Albinoni: Concerto Op. 9 No. 2 for oboe & strings in D minor

An Italian Rant! finds Zak Ozmo and his ensemble L’Avventura London exploring the music of the most celebrated 18th-century Italian composers and their intriguing ties to Britain. Italian instrumental music captivated 18thcentury Britain with its tunefulness, drama and sheer beauty. For this project, director Žak Ozmo has handpicked repertoire that allows L’Avventura London to explore a new dimension to several Italian favourites, and shed light on less known, but equally beautiful, works by Geminiani and Paradisi. This disc also reveals the talents of neglected composer G. B. Cervetto with a premiere of his marvellous Sonata in G minor.

Highlights include Corelli’s ‘La Follia’ (played with dramatic passion by Bojan Cicic), Geoffrey Coates’s hauntingly beautiful interpretation of Albinoni’s Oboe Concerto, Op. 9 and a brilliant performance of Paradisi’s idiosyncratic Sonata No. 7, by harpsichordist David Gordon. The recording ends with a lighthearted, free arrangement by Zac Ozmo of one of the most famous Italian popular dance songs of the 17th century (it went by a multitude of names, including ‘Barabano’, ‘Fuggi, fuggi’ and ‘La Mantovana‘). The London publisher John Playford issued it under the title of ‘An Italian Rant’, a memorable phrase that has inspired this collection of Italian baroque music with ties to Britain. L’Avventura London performs with the same benchmark energy, integrity, and creative, dynamic musicmaking demonstrated in the critically successful Handel in the Playhouse.

Francis Colpron has been recognised as one of the most talented recorder players in Canada and around the world. His musical qualities and his capacity to innovate both in the artistic and interpretive spheres have been acclaimed by the public and critics alike. This CD includes a wide variety of sinfonias and concertos for recorder, oboe and violin by some of the best known baroque composers.

The Il Fondamento Ensemble, which was involved in the debut of the Fuga Libera label back in the spring of 2004, is back to celebrate 20 years of existence and the 5th anniversary of the label. Paul Dombrecht, founder of the Ensemble is considered by many to be the baroque oboist of baroque oboists.We encounter him here as a soloist, full of refinement and verve, in a most intriguing programme:Tommaso Albinoni's eight oboe concerti! Those looking for an adagio won't be disappointed, but they will also find numerous fast movements in this new recording, to be enjoyed with the summer sunshine.

For Michala Petri, being able to perform on her 50th birthday in Tivoli Concert Hall was very special occasion. It was in that very hall that she had her debut more than four decades earlier, as well as having performed on both her 30th and 40th birthday celebration concerts.

The choice of repertoire was Michala’s own and was made based both on what would make an attractive and varied program as well as being representative of her artistry and artistic concerns. Here, the music looks back as well as ahead, and includes the works of the Baroque masters Vivaldi and Albinoni, two exciting contemporary scores composed especially for her (Vassilie’s Valere Iubere and Chen Yi’s Ancient Chinese Beauty), and at the concert’s mid-point, a beautiful Andante by Mozart.

For the remainder of the program, the ensemble of virtuosi known as the Kremerata Baltica take centre stage in the performance of two works – Nino Rota’s delightful Neo-Baroque Concerto for Strings and the enchanting Variations on Happy Birthday by Peter Heidrich.

“Petri makes the recorder sound so right in Mozart - delightful!” Gramophone