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0:00/2:18
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Canzona 5:370:00/5:37
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0:00/3:02
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0:00/2:11
SoundstageFebruary 2004 |
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Throughout one hears snippets of other, recognizable, items thrown into the musical mix. For instance, Red Priest begins the disc with bird calls scattered throughout Spring ‘s opening allegro (and wait until you hear how real they sound!), then, in Summer ’s adagio/presto, Adams and Beach make a recorder/harpsichord duet sound like an old-fashioned mellotron. Autumn ’s opening allegro begins at a march tempo before quickly settling back into familiar territory. Then, just before the end of the allegro, they toss in a bit of "America The Beautiful" just for fun. It works, and it adds enjoyment to the proceedings. As a bonus, Dorian and Red Priest have included a lovely version of Arcangelo Corelli’s The Christmas Concerto to fill out this disc. The sonics that Dorian Records has given to this 24-bit/HDCD recording are fully as good as any you’ll hear from Redbook CD. One can easily hear the sense of hall space (the disc was recorded in Dorian’s usual venue, Troy Music Hall). The recorders have that small air-blown wooden sound to them. The strings of both the violin and cello are well rendered, while the sonorities of each instrument are kept distinct. The sound of rosiny horsehair bow on strings is also there for you to enjoy. And the delicate, plucked sound of the harpsichord (as compared to the piano’s more forceful presentation) is wonderfully captured. This is a recording that will appeal to both the audiophile as well as the music lover -- in equal parts. My friends, let us not be guilty of the sin of assumption. Be ye not so eager to write this off as just another Four Seasons interpretation. Instead, repent my brothers and raise your eyes and ears to the heavens and give heartfelt thanks to Red Priest for investing this ancient theme with such a fresh outlook. They have held out to us a new, modern way of listening to this much-played piece, using their unique instrumentation to open to us the true beauty Vivaldi wrote into The Four Seasons . A hearty "amen" -- and a plea for more, please. John Crossett |