This disc is designed as a concerto showcase for four of The English
Concert’s regular members, and does a very good job of it while also
introducing us to some unfamiliar but deserving music. The name of
Evaristo Felice Dall’Abaco doesn’t crop up too often but his Concerto a più instrumenti
is full of life, mixing Corellian concerto grosso style with a
French-sounding aria and chaconne, and a rumpty-tumpty finale. Perhaps
it rambles a bit, but the playing here is so delightful, especially in
the cleanly delineated duetting of the two solo violins, the sharp
dynamic contrasts and the tellingly pointed inner-part details, that you
won’t mind. Porpora’s Cello Concerto is alas not so interesting,
especially in quick movements that display a fair amount of empty
passagework, but there is a suaveness to the opening Amoroso and some operatic scene-setting in the inner Largo. Soloist Joseph Crouch is both agile and expressive, though one might wish for sweeter tone.
Alessandro Marcello’s Oboe Concerto is the best-known work here (it
is the one Bach transcribed for keyboard) and is given a mellifluous and
atmospheric performance with Katharina Spreckelsen as the warm soloist.
The way the achingly lyrical slow movement creeps in from near
inaudibility is particularly effective and I rather liked the oboe’s
cheeky ‘spread chord’ at the very end. Next comes a typically tricky but
composed and poetic violin concerto by Tartini; Nadja Zwiener’s violin
is quite foregrounded here but does not suffer thereby, as the singing
quality and nonchalant virtuosity of her playing (very assured in the
frequent double-stopping) mean that it remains easy on the ear. To end,
there is Telemann’s Viola Concerto, perhaps a little halting in the
first movement where it could have moved more smoothly, but nevertheless
played with bold assurance by Alfonso Leal del Ojo; the finale
certainly rounds things off with a flourish. Harry Bicket directs the
orchestra with precision, clarity and plenty of useful ideas. A nice way
to spend 70 minutes of your time. (Lindsay Kemp / Gramophone)