Hyperion Records | Vivaldi: Sacred Music, Vol. 10

Click album cover image to view the sleeve notes

CDA66849

Buy? £13.99

Recording details: November 2003
Various recording venues
Produced by Ben Turner
Engineered by Philip Hobbs
Release date: February 2004
Total duration: 75 minutes 59 seconds
Available for download on iTunes: No

View sleeve notes/artwork

'So we have reached the end of a long, immensely rewarding trail. Brilliant, invigorating, uplifting, King's sacred music intégrale shines like a beacon in a dark world that has largely lost the ability to engage with spiritual celebration. More prosaically, it now becomes the core reference archive for Vivaldi's sacred music, a skilfully planned, superlatively engineered set of discs that will take an honoured place in recording history' (Fanfare, USA)

'for King's sterling service to the Vivaldian cause, one of his most important recording and satisfying projects to date, I am thankful' (Gramophone)

'The accomplished, precise and colourful orchestra is led by the ever vigourous and sensitive King, and the technically irreproachable and spot-on choir with its formidable bass section … is especially noteworthy' (Goldberg Early Music Magazine)

'This final disc in Robert King's justly acclaimed complete edition of Vivaldi's sacred music is the project's crowning glory' (Daily Telegraph)

'With Robert King, there is never a question about technical polish or keen musicianship. These are stunning performances … I would not hesitate to recommend the present disc to anyone looking for a recording of THE Gloria, both for the quality of this performance and because of the accompanying pieces, which surely must fascinate any listener with an interest in Vivaldi's most famous sacred work' (American Record Guide)

'As we know, there are many different ways of interpreting this repertoire, but Robert King seems to have one of the best grips on it yet by way of his energetic and unmannered view. The agile and responsive soloists, the alert and nimble chorus, and the disciplined and finely honed orchestra are all right on the mark, never wavering in either proficiency or commitment. This is a real winner, and a shoo-in for our Classical Hall of Fame' (Fanfare, USA)

Vivaldi: Sacred Music, Vol. 10

King's Consort Choir, The King's Consort, Robert King (conductor)

		Gloria, RV589 Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
1		Movement 01: Gloria in excelsis Deo [2:21]
2		Movement 02: Et in terra pax [5:47]
3		Movement 03: Laudamus te [2:16] Carolyn Sampson (soprano), Joanne Lunn (soprano)
4		Movement 04: Gratias agimus tibi [0:25]
5		Movement 05: Propter magnam gloriam tuam [0:56]
6		Movement 06: Domine Deus, rex coelestis [3:59] Carolyn Sampson (soprano), Alexandra Bellamy (oboe)
7		Movement 07: Domine Fili unigenite [2:10]
8		Movement 08: Domine Deus, agnus Dei [4:09] Joyce DiDonato (soprano)
9		Movement 09: Qui tollis peccata mundi [1:04]
10		Movement 10: Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris [2:18] Joyce DiDonato (soprano)
11		Movement 11: Quoniam tu solus sanctus [0:47]
12		Movement 12: Cum Sancto Spiritu [2:59]
		Nisi Dominus, RV803 Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
13		Movement 1: Nisi Dominus aedificaverit [1:28] Carolyn Sampson (soprano), Tuva Semmingsen (mezzo-soprano), Hilary Summers (alto)
14		Movement 2: Nisi Dominus custodierit [2:31] Tuva Semmingsen (mezzo-soprano), Katherine McGillivray (viola d'amore)
15		Movement 3: Vanum est vobis [2:24] Tuva Semmingsen (mezzo-soprano)
16		Movement 4: Cum dederit [3:13] Tuva Semmingsen (mezzo-soprano)
17		Movement 5: Sicut sagittae [2:24] Hilary Summers (alto), Simon Jones (violin)
18		Movement 6: Beatus vir [4:42] Carolyn Sampson (soprano), Jonathan Cohen (cello)
19		Movement 7: Gloria Patri [3:47] Carolyn Sampson (soprano)
20		Movement 8: Sicut erat in principio [1:18] Carolyn Sampson (soprano), Tuva Semmingsen (mezzo-soprano), Hilary Summers (alto)
		Ostro picta, RV642 Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
21		Movement 1: Ostro picta [2:51] Carolyn Sampson (soprano)
22		Movement 2: Sic transiit [1:01] Carolyn Sampson (soprano)
23		Movement 3: Linguis favete [3:32] Carolyn Sampson (soprano)
		Gloria, RV ANH.23 Giovanni Maria Ruggieri (fl c1690-1720)
24		Movement 01: Gloria in excelsis Deo [0:50]
25		Movement 02: Et in terra pax [1:45] Robert Evans (bass), Jonathan Brown (bass), Elizabeth Poole (soprano), Robert Macdonald (bass), Charles Pott (bass), Charles Gibbs (bass), Adrian Peacock (bass)
26		Movement 03: Laudamus te [1:15] Julie Cooper (soprano), Cecilia Osmond (soprano), Daniel Auchincloss (tenor)
27		Movement 04: Gratias agimus tibi [0:45]
28		Movement 05: Domine Deus, rex coelestis [2:36] Julie Cooper (soprano), Angharad Gruffydd Jones (soprano), Robert Evans (bass), Elizabeth Poole (soprano), Cecilia Osmond (soprano), Robert Macdonald (bass)
29		Movement 06: Domine Fili unigenite [1:51] Robin Blaze (countertenor)
30		Movement 07: Domine Deus, agnus Dei [1:07]
31		Movement 08: Qui tollis peccata mundi [1:30]
32		Movement 09: Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris [1:36] Julie Cooper (soprano), Robin Tyson (alto), Daniel Auchincloss (tenor)
33		Movement 10: Quoniam tu solus sanctus [1:10]
34		Movement 11: Cum Sancto Spiritu [3:12]

Ten years and eleven discs after its triumphant inception, Robert King’s complete recording of Vivaldi’s sacred music reaches a worthy end. The Gloria, RV589 – this is the ‘famous’ one, beloved of choral societies the world over – provides a suitably ebullient opening to a recording which also includes the lyrical Ostro picta sublimely sung by Carolyn Sampson and the Gloria by Ruggieri – the work from which Vivaldi stole many of the best ideas for his own settings of the same text.

Of great significance also is the first recording of the newly discovered Nisi Dominus, RV803 – Vivaldi’s ‘latest work’, as it were. Discovered in a Dresden library in 2003, this opulent setting is for three soloists, strings, continuo and five extraordinary solo instruments (including the fantastical ‘violino in tromba marina’ – the eighteenth century’s equivalent of the modern ‘jazz violin’?). As a historical discovery, this new work is important; as the keystone of this final disc in a ground-breaking series, it is perfect.