Vivaldi: 65 Violin Concertos - Shlomo Mintz, violin & conductor, Israel Chamber Orchestra

Vivaldi 1678-1741 Violin Concertos Collection Vols I-X liner notes

It should be noted that Vivaldi's current worldwide popularity is a fairly recent development. Half a century ago, he was virtually forgotten; if somebody had told David Hall, R.D. Darrell, Irving Kolodin or any of the other authors of those valuable pioneering record guides of the '40s and '50s, that the day would come when there would be more than 75 versions of The Four Seasons" among which to choose, the response would have been astonishment and likely disbelief. And yet it has come to pass -- there is no end to sight. But there is more to Vivaldi than The Four Seasons," as any listener to these compact discs will quickly discover. And, to belabor the obvious, listening to his violin concertos -- really listening, rather than letting them pour out as background music -- provides rewards.