In the booklet notes Queyras admits to being very indebted to Anner Bylsma in terms of period-performance techniques and he has taken from him a natural concept of embellishment and shaping of phrases, evident, for example, in the Adagio of the G minor Concerto, where his fluidity of line is almost vocal and marvellously partnered by the lute. His mapping of long crescendos and perception of tonal schemes through each movement are keenly intelligent. Queyras himself is equally sparkling in his virtuosic and stylish renditions of these works. His partner in this ambient recording is the resplendent Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, whose players offer rhythmically vital and spontaneously vivid performances. Accordingly he has planned a programme that takes account of the different keys of individual works and intersperses concertos with orchestral sinfonias, including a couple by Vivaldi’s contemporary Antonio Caldara, which maximise the contrasts of structure as well as timbre. The remarkable cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras intends this disc to be savoured in its entirety like a concert. Musicians: Jean-Guihen Queyras (cello) Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin/Georg Kallweit Description: A well-planned Vivaldi concert with spectacular results

Vivaldi cello concerto