Yolanda Kondonassis - Vivaldi: The Four Seasons for Harp and Orchestra (1999)

Yolanda Kondonassis' skill on the harp is legendary. So too are her arrangements for the instrument.
Many times you hear arrangements that restate the composer's original themes, but don't make the music fit the instrument. I often feel this way about much of Bach's music on the piano. Other times you find arrangements that stretch beyond the original in ways that get in the way. For me, the best example of this is the Stokowski arrangements of Bach's organ works for orchestra.
Ms Kondonassis arrangements of the concertos of Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" make neither of these errors. What you get is a perfect blend of the best qualities of the music and the harp. The Four Seasons is still fully recognizable. You could get out your baton and conduct it as you listen to it the first time, and it fits its billing of one of the most recognized pieces of music in the world. What she does most skillfully is mold the solo violin part into something that makes you certain it was originally written for the harp. Where the harp cannot convincingly do what the music calls for, she lets one of the violins pick up the line, and the blend is seamless.
On repeated listening, you realize that on the harp, the music is a little less aggressive than the original, with the solo lines standing out by way of the different timbre of the harp, instead of just by virtuosic playing. The result is equally as satisfying in the most virtuosic sections, and I think exceeds the original in the calmer waters of the slow movements.
This is a recording that made its way to my favorites list the first time I heard it, and hasn't faltered. Do yourself a favor and get this recording, and discover these works anew.