This disc is a sampler of Vivaldi discs released by France's Naïve label, and it's highly recommended to listeners who haven't yet given these recordings a try. The group of performers is pan-European, with French singers and Italian instrumentalists especially strongly represented, but a compilation like this brings home how well this label has done at forging a unified artistic vision. Its Vivaldi indeed tends toward "furious," as the title proclaims; it is also garish, energetic, dynamically extreme, and in every way devoted to making Vivaldi out as a rebel in his time.

Vivaldi, the Venetian, master of the whole palette of human emotions. From the church to the opera house, from tragedy to joy, the immediately-recognisable sensibility, the expressiveness, the inimitable colours and an unbeatable talent to say so much in just a few notes.

A musical journey through Renaissance Europe via pieces that were highly popular and whose melodies were reused and varied by some of the best composers of the time.

One of the causes of the ‘crisis’ in the music industry is the fact that too many works are recorded over and over again. There are innumerable CDs with Vivaldi’s Four Seasons or Pergolesi’s Stabat mater. But once in a while someone has the imagination to perform and record a completely unknown piece by a composer hardly anybody has ever heard about. Antonio Florio is one of those creative minds who concentrates on little-known repertoire. In the last decade or so he has explored the musical past of his city, Naples. This time he presents a composition by an Italian who, for the largest part of his life, worked in Vienna. Badia was born in Verona and went to Innsbruck at a young age.

Excellent early-70's Italian progressive trio (still around today) with classical stylings, featuring keyboards to the fore and a unique dreamy/powerful style. Le Orme was one of the three major Italian groups, the other two being PFM and Banco. This band is usually considered as the Italian Emerson, Lake & Palmer and even Banco del Mutuo Soccorso by the Italian singing. Its music is based upon organ developments and soli reminding Seventies groups which works are essentially built upon keyboards parts.
The band's truly classic period begins with their third next releases. "Uomo Di Pezza" (1972) is one of Le Orme's definitive Italian progressive rock albums…

During the Carnival of Venice in 1637, a play ‘rappresentata in musica’ was opened to the public for the first time – a success. Opera was born and spread like wildfire. Venice had the largest number of theatres in the world. In 1677, the Teatro Sant’Angelo opened its doors on the campo of the same name. Tiny, chaotic, cheap and extremely productive, it was renowned for its musicians and its sets. This effervescence owes much to the figure of Vivaldi who, from 1705 onwards, regularly premiered his operas there and acted (with his father) as impresario.

Soprano Francesca Aspromonte and violinist Boris Begelman present an all-Handel programme exploring the vicissitudes of love, together with Arsenale Sonoro. On Un'alma innamorata, Aspromonte urges us to take ownership of our amorous infatuations, rather than blaming it on Cupid's arrows. The programme consists of several worldly cantatas with violino concertante - including the famous Mi palpita il cor and a world premiere recording of S'un di m'appaga la mia crudele - interspersed with instrumental sonatas. The overall chamber-musical approach of Un'alma innamorata increases the emotional impact of the tragic heroines depicted by Aspromonte.Francesca Aspromonte presents her third Pentatone album, after having released Prologue (2018) and Maria & Maddalena (2021). Boris Begelman featured on the latter album, whereas Arsenale Sonoro makes its Pentatone debut.

Jordi Savall is painting Monteverdi in the colours of the Mediterranean. The Catalan maestro has entrusted the title role of this foundational work of Western music to a remarkable baritone: the magnificent Marc Mauillon embodies Orfeo, his resonant and ductile voice in perfect unison with the conductor’s musical vision. Here, a warm performance and rich sound reign supreme!

Latte e Miele is an Italian progressive rock musical group. The group formed in 1971 in Genoa. In 1972 they realized their most famous work, the concept album Passio secundum Mattheum, with part of music inspired by Johann Sebastian Bach and recitatives from the Gospel of Matthew. After having opened the concerts of Van der Graaf Generator, in 1973 they released another concept album, Papillon, and disbanded in 1974. The group reformed in 1976, with only Alfio Vitanza from the original line-up, and with the name of the group spelled as "LatteMiele". After the album Aquile e scoiattoli, best known for its 23-minutes-suite "Pavana", they gradually abandoned the progressive style and approached pop-rock. After disbanding in the early 1980s, the original line-up reunited in 2008.