The Four Seasons violin concertos of
Vivaldi and the Cuatros Estaciones Porteñas (Buenos Aires Four Seasons) -- "Porteños" are residents of Buenos Aires -- have been paired several times in the past. The pairing seems natural enough, and it has worked well, for example in the classic recordings of
Gidon Kremer. When examined closely, however, the idea tends to break down.
Piazzolla's Four Seasons were not a set; they were written at different times and have different flavors and structures. This version by Argentine violinist
Andrés Gabetta and his
Cappella Gabetta chamber orchestra, with bandoneón player
Mario Stefano Pietrodarchi, has the virtue of diverging from the others and drawing the lines of connection a bit more clearly. Arranger
Roberto Molinelli retains the bandoneón in the
Piazzolla pieces but adds a violin and rewrites the ensemble parts for string orchestra. Then everything is taken at high velocity: sample one of the
Vivaldi fast movements, perhaps the first movement of the "Summer" concerto, to see if you're comfortable with the speeds. This is not the languid, midnight
Piazzolla but an approach that emphasizes the angular jazzy rhythms in the music. And the same is done with
Vivaldi, minus the jazz. Your mileage (kilometers?) may vary with this approach, but even those who don't buy it will find that the best is saved for last: an original composition by
Molinelli that merges
Piazzolla and
Vivaldi ingeniously. Recommended.