2020, ANNÉE ANTONINI YEAR

Giovanni Antonini - 2020, ANNÉEANTONINIYEAR

Giovanni Antonini, virtuoso flautist and orchestral conductor, is the founder of the Italian ensemble Il Giardino Armonico, which burst on the baroque musical scene in 1985; together they have amassed an impressive discography.

Partnered by Alpha Classics, they have launched a complete recording of the 107 symphonies by Joseph HAYDN, in anticipation of the 300th anniversary of his birth in 2032, and with the collaboration of the Haydn Stiftung in Basle. The Haydn 2032 project celebrates one of the most important, prolific and ingenious composers in the whole of musical history. Giovanni Antonini, who regards Haydn’s music as ‘a kaleidoscope of the human emotions’, has decided not to approach the symphonies chronologically, but rather to group them as themes (e.g. ‘La passione’, ‘Il filosofo’, ‘Il distratto’ etc.)

So far, 7 highly acclaimed volumes have earned the Gramophone Award, Preis Der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik, Diapasons d’Or, Choc Classica de l’Année etc.   2020 will see the release of Vols. 8 and 9:

  • 8: ‘La Roxolana’ – comprising Symphonies 28, 58, and 63 (nicknamed ‘La Roxolana’), set off against the Romanian Dances by Bartók, in an explosively revelatory version by Giardino Armonico. (ALPHA 682, FEBRUARY)
  • 9: ‘L’Addio’ – comprising Symphonies 15, 35 and 45 (the well-known ‘Farewell’ Symphony) as well as the aria ‘Berenice, che fai?’ with Sandrine Piau as soloist. (ALPHA 684, NOVEMBER)

In the same Haydn 2032 collection, as an extension to the Symphonies, October 2020 will see the release of a further Haydn masterpiece: Die Schöpfung (The Creation), with soloists Anna-Lucia Richter, Maximilian Schmitt and Florian Boesch, the Bavarian Radio Chorus – and again, Il Giardino Armonico. (ALPHA 567, OCTOBER)

 In 2020 Giovanni Antonini will also be celebrating a composer with whose music he made his name: Antonio VIVALDI. His recordings of the Four Seasons and Cecilia Bartoli’s famous first recital have become permanent benchmarks in the Red Priest’s discography! March 2020 will see more such fireworks with two Vivaldi concerto programmes that will surely interest everyone:

  • Firstly, with Antonini as soloist in a programme of his own devising recorded between 2011 and 2017, a generous bouquet of the Concerti per Flauto: RV 433 (‘La Tempesta di Mare’), plus the Concertos RV 441, 442 443, 444, and 445, and an amazing version for the chalumeau of ‘Cum Dederit’, a solo from Nisi Dominus RV 608. (ALPHA 364, MARCH)
  • The other Vivaldi excursion is the result of a fruitful encounter with another artist known for pushing back the boundaries: violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja. Together they have designed a programme provisionally entitled VI-WILD-I, combining ultra-virtuosic concertos by Vivaldi, such as RV 208 (‘Il Grosso Mogul’), 253 (‘la Tempesta di Mare’ in its violin version), also Concertos RV 157, 191, and 550. The concertos are interspersed with brief works by contemporary composers – Luca Francesconi, Simone Movio, Giacinto Scelsi, Aureliano Cattaneo and Giovanni Sollima – mostly commissioned by Patricia Kopatchinskja especially for this programme. (ALPHA 624, AUGUST)