Vivarte

Franz Schubert - String Quintet in C major D 956; Rondo in A major for Violin and String Quartet D 438
L'Archibudelli & Smithsonian Chamber Players - Performed on Stradivarius Instruments
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Label/Cat#: Sony Classical "Vivarte" # SK 46669 | Country/Year: Europe 1991
Genre: Classical | Style: Classical Period

"Don't be fooled: the period instruments are no gimmick. This is an exquisite rendering of the D956, full of brooding tenderness in the Adagio and of delightful energy in the other movements. It is not as slick or polished as some other recordings (e.g. the Alban Berg Quartet's EMI, which I would also highly recommend), and the recording is crystal clear, i.e. unforgiving. The result may not be to everyone's taste, but I have never heard a more satisfying version of this work. Shame on Sony for letting it lapse from their catalog!"

In the same spirit as the DHM boxes, Sony Music revives the pearls of its other legendary label devoted to ancient, baroque and classical music on period instruments - VIVARTE
From the renaissance to the 19th century, the VIVARTE label repertoire was recorded with the most advanced technologies, by the best production teams in the world (Tritonus Music Production in Stuttgart).

Though born a Slovene, Jacobus Gallus centered his entire work around Vienna, Prague and the diocesan city of Olomouc (Olmütz). The surprising mobility of Gallus's truly Renaissance career shows him as a model of the sixteenth-century composer. Gallus was active at both abbey and court, though at times for only a brief period before moving on: Melk, Brno (Brünn), Wroclaw (Breslau), Legnica (Liegflitz), Görlitz, Zwettl, and elsewhere. His cosmopolitan spirit is reflected, moreover, in the numerous variations of his name: Handl, Petelin, Haehn, Handelius, Coq, Kohoutek.

The style in which Gallus composed cannot be described in a few words. The fascination of his work derives from the harmonious association of different streams: on the one hand, a tendency which, despite the variety of stylistic means used, is basically conservative (the Northern influence) and, on the other, ideas which - sparse at times, but richly applied at others - range from the liberal to the progressive.

Anner Bylsma - Collection: Cello Concertos & Duets [6CD BoxSet] (2014) {Sony Music}
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© 2014 Sony Music / Sony Classical | 88843010662
Classical / Concerto / Violoncello

Sony Classical celebrates the 80th birthday of distinguished Dutch cellist Anner Bylsma with a special survey of his finest recordings, many originally issued on Sony s legendary period-music label Vivarte, and now re-released as four individually boxed sets. Born in The Hague in 1934, Bylsma won First Prize in the 1959 Pablo Casals Competition in Mexico and served as Principal Cellist in Amsterdam s Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra from 1962 to 1968, before becoming better known as one of the leading pioneers in the period-instrument revival of the Sixties and Seventies.

Bohemian composer Jan Zelenka (1679-1745) spent the last 35 years of his life in Dresden, first as a double bass player and then as composer for the court, writing primarily for the church. This monumental Mass (“in honor of God the Father”) is one of several he composed in the last years of his life, and its structure–the main parts of the mass are subdivided into smaller sections–allows for a wide variety of scoring, including different configurations of soloists, solo arias, chorus alone, and chorus with solo singers.

Johann Michael Haydn, the "Salzburg Haydn" has always stood in the shadow of his elder brother Joseph. He might have gone on to higher profile posts but decided to stay in Salzburg, being regarded highly during his lifetime by colleagues such as Mozart but somehow staying under the radar since his death. Leopold Mozart pointed out that he was a bit of a drinker which may account for a certain lack of ambition, but who are we to speculate.

Those who collected CDs in the early years may remember Sony Classical's outstanding "Vivarte" series, which generally provided music using original instruments. Anner Bylsma one of the finest cellists of his time. Anner Bylsma celebrated his 70th birthday when this set was originallyl issued on 2004. It really mattered not what repertoire this cellist chose to play because his art is so all-embracing. He is gifted with a beautiful cello sound, formidable technique and wonderfully convincing interpretive ideas.