Paolo Mazetti Elmetti Helmets

Paolo Vinaccia turned 64 on March 27. Paolo is not so well these days, and is having his second round of chemotherapy, combined with many different alternative treatment methods.

Paolo Pandolfo is a virtuoso on the viola da gamba, and his usual repertoire includes the Bach cello suites. But he is also a passionate advocate of the art of improvisation, and this CD is devoted to 15 pieces that he and an ensemble including harpsichord, organ, theorbo, vihuela, violone, and voice improvised together. The concept of a classical musician improvising in this day and age is, if not unheard of, extremely rare.

Monsieur de Sainte-Colombes life is largely shrouded in mystery, and almost nothing was known of his music until these Concerts deux violes esgales were discovered in Geneva in 1966. Full of inspiration and fantasy, these pieces are often technically very demanding, innovatively deploying the viols entire range and putting players to the test in ways that were unprecedented in French viol literature. The sound of the viols is as haunting as the musics titles are teasingly expressive, and for their extraordinary imagination, originality and rare sonic splendour these works are justly considered one of the great monuments of European Baroque music.

A live performance from the Teatro Lirico “Giuseppe Verdi” of Trieste under the direction of conductor Paolo Arrivabeni. Cast features Daniella Barcellona, Charles Workman, and Daniela Pini.

Vincenzo Bellini (1801–1835) Bellini, unlike many of his colleagues - among them Donizetti - did not have to endure the disappointments and difficulties ofrising from the ranks. His Bianca e Gernando, in 1826, was well received at Naples’s Teatro San Carlo, and one year later, atthe age of twenty-six, the composer triumphed at Milan’s La Scala with Il Pirata. Norma is not only the high point of Bellini’sartistic parabola but also the quintessence of Italian belcanto. The present DVD, filmed at the Sferisterio Opera Festival ofMacerata in August 2007, features, in the title role, the famous Greek soprano Dimitra Theodossiou, one of today’s best interpretersof Norma.

A prolific, award-winning Italian trumpet and flügelhorn player known for his warm tone and lyrical style. His style is based on the classic Miles Davis sound of the '50s, and the very lineup of his quintet is reminiscent of Davis' group, with excellent tenor Tino Tracanna. They mostly play originals and the music flows fresh and engaging, never a mere imitation.