The six presented here show Vivaldi in his grandest and most magnificent vein, and exceptionally varied in mood. No one seems to have gathered them together for performance as a group until now. Vivaldi had simply used the same name again for a set of pieces he thought particularly well suited to the needs of the Viennese court. It was long supposed that these were the same concertos until someone looked at them more carefully, and noticed that 11 of the 12 were entirely different works. Soon after, he presented Charles VI, the Habsburg emperor, with a manuscript set of concertos, also called La cetra. Vivaldi published his Op 9 concertos, La cetra ('The Lyre'), in 1727. In 2009, Erik was awarded the prestigious Borletti-Buitoni Trust award. In 2007, Frans Bruggen invited him to perform Bach’s Actus Tragicus at the Concertgebouw. Erik Bosgraaf has led a colourful musical career – from rock musician, to oboist, then virtuoso recorder-player. Includes Booklet notes with fascinating contemporary accounts of Vivaldi, including extracts from his letters. Two of his greatest concertos ‘Tempesta di mare’ (Storm at Sea) and ‘La notte’ (Night) feature on the programme. This release is devoted to concertos for sopranino and alto recorders. His concertos are remarkable not only for the wealth of invention and the outstanding quality of the music, but also for the amazing range of instruments he wrote for. There are some superb concertos in his large output, and some of them were sufficiently striking enough to attract the attention of J.S. He is a composer who repays closer attention. For many people though, Vivaldi is the composer of The Four Seasons (the first four of the twelve concertos Op.8), and maybe the famous Gloria.

Stravinsky famously quipped that Vivaldi didn’t write 400 concertos, rather he wrote one concerto 400 times.

Vivaldi concertos