Rebel, Jorg-Michael Schwarz - Vivaldi - Shades of Red: Concertos & Sonatas for Recoder & Strings (2005)

Shades of Red (apparently intended only as a reference to Vivaldi's hair color, rather than to the hues of the instruments' varnish or to any synaesthetic qualities in the music) is primarily an album of representative concertos and trios, exquisitely performed by recorder player Matthias Maute, violinist Jörg-Michael Schwarz, and the splendid Baroque chamber ensemble Rebel. Secondarily, this CD appears to be something of a showcase for the group's authentic period instruments and fine modern re-creations; perhaps only in music of such purity and clarity as Vivaldi's is such a display possible, for all the solo and continuo instruments are quite exposed and clearly delineated in this intimate recording. Especially noteworthy is the comparatively rare sopranino recorder, featured in the "flautino" concertos that open and close the program. Maute's technique is astonishing, and the support he receives from Schwarz and company is strong, though a little on the pugnacious side in the Allegros. Yet for all of the players' virtuosity and vitality, the most exceptional work here features no such flamboyance: the Sinfonia in B minor, "Al Santo Sepolcro," written rather simply for strings in four parts, is an example of sorrowful "Passion music" and one of Vivaldi's most sublime expressions. Bridge's sound quality is excellent.