If you’re experiencing bloat and lethargy from seasonal excess, you might feel like turning to some tunefully light and familiar Vivaldi to cheer you up. If so, then this is definitely not the disc for you.
French violinist Amandine Beyer has selected a clutch of little-known concertos and presents them as “an imaginary – and purely instrumental – opera”.
Music and playing are both highly theatrical, the violin driven to implausible-sounding heights and through a myriad of other dangers.
The moods range from touching plaintiveness to explosive outbursts, and the playing – some of it actually improvised – thrives on edginess.
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A consistently invigorating kaleidoscope of Vivaldian invention.
