Search - Antonio Vivaldi, Christopher Hogwood, Andrew Manze :: Vivaldi - Violin Concerto, op. 6 (Concerto "The Cuckoo") / Manze · AAM · Hogwood

Gustav Leonhardt, a man who did more than most to kick start the revival of interest in period-instrument performances, once said something along the lines of "once you have learnt the rule book, throw it away." That's clearly advice that Andrew Manze and Christopher Hogwood have taken to heart in this fresh and lively recording. Manze, who once described his frequent harpsichord colleague Richard Egarr as a "bendy" performer, is himself bendy in all the right ways: his phrasing is spontaneous and playful and yet always remains mindful of the pulse, rather in the manner of good jazz. His tone is sweet and pure and always engaging--and he even manages to create some delightfully convincing bird imitations for the bonus concerto, The Cuckoo. Hogwood takes none of Vivaldi's formulaic tropes at face value and squeezes something fresh out of every predictable chord sequence or repeated phrase. The accompanying players all clearly have one ear on the soloist and one on each other, and the result is a rock-solid uniformity of attack and phrasing. In a word, perfect. --Warwick Thompson