Vivaldi and Piazzolla: Eight Seasonsby Anonymous

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September 13, 2008: I am tired of so much competition for the seasons cycle of concertos. It comprises from traditional, score-faithfullness of old chamber orchestras &#224 la I musici to up to date, avant garde period instruments who permorm these works with previously unknown dinamic contrasts, ornamentation and I would say, theater-like approach, which is what this music deserves. But the usual problem is ... what pieces do you add to fill the disc. Sorry, but I am one of those who think the majority of the other of concerti of Vivaldi are really inferior to the seasons (excepting some of the flute concerti op 10, perhaps). Not that are bad, indeed several are good, but when they are put together with the seasons, most of them are &quot lesser&quot in comparison. So when you buy a set of the seasons, you know the &quot strong point&quot are the seasons and the rest will be &quot fillers&quot , no matter which are the players you have chosen, period or modern. So this disc is truly different from the rest because here there is no &quot filler&quot . Piazzola seasons are a musically outstanding set of pieces, so different but so compelling that are truly complementary to Vivaldi&#180 s seasons. You could buy this set for P&#238 azzola, for Vivaldi or for both because both are truly sensational. And this set is unique for the performances. Leaving aside the fact that Kremer adds some &quot Vivaldian&quot quotes in Piazzola and that some Vivaldi notes are slighly modified to sound 20-th century (which are interesting but minor points), what is imoprtant to know is that his Vivaldi is firmly put in the avant - garde fashion of period practice I mentioned above in several points, like the vibrato-free sound of the orchestra sometimes, the theatrical approach and refreshing tempi and phrasing. And for Piazzola ... the arrangements are quite exciting and show what a virtuoso Kremer is. To sum up, here you have an extraordinary set of Piazzola seasons and one of the most interesting Vivaldi&#180 s that I ever heard.