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By CLIVE O’CONNELL
THE AGE | 28 February 2012
AN EVENING of Vivaldi concertos can be a delight, particularly if the content is unknown. In this regard, musicians are spoilt for choice as the
composer produced about 500. The Australian Brandenburg Orchestra presented seven for its Melbourne season opener, avoiding the hackneyed Four Seasons to exhibit Vivaldi’s melodic fertility, equanimity of form and wealth of similar and differing timbres in combination. Guest leader/soloist Federico Guglielmo emphasised an
underlying volatility in these works, beginning with a C MajorCiaccona that caught the attention for its surging lines and supple rhythm.
Giving as broad a picture as possible of Vivaldi’s compositional spread, Guglielmo and the Brandenburg’s artistic director Paul Dyer presented concertos calling for pairs of oboes, flutes and horns, the solitary one that ’employs timpani, as well as works that require a combination of soloists, on this evening usually with the guest’s violin at the apex. Unlike several of his compatriot colleagues, Guglielmo generates a restrained sound. It’s an effective approach, ensuring a concerto’s contour is enriched with interest, streets away from the ham-fisted bombast that can infuse Vivaldi’s music with all the attraction of passing kidney stones.
High point of the night came in the duet-oppositions for Guglielmo supported by first violin Brendan Joyce with the
energy-packed cello brace of Jamie Hey and Anthea Cottee in the D Major Concerto R 564: a striking display of well crafted virtuosity.
