Search - Johann Pachelbel, Antonio Vivaldi, Alessandro Marcello :: Pachelbel Canon and Other Baroque Favorites

Not the best Baroque sampler

Michael P. McGarry | San Francisco, CA United States | 07/31/2007

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I must admit, I was somewhat disappointed with this CD. It's true, it has some wonderful tracks by relatively obscure composers (Marcello, Locatelli, Corrette), although these particular selections often appear in Baroque compilations. Some of the renditions on this album lack subtlety. Bach's "Air on a G-String" is appropriately slow, but shows no variation in dynamics, and the piece lacks its characteristic depth. The Mouret Rondeau (the infamous "Masterpiece Theater" theme) is overblown and bombastic in this recording, possessing none of the dignity for which the piece is so well known. Curiously, both the first and last track are Pachebel's Canon: upon first listening, I thought perhaps they would have a different version at the end of the album. No. They just have the exact same track twice, a somewhat ungainly version with the organ replacing the double bass, and again, no sensitivity with dynamics. The booklet claims these classics are "memorably performed by some of the world's finest artists", but fails to name any performers! This low budget disc contains no documentation with information about the pieces, the composers, or the performances. For the connoisseur seeking definitive recordings, this CD should not even be a thought. For some who doesn't know anything about Baroque music and simply doesn't know where to start, I wouldn't recommend starting here. Start learning about Baroque music with Bach's Brandenburg Concertos, not with this odd compilation."