VIVALDI Concertos for the recorder: RV
312R, 428, 433, 439, 441, 443 — Sébastien Marq (rcr); Jean-Christophe Spinosi (cond); Ens. Matheus (J.- C. Spinosi, F. Paugam, E.
Curial, M. Dupuy, vn; L. Paugam, M.
Haudidier, va; P. Warnier, vc; Th. Runarvot, db; H. Clerc-Murgier,
hpd; M. Buraglia, theorbo), (period instruments) — OPUS 111 OP 30371 (50:39)
Jaded reviewers rarely expect to be
surprised by any new performance of a piece they already know. Much less if
that piece is by Vivaldi, a composer who, some say, repeated himself to
exhaustion. But this recording is a shock to the ears. Is that a quality or a
defect? Now that depends, dear reader, entirely on you.
Sébastien Marq is a fabulous
recorder player, with the flashiest technique. He can move his fingers faster
than you can think – and that is very, very fast. The ensemble Matheus is
brilliantly equipped to follow him into the wilderness. Together, they present
a most original version of these familiar works. So original, in fact, that
they become totally unfamiliar, almost schizoid.
What they do is simply to exaggerate every single
item in the musical menu: “allegro” is thus “bursting with excitement”;
“presto” means “as fast as humanly possible”, or sometimes faster; “largo”
translates as ”so slow that one can hardly bear it”. Staccatos are truly short
and pointed. Contrasting dynamics are worlds apart. Tempo inflections are
abundant. Rests are silences of such
intensity that one is afraid to breathe. Fermatas are held forever. All
gestures are intensified and charged with dramaticism.
How does all of this sound? A bit
confusing, at first. It is hard to get some of the melodic lines, either
because the notes happen in such quick succession that it is impossible to
follow them or because, on the contrary, phrases are so stretched out that one
loses the sense of direction altogether. So if you never heard these works,
this might not be your best introduction to them. But if, like me, you have
heard them a hundred times, this is a fascinating exercice in imagination, and
it is carried through with bravado.
These musicians spent a long time
thinking about these works, and these ideas, no matter how odd, are clearly and
lovingly displayed. All involved with this recording are accomplished
musicians. They perform with uncommon energy and passion, while at the same
time they seem to question every single convention that others have always
taken for granted. They are not afraid to be extravagant, even weird. It does
not always work, since at times the interpretation is so frantic that it
borders on the insane: like a 33’ RPM long-play mistakenly heard at 45’RPM.
Slow movements feel sometimes like 20th century compositions – very
experimental and disconnected. A 45’ RPM disc mistakenly played at 33 RPM. After a few listenings, however, it is
entertaining to disentangle themes and finally make sense of this flood of
furious sound. And in the end it makes beautiful sense.
After all, Vivaldi was undoubtedly a man
interested in new experiences. And the liberties taken by Marq and friends are
not random, but rather based on the descriptive character of these works. Thus,
the very slow movement, the one which is most unnervingly prolonged, fittingly
called “Il sonno”, is a perfect musical representation of the drowsiness that
precedes sleep. “Il Gardellino” has uneven, crazy out-of-tune little bird-calls
– just right for a concerto depicting a nightingale. The fact is, overall, this
is playing that has soul and guts. To me, it sounds refreshing, bold. And
intriguing as well.
This is the sort of CD you will
either love or hate with equal intensity. If you normally do not like excessive
liberty with the score, if Harnoncourt’s interpretations sound too extreme to
you, you will probably be offended by this one. In that case, a more
traditional view of these works (such as Dorothée Oberlinger’s, for Marc Aurel
LC 572) would be a wiser choice. But if you are in a truly adventurous frame of
mind, if you already have many versions of the Vivaldi recorder concerti, and
you are looking for one that will have something new to say about them, this CD
is a must-have.
(Laura Rónai)