Acknowledged as one of the finest violinists of the 18th century, known for an almost wilful independence of mind, considered arrogant by some and plain mad by others, Francesco Maria Veracini certainly seems, from his biography, to be one of baroque music's more interesting characters. Alas, it would be hard to say the same of his music if all one had to go on were the five works recorded on this disc, Volume 2 of a project to record the complete overtures and concertos. This is the composer whose opera Adriano in Siria was criticised for being too long when it was produced in London in 1733, and listening to the music offered here one gets an inkling of what that drawn-out night at the aymarket Theatre must have been like. The booklet-note writer, whether intentionally or not, puts his finger on it when, in reference to one particular movement (though it could be one of many others), he tells us that 'throughout there is a reliance on the device of sequence, as figures are repeated, ascending or descending'. I guess you get the picture.
The 18-minute Violin Concerto which opens the set is perhaps the most vacuous piece here (not helped by the inclusion of numerous fanfare figures for its two trumpets), but in all honesty I cannot work up much enthusiasm for the remaining works; the B flat Overture has its moments, but the two showy concerti a cinque for violin and orchestra make it easy to see why what interest there has been in Veracini has tended to centre on his intriguingly contrapuntal violin sonatas. The performances, by the modern instruments of Accademia I Filarmonici are neat and stylish, and Alberto Martini is well up to the music's mechanically virtuosic demands. The little Aria Schiavona which ends the disc is, by the way, rather sweet - pity it is only 'attrib'.'