Siesta Ensemble & Ovidio Gimenez Bassoon Delights

If listeners had to commit to a single version of Vivaldi's Four Seasons for the rest of their lives, this 1984 BIS recording would be thoroughly satisfying choice. Superbly played, brilliantly recorded period instrument performances of this perennial masterpiece are all but a dime a dozen, and the differences between Hogwood's and Pinnock's and Harnoncourt's readings don't begin to make up for the fatal boredom of their performances. This version with Nils-Erik Sparf and the Drottningholm Court Baroque Ensemble would be an ideal choice because theirs is the freshest performance of the piece. Beyond their excellent technique and impeccable sense of style, Sparf and the Swedish musicians bring joy and enthusiasm to the music, and sound like they are in turn receiving happiness and energy from the music. There's real pleasure here, and real affection, as if the concertos were newly composed and these were their world premieres. Filled out with witty accounts of Vivaldi's F major Concerto for Bassoon and his G minor Concerto for Flute and Bassoon, this disc is a delight.

The vocal group the Rose Ensemble, along with a few guest instrumentalists, has produced a terrifically fun and lovely album of Christmas music from the Mexican Baroque. The nine composers represented were mostly active in the 17th century, but there is one from the 16th; some were born in Spain, but all had careers in Mexico. Some of the pieces are virtually indistinguishable from European works from the same period, and some are distinctively flavored with the character of New World dances like xácara, guaracha, and negrilla.

This program brings together a wide variety of Alan Hovhaness’ works including numerous world premiere recordings. These range from the earliest of his band compositions, the processional Tapor No. 1, to more recent chamber pieces such as the gentle barcarole of Vision on a Starry Night. The Ruins of Ani returns us to the tragic location also explored in Hovhaness’ Symphony No. 23 ‘Ani’ (available on Naxos 8.559385), while the Three Improvisations on Folk Tunes evoke dances from the Indian subcontinent. Newly discovered works with percussion include the Japanese-influenced overture to Hovhaness’ opera The Burning House alongside October Mountain, now a classic in its genre.

Luigi Merci - Sei sonate per fagotto e basso continuo (Bassoon Sonatas), op.III (1735)
Classical | EAC: FLAC+Cue+Log | 1 Cd, Covers | 313 Mb
Label: TACTUS - Date: 1999

Luigi Merci, composer of the Baroque era (born c. 1695 - died in London c. 1750). He was engaged around 1720 by the Earl of Caernarvon and Duke of Chandos. In 1730 he married Ann Hampshire and moved to Covent Garden…