New Classical Tracks: Vivaldi flute concertos

Swiss-French flutist Emmanuel Pahud is principal flute with the Berlin Philharmonic. He left the orchestra to become a soloist, but then rejoined them in 2002 and continued his solo career.

That career has provided him with any number of stories and some moments of panic. One of his most unnerving experiences happened while he was in Hong Kong. He was sailing through a flute concerto when suddenly he realized he had his cell phone in his jacket pocket, and it was turned on! He was quite distracted for the rest of the performance. It didn't go off, but he made sure to avoid the same mistake when he performed with the Australian Chamber Orchestra for the first time a few weeks later. Freed from cell phone anxiety, Pahud was primed for the discovery that he and the Australian Chamber Orchestra made a great team. That inspired them to go into the studio and record a new collection of Vivaldi Flute Concertos.

Maybe you've heard the old quip that Vivaldi wrote the same concerto 600 times. Performers like Emmanuel Pahud, who spend a lot of time with Vivaldi's music, couldn't disagree more with that statement.

Vivaldi was actually a pretty adventurous composer. The finale of Vivaldi's Op. 10 No. 6 flute concerto demonstrates just how progressive he was. In that finale, he includes a set of variations on a minuet theme. According to scholars, that may have been the first time a variation finale was ever used in an orchestral concerto and a good enough idea for Mozart to grab onto in a couple of his later piano concertos.

What makes this performance so enjoyable is the light and delicate touch Emmanuel Pahud exhibits alongside the Australian Chamber Orchestra. He doesn't try to outdo the ensemble, even though he is an outstanding soloist. Of course, when the soloist is asked to show off a little, as in the first movement of "Il Gardellino", or "The Goldfinch" concerto, Emmanuel Pahud rises to the occasion. His technique is flawless, with gently fluttering trills that instantly create a musical image of the goldfinch. With Pahud, however, technique does not substitute for emotion. He plays expressively and passionately.

"The Goldfinch" concerto is more proof that Vivaldi was a forward-thinking composer. He was one of the first to write visually descriptive music. With a few notes from the orchestra here and the soloist there, you can't help but "hear" the picture Vivaldi was trying to draw. "La Notte", or "The Night," demonstrates this beautifully. It opens with a slow Largo, which feels like a gateway into the mystery of the night. The tension is released in the final Allegro in a burst of high energy. To give this recording some context, I compared this recording by Emmanuel Pahud and the Australian Chamber Orchestra with one by the period instrument ensemble Europa Galante. Artistic Director Fabio Biondi adheres to the scholarly side of Vivaldi by having Europa Galante perform directly from the composer's score, trying to get at the full richness of Vivaldi's musical language.

Compare that to what Artistic Director Richard Tognetti does with the Australian Chamber Orchestra, and the contrast is amazing. Tognetti has his ensemble play on both modern and period instruments in a small chamber setting. Europa Galante is also a small chamber ensemble, yet to listen to it you might think it's a much larger orchestra. Because all of the musicians play the same kinds of instruments, geared to sound like they did in Vivaldi's day, the sound seems fuller and richer than the Australians' hybrid approach. The European group also features a recorder soloist rather than the flute. The Australian Chamber Orchestra's sound is brighter, its pace is quicker, and its dynamic variations are much more dramatic, which adds to the suspense in La Notte. Both performances are good, but it's amazing that a work that is hundreds of years old can sound so different depending on who's playing it.

For me, this new collection of Vivaldi flute concerti is like a fresh breath of springtime in February. You have the rolling spring thunderstorms in La tempesta di mare, the return of the colorful goldfinches in Il gardellino, and there are a few flute concertos on this recording that may be new to you. Overall, this new collection with Emmanuel Pahud and the Australian Chamber Orchestra is an opportunity for growth and renewal, and we don't have to wait for the official vernal equinox to enjoy it.

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