly recommend it both for those who are just beginning to discover the wonders of Vivaldi's music and for "hardened" veterans. If it had been issued as a full price CD it might have had trouble getting known in such a crowded and competitive field, but it would have deserved every bit as much praise as I have given it here. As a collection of superb performances of many of Vivaldi's greatest masterpieces by a wide variety of different ensembles, it even has something to commend it over recordings by a single artist or a single ensemble. Buy it and enjoy!

Yes, you guessed right - Amazon has the temerity to charge the absolute LIST PRICE for this item - $3.97. When I got the CD I couldn't believe it. I did more research and went to the website on the disk. I was granted permission to quote - in full - from the back of the album:

"25 VIVALDI FAVORITES". "EDITED FOR LEISURE LISTENING" (see below). "Antonio Vivaldi, who lived in 18th Century Venice, was the greatest composer/violinist of his period who penned literally hundreds of wonderful works memorable for their charm, vitality and originality of expression. This CD includes many of his last tunes from his vast output."

What this translates to is that VOXCD has chosen and selected the best of Vivaldi's output, whether trumpet concerto, string symphony or soprano aria and blended them into a quite pleasurable "Afternoon With" or "Evening With" that composer.

The performers are diverse. The sound quality is excellent. There are selections (repeat, selections) from "The Four Seasons", religious music and about a dozen concertos. This is what is meant by "Edited" - they have not been rewritten. What Vox has arrived at is a 78 minutes 37 second All-Vivaldi concert that will please even the most discriminating and most incapable-of-discriminating members of your friends and family.

I couldn't believe the wonderful, pure sounds that came from this low-priced CD. I absolutely love it and highly recommend it!!

This CD is decent but does NOT sweep you off your feet into a soaring concert hall with your heart beating loudly and your breaths coming in faster. Why? I think its the quality of the recording and the caliber of the musicians maybe? But hey, $4.98 does not buy much more than a fast food meal- so no harm done! Happy Listening!
-Rupa

The majority of the musical selections is undeniably fine. If only the track listing (s) were accurate or agreed with each other and the actual selections as they are ordered on the CD!

I know the playlist is printed on the web page, but buyers should take a moment to remind themselves that this is really a Vivaldi sampler. I think it would have been better (more honest?) for the publishers of this CD to have called it a Vivaldi sampler.(Sampler's, by the way, are often cheaper than "real" CDs.)

It really is not Vivaldi's 25 greatest hits, as in complete works. It is a collection of popular *movements* extracted from popular pieces - presented in isolation. And, in my opinion, a lot of the very best bits are left out.

If you want a Vivaldi sampler, or you don't mind listening to isolated bits and pieces, fine. If you are a music lover and are just getting your feet wet with Vivaldi and need to explore his work a bit before investing, good.

But *if* you are at all familiar with Vivaldi, or with classical music generally, and you didn't check out the playlist that closely before buying, and you are expecting to hear 25 complete pieces, you *might* find it somewhat 'unsatisfying' to hear these movements taken completely and utterly out of context. And realize you bought the wrong album.

What I like about this is they don't beat you over the head with The Four Seasons. Instead they play songs you haven't heard a million times, ecclectic, but all good. With this collection people could get The Four Seasons and this as a compliment. Sometimes its nice to go off the beaten path and skip the most obvious choices. This collection is nice in that it doesn't do the obvious and start off with 5 or 6 of the Four seasons. Its more like a best of than greatest hits, if that makes any sense.

Can you believe the price on this? This is probably the best Vivaldi collection for the price available. The sound quality is superb.

Love almost all the music on this CD, I wish it had more! I love Vivaldi's upbeat classical music, it's great in the car.

I listen to this over & over on my daily commute! Wonderfully done! Great collection of songs - nice variety.