D. C. Giancoli, Fisica 2 (ii o Iii Edizione), Casa Editrice Ambrosiana Contiene Ampia Raccolta di Esercizi C. Mencuccini, V. Silvestrini, Fisica II (iv Edizione), Casa Editrice Ambrosiana Contie

Handel's Italian cantatas date from early in his career, with few exceptions (none on display here). As a group they are less well-known than his operas, but they're equally virtuosic, and performances of the cantatas whole, as with the three here, are a bit more satisfying than with the operas. The cantatas were composed for parties among powerful Roman cardinals, and they catch the young Handel at the peak of his first success, as Roman audiences hailed him as "il caro Sassone" (the dear Saxon).

Born in 1804, Louise Farrenc became a professional-standard pianist while still a teenager, and later music teacher to the household of the Duke d’Orléans and from 1842 professor of piano at the Paris Conservatoire. Her substantial legacy of composition was largely forgotten after her death in 1875 and is only now being revived. She wrote mainly in the field of orchestral and chamber music: ‘I would defy anyone,’ says the pianist Linda Di Carlo in a personal introduction to this new recording of Farrenc’s music for violin and piano, ‘to cast aspersions on the chamber music in particular on the grounds of her gender.’

Highly praised in his short lifetime (he was born in 1785 and died rather mysteriously in 1806), Pinto fell into a long neglect in Victorian times and references to him are few. More recently there has been a revival of interest, thanks chiefly to Nicholas Temperley, who edited the volume of the London Pianoforte School which included all his piano music, and who writes about him in the insert-note to this record. It is not the first recording of his music, but it gives a good introduction to a talented and sympathetic musician.

The Bohemian born composer Antonio Rosetti was one of the most famous musicians and composers of his day. His elegant melodic writing, inventiveness and compositional refinement were frequently the reason to compare his works to those of Mozart and Haydn. These world premiere recordings by the ensemble Compagnia di Punto reveal the last hidden treasures within his multi-facetted and fascinating symphonic and concert repertoire.

Although the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra is today recognized as the world's number one orchestra for "original sound", here it proves with its extraordinary intensity its infinitely varied liveliness and always maintains the chamber music precision in the interplay. The loosening of the sequence of four quintets on the CD by the lute duos is cleverly chosen and makes the CD even more audible.

The Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, or properly, Freiburger Barockorchester, was founded in 1987 in the German city known as the unofficial "Capital of the Black Forest" by a group of students who shared an interest in playing Baroque music on authentic musical instruments. The first three years of its existence, the Freiburger Barockorchester performed without a conductor, preferring to select a musician from within its own ranks to lead its music on a case-by-case basis. Nevertheless, in 1990 Thomas Hengelbrock was named joint musical director along with Gottfried von der Goltz, a situation that lasted until 1997 when Hengelbrock stepped down. His place was taken by Petra M llejans, who leads the Freiburger Barockorchester in tandem with von der Goltz…. ~ Uncle Dave Lewis , Rovi