Geminiani: Concerti Grossi (after Corelli Op 5) /AAM * Manze [Import]

Francesco Geminiani (Artist), Arcangelo Corelli (Artist), Andrew Manze (Artist), Richard Egarr (Artist), The Academy of Ancient Music (Artist), David Watkins (Artist), Rachel Podger (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 12, 2000)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Import
• Label: Harmonia Mundi Fr.
• ASIN: B00004UFDB
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #129,517 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

46 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, beautifully done, great recording, October 9, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Geminiani: Concerti Grossi (after Corelli Op 5) /AAM * Manze (Audio CD)

When an album is highly praised and recommended, I am normally skeptical. Like with new films, the critics tend to praise what isn't praiseworthy, making one wonder if good reviews aren't bought rather than earned through honest merit. This could not be so in this case -- as advertised, this album is superb. As the reviews overwhelmingly state, the presentation is really lovely -- Manze keeps the liveliness of the Concerto Grossi, upholding the spirit of the baroque, while also bringing an ethereal emotion to each piece. Dominant in the soundtrack are the violin counterposed with a subtle harpsichord, and in between the two instruments are the full range of the chamber orchestra. The sound is crisp and clear on this recording -- the louder you play it, the more dynamic and truly beautiful the music gets. Anyone fond of Baroque will find this a must-have album, while if you've never encountered Baroque composers, this is a good place to start, the presentation being really excellent and charming.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing...and I don't even like Baroque music, August 23, 2001

By 

Moses Alexander (Alabama, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Geminiani: Concerti Grossi (after Corelli Op 5) /AAM * Manze (Audio CD)

I must echo the previous reviewer's statement that if you aren't a fan of baroque, that this is a good place to start. For the most part, I've never found baroque music appealing. I've always gone for Shostakovich, Ravel, Debussy, Prokofiev, Takemitsu, Dvorak, Arvo Part, John Tavener, Tan Dun, etc. I then heard Geminiani Concerto no. 12 "Follia" and nearly came undone. Violinist Andrew Manze is one of the most inspired violinists I've ever heard. His playing and leadership with the impeccable Academy of Ancient Music is awe-inspiring. The only reason I knew who Academy of Ancient Music was is because of their recent commissions by John Tavener. This disc is passionate when need be, subtle when called for and every thing else appropriate to the moment.

Enough good can't be said about these two discs: strong music, strong playing, strong production/sound. Worth every penny...and that's saying a lot from a lover of 20th century music. Run, don't walk to get this.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Corelli and his interpreters, May 9, 2006

By 

Daniel R. Greenfield "Dan" (Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Geminiani: Concerti Grossi (after Corelli Op 5) /AAM * Manze (Audio CD)

As the reader may already know, the opus 5 violin sonatas of Corelli were the inspiration for this orchestral interpretation of them by Geminiani. As related by Manze in his album notes, Corelli chose the significant year 1700 to publish opus 5, and according to Manze, this represents a landmark in Italian baroque, for every composer who came after has had to reckon with these sonatas, and somehow find a way to equal (but not surpass) them in invention and creativity. Vivaldi composed his own version of "La Follia" (Sonata XII), arguably better than Corelli's; but many another of Vivaldi's sonatas, magnificent though they are, simply do not have the clarity, spirituality, grace, and lyricism of the Corelli opus 5. Geminiani, a student of Corelli, and arguably one of the greatest baroque violinists of his day, crafted these orchestral versions of the opus 5 as a tribute to his master. Manze rightly observes that these concertos are not simply orchestrations of opus 5, but actually extensions of it; they are variations to some extent, creative expansions and magnificent glosses on the originals. New points of emphasis are added, some phrasings are given a different turn, new counterpoint is introduced at various places in the score to enhance the subtle beauty of the originals. If you love the Italian baroque, you will not want to be without this gem. But as others have observed, don't neglect the original sonatas themselves. Manze has recorded his own inimitable version on Harmonia Mundi, and I strongly recommend it. But there are others as well. Elizabeth Wallfisch on the Hyperion Label has her own recording, slightly more subdued yet also smoother than Manze's. I strongly recommend that you buy as many versions of the opus 5 as you have the budget for (well, at least three!), starting with these orchestrations by Geminiani. They will teach you to love the originals. Look at them as perhaps a point of entrance into what many consider the greatest violin sonatas ever written.