Vivaldi: Violin Concerto, Op. 4 No. 11 in D major, RV 204

“Biondi's playing is characterised by impressive variety, from the crisp articulation of the outer fast movements to the mellow-toned warmth of the slow ones...While there is plenty of swooping virtuosity on display, in the end it is the slow movements which impress with their consistently haunting quality. Europa Galante provide fine support with a full string sound” Gramophone Magazine, July 2011

“This ingenious new recording includes the six of Vivaldi's Op 4 published by Walsh in 1728...and the result is a demonstration of a virtuosity that would suit English tastes. But what clinches this recording is the vivid, earthy playing by Biondi and his (Italian) forces.” The Observer, 5th June 2011

“A bracing, Baroque-pitched tutti - basses slapping, harpsichord punching, upper strings digging with their bow heels - starts the disc. Biondi's first solo strains at the leash...Il Proteo makes a distinctive conclusion. Solo violin and cello echo one another and swap blemishless long notes at close pitches to play games with the listener.” Classic FM Magazine, July 2011 ****

“By the standards of the average Vivaldi violin concerto, the La stravaganza set is quite extravagant stuff, full of fantasy and experiment – novel sounds, ingenious textures, exploratory melodic lines, original types of figuration, unorthodox forms. It's heady music, and listening to its 12 concertos at a sitting, isn't a mode of listening one would recommend.
Still less so in performances as high in voltage as the present ones. There's a current trend in Baroque performance to get away from the cool- ness and objectivity which for a long time were supposed (on the whole, mistakenly) to be a part of performing practice of the time, but possibly the pendulum has swung a little wildly the other way. Perhaps here it's intended to reflect Vivaldi's own notorious freedom of performance. But anyone who's admired earlier recordings with period instruments may find these a little extravagant and hard-hitting. And they aren't helped by the resonant acoustic of the church in Poland used for the recording, which produces a full and bright sound but a boomy bass and less clear a texture than might be ideal.
That said, however, these performances by Rachel Podger are crackling with vitality and executed with consistent brilliance as well as a kind of relish in virtuosity that catches the showy spirit, the self-conscious extravagance, of this particular set of works. There are plenty of movements here where her sheer digital dexterity is astonishing – for instance, the finale of No 6, with its scurrying figures, the second movement of No 7 or the finale of No 2 with its repetitive figures and leaping arpeggios. But perhaps even more enjoyable isthe exquisitely fine detail of some of the slow movements. No 8 in D minor is perhapsthe wildest concerto of the lot, with its extraordinary lines in the first movement, the passionate, mysterious outer sections in the second and the powerful and original figuration inthe finale: that one has a performance to leave you breathless.
Another thing Podger is specially good at is the shaping of those numerous passages of Vivaldian sequences, which can be drearily predictable, but aren't so here because she knows just how to control the rhythmic tension and time the climax and resolution with logic and force. This set is certainly recommended as a fine example of a modern view of Baroque performance – and it sounds even better on SACD.” Gramophone Classical Music Guide, 2010

“Crisp, agile and convincing.” BBC Music Magazine, June 2010 *****

“A welcome follow-up to Vol. 1, Concertos 1-6, to which I gave an enthusiastic review [HFN/RR Dec'99]. Many of the same positive qualities are on show here: lively, short-phrased modern-instrument playing in near-period style, with a continuo divided between harpsichord and archlute (plus string bass of course). The continuo players, who are balanced with care to give the right degree of harmonic support, are not named. Neither is the second violinist who contributes to Concerto 11. On the whole, Andrew Watkinson copes well with everything Vivaldi throws at him, adding the occasional decoration... The forward recording has excellent ambience... Those who bought Vol. 1 [8.553323] will certainly need to complete the set with this disc.” Hi-Fi News

“What comes over again and again when listening through some 19 hours of marvellous music, is the consistently high level of Vivaldi's invention, and this applies not just to the familiar works but also to the six solo violin concertos each of Opp. 6, 11 and 12, and the solo concertos for violin or oboe (the illustrious Heinz Holliger) of Op. 7. What makes these works special is not just the buoyancy of the allegros (just sample the remarkable harmonic clashes of the finale of Op. 7 No. 4 in A minor), but the consistent beauty of the slow movements…Accardo is the superb soloist in all these little-known Vivaldi sets, except Op. 6, where the stylish Pina Carmirelli takes over. Accardo contributes with equal distinction to the hardly less splendid and equally unknown chamber music… The recording is excellent, as are the CD transfers, and collectors will find unexpected rewards in these stimulating, unfamiliar works.” Gramophone Magazine, December 1997