Trevor Pinnock, The English Concert - Vivaldi: L'estro armonico Op. 3 (1987)

Read I Giles’ penetrating review on this. He pretty much hits the nail on the head. This set still very much deserves pride of place. If you're looking for a great way to explore beyond normal confines of typically-heard Vivaldi, this would be a worthy start.

We’re truly in a golden age of Vivaldi recordings, miles away from the days of yore when I Musici was the only game in town. For most of the well-known Vivaldi opus numbers, there are enough choices for listeners to pick and choose among varying styles

And Iain Giles is right….there ARE differences in styles, not only among the various ensembles, but emphatically, over time. The most recent forays from Italian bands have yielded very exciting, swift and extremely fleet performances with very small groups: the fast outer movements are very fast indeed and the slow movements have been slowed down a bit, to match current musicological thinking on 18th century Italian performance styles. Fabio Biondi (Europa Galante) and Federico Guglielmo (L’arte Dell’Arco) come to mind immediately.

So…why bother at all with a set by an English band that was recorded some 30 years ago? Because, because, because:

The English Concert under Trevor Pinnock set an incredibly high standard for period instrument renditions of Italian baroque music; these concerti are incredibly well played; they are at aggressive—but not breakneck--tempi that let the music breathe; and (believe it or not) they sound Italian. Whether Vivaldi, Corelli or others, Pinnock and his group really had their head inside this type of music. Surprisingly, perhaps even moreso than his Handel (which could be a bit wooden) or even his Bach (which was good, but won’t eclipse Freibourg Baroque.)

There also other English bands who have recorded these—and other—Vivaldi opuses. All are worthy, some more than others. Best of breed: Rachel Podger’s version of Op 4 (“Stravaganza”) from 2004 was a standout, and may not be bettered in our lifetime by ANY group, Italian or not. Others, however, not so much. In the 2016 era, many now sound like the music was composed for afternoon tea in the garden…a discernible amount of…English stateliness seems to infused their proceedings.