Vivaldi: The Four Seasons Erik Bosgraaf & Cordevento

• Antonio Vivaldi (1678 - 1741): Concerto No. 1 in E Major, RV. 269 La primavera:
• 1I. Allegro03:15
• 2II. Largo02:40
• 3III. Allegro. Danza Pastorale04:07
• Concerto No. 2 in G Minor, RV. 315 L'estate:
• 4I. Allegro non molto05:02
• 5II. Adagio02:21
• 6III. Presto. Tempo impetuoso d'estate02:55
• Concerto No. 3 in F Major, RV. 293 L'autunno:
• 7I. Allegro05:23
• 8II. Adagio02:31
• 9III. Allegro. La caccia03:09
• Concerto No. 4 in F Minor, RV. 297 L'inverno:
• 10I. Allegro non molto03:22
• 11II. Largo02:00
• 12III. Allegro03:25
• Total Runtime40:10

Info for Vivaldi: The Four Seasons

Vivaldi’s Four Seasons is one of the world’s most popular and widely recorded collections of music, a set that instantly became an international hit after it was first published at part of the composer’s Op.8 in 1725. No doubt it was its imitative directness – extra musical occurrences/phenomena evoked in an extremely suggestive manner and even written into the score, such as “the barking dog” or “the drunkards’ sleep” etc. – that caused such as sensation in its time, effortlessly bridging the gap between the salons of the highborn and the alehouses of the lowly. Today nothing has changed: the concertos are performed both by great violin virtuosos and famous hard rockers; they are works that are constantly being presented in new guises through the re‐imagining and reworking of the musical score.

Such is the standpoint adopted on this recording by Erik Bosgraaf, who has chosen here to adapt the violin part for recorder, explaining how “the violin part can be played on the recorder with surprising ease, without many changes. In some ways it works even better than concertos Vivaldi wrote specifically for the recorder!” Years ago Bosgraaf performed The Four Seasons with a symphony orchestra; for the present album, however, he wanted to approach his ideal as closely as possible using Cordevento, a small baroque ensemble he founded himself, knowing all the musicians through and through. Bosgraaf’s aim is to make the four legendary concertos sound as if they had been written for the recorder in the first place – and the results are laudable, with the contrasts between the wind instrument and the accompanying strings revealing previously unheard stratifications and details. As the soloist himself puts it, “Listen to Vivaldi with fresh ears and enjoy!”

Erik Bosgraaf, recorder, conductor
Ensemble Cordevento

Ensemble Cordevento
appears in various guises, depending on the repertoire. ‘Corde e Vento’ is Italian and means ‘strings and winds’. The ensemble originated as a trio, consisting of Erik Bosgraaf (recorder), Izhar Elias (guitar) en Alessandro Pianu (harpsichord and organ). The trio focusses on music from around 1700 and earlier. In 2012 they recorded the successful album La Monarcha, with music of the Spanish territories (Brilliant Classics).

Nowadays Cordevento is also a baroque orchestra which has a growing number of albums to its name, under the direction of recorder player Erik Bosgraaf. The initial Vivaldi recorder concertos were followed in 2011 by adaptations made by Bosgraaf of Bach solo concertos. Vivaldi’s Four Seasons followed in 2013 in a virtuoso version for the recorder, an album which has recently been issued on vinyl as well. Cordevento plays on copies of historical instruments.

The ensemble has performed in Berlin, Utrecht, Barcelona, Modena, Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Sofia, Hong Kong and Seoul.

Erik Bosgraaf
is generally considered to be one of the world‘s best recorder players.

His repertoire extends from Vivaldi‘s Four Seasons to tomorrow‘s music. His recording of Jacob van Eyck‘s Der Fluyten Lust-hof sets a new standard and has led to his international breakthrough. Since then, he has recorded other bestsellers, mainly for Brilliant Classics. Around a hundred pieces have been composed for him, among which are twelve concertos. In 2011 Pierre Boulez, one of the greatest composers of the twentieth century, gave him permission to adapt his clarinet composition Dialogue de l‘ombre double for recorder. The world premiere of this new version took place in the sold-out main auditorium of the Amsterdam Concertgebouw; the album was recorded in 2015.

As a soloist, Bosgraaf has worked with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra under Jaap van Zweden, the Residentie Orkest The Hague, Noord Nederlands Orkest, Philharmonie Zuidnederland, the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra and the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra, among others. He has performed with leading jazz musicians including saxophone player Yuri Honing and cellist Ernst Reijseger and is also known for his recordings for film makers Werner Herzog, Paul and Menno de Nooijer.

Bosgraaf teaches at the Conservatory of Amsterdam and is a visiting professor at the Cracow Music Academy. He has received the Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award (2009), Nederlandse Muziekprijs (2011), ECHO Rising Star (2011/2012) and the Northern Dutch music prize Het Gouden Viooltje (2012).

This album contains no booklet.