I Barocchisti, Diego Fasolis - J.S.Bach - Brandenburgische Konzerte / Tripelkozert (2CD) (2006)

Among the current sensations of the historical-performance scene is I Barocchisti, from Italian Switzerland, and its director and harpsichordist Diego Fasolis. The group released performances of Bach's six Brandenburg Concertos on a pair of discs, with the second disc also containing the Concerto for flute, violin, harpsichord, strings, and continuo in A minor, BWV 1044. Whatever may be said for breaking up the set in other situations, this radical approach is best appreciated as a whole. Part of the charm of these classic works is their differentiation, somewhat obscured in modern performances (and even in some on historical instruments) that use a large string section. Fasolis sets himself the task of bringing out the kaleidoscopic quality of Bach's writing to the maximum, with a few strings in the ripieno passages and a full foreground placement of the soloists. Such novel sounds as natural horns in the Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 and a natural trumpet in the Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 come off not as incidental but as defining flavorings of the movements in which they appear. The first concerto, for example, one imagines being performed outdoors in this reading, as an actual prelude to a hunt. Another immediately notable feature of Fasolis' approach is his fast tempos. The outer Allegros are brisk indeed, and in the first concerto the minuet refrains with their "trio" sections of multiple dances bear scant resemblance to the graceful minuet as conventionally understood. Fasolis' harpsichord, and not only in the Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 on the companion disc to this one, is given an unusually prominent role, and sample these tracks (4 through 10) for a taste of breathtakingly virtuosic but slightly hyper playing running all through this set. The Arts label's SACD sound captures the impressive level of detail in the playing of I Barocchisti. This disc and its companion may frustrate some listeners while striking others as absolutely revelatory of a unique conception on Bach's part that hasn't been appreciated fully until now. The English booklet notes, unfortunately, were never seen by a native speaker of that language.