This is only the second recording, as far as I know, to follow the manuscript parts of Vivaldi's Four Seasons preserved in the Manchester Central Library. The parts, which belong to a collection apparently once owned by Corelli's generous and influential patron, Cardinal Ottoboni, probably predate the printed version by Le Cene (1725) from which they differ in detail rather than substance. The details though, are not insignificant where, above all, accidentals are concerned and in this respect the Manchester version provides a more faithful account of Vivaldi's intentions than any subsequent printed edition.
Fabio Biondi and L'Europa Galante have already given us a recording of string concertos, one of the most stimulating discs of the Vivaldi anniversary year just past (9/91) so, for once I anticipated this new Four Seasons without any attendant feelings of deja entendu sans remords. By and large soloist and ensemble live up to my expectations with interpretations that are vividly imaginative and incisively executed. They offer a more impressionistic view of the music than their rivals Simon Standage (violin) and The English Concert with Trevor Pinnock on Archiv Produktion, and there is a greater rhythmic fluidity. Both soloists have a feeling for affective ornament and both have the virtuoso flair necessary to make the most of Vivaldi's programmatic music. For me the inclusion of a theorbo-chitarrone in Standage's version is a considerable adornment, as are the clean textures and rhythmic precision of The English Concert. But Biondi's highly developed sense of fantasy, his feeling for gesture and his more passionate response to the music are features on the reverse side of the coin, so to speak, which I welcome just as wholeheartedly. Biondi's tuning is not as secure as Standage's—the allegro section of the opening movement of ''Summer'' provides a telling comparison, but with accomplished playing and musicianship of this order the issue is more a matter of degree than in any way central to one's ultimate preference. The new disc is extremely well recorded, picking up some thrilling resonances from both solo violin and rank-and-file. Additionally—and this may well tip the scales in favour of the newcomer—L'Europa Galante completes its programme with two further concertos by Vivaldi. One of these, in C major (RV171) dedicated to ''Sua Maesta Cesarea e Cattolica'' (Hapsburg Emperor Charles V to you and me), is recorded, I think, for the first time on disc; the other, in B flat (RV163) for ripieno strings is subtitled Conca and, in Michael Talbot's words evokes ''the sound of the Bohemian 'Wettertrompete' (weather trumpet), a primitive instrument made from a large sea-shell (conch) to which an artificial mouthpiece was added''. Something similar, if not identical is illustrated in Filippo Bonanni's Gabinetto armonico (1722). Both works display engaging features, the former possessing a rhythmically alluring finale, the latter a slow movement recalling a Corellian idiom. All in all a strong release, admirably played and imaginatively recorded.'