A gift from the land of Tagliatelle

Seneka ABEYRATNE

Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons for solo violin and string orchestra, embellished with harpsichord, is an early example of program music.

Written in the ritornello format with decorative orchestral, solo and “tutti” passagework, it is a sumptuous blend of homophonic and polyphonic melodies. Few other CDs have surpassed the 1989 recording of The Four Seasons by Nigel Kennedy and the English Chamber Orchestra in terms of sales, which goes to show that this monumental baroque piece continues to enjoy enormous popularity among classical music fans. No doubt the iconic figure of Nigel Kennedy had something to do with the phenomenal sales.

A moment from the event

But the young Julia Fischer, not Nigel Kennedy, is my favorite violinist, and she too has made a recording of this perennial favorite with the chamber orchestra of the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields. It is a beautiful recording, but I wish the music had not been mixed with nature sounds.

Be that as it may, The four Seasons (comprising four violin concertos, each with a three-part pattern) is arguably the most quintessential of all the Vivaldi compositions. For each concerto, there is a corresponding sonnet (possibly by Vivaldi), which provides the composer with rich material for sonic depiction of meteorological changes. Spring is symbolic of cheerful bird song, murmuring brooks, swaying plants, rustling leaves, sleeping goatherds, and pastoral bagpipes; Summer, of scorching heat, the endearing calls of cuckoos and goldfinches, chattering insects, and fearsome thunderstorms; Autumn, of joyful harvest celebrations including music and dance, drunken revelry, and exuberant hunts at daybreak; Winter, of chilly weather, freezing rain, howling winds, chattering teeth, huddling around fires, and falling on ice.

The piece, viewed as a whole, is a stupendous work. Imbued with delicate narrative nuances and lush pastoral imagery, it contains the full range of romantic ploys, including tremolos, portamentos, glissandos, vibratos, double stops, strongly accented phrases, swollen ritardandos, and emphatic cadences, not to mention pizzicato raindrops. It is technically demanding and one would not expect a fifteen year-old violinist to perform this work in a way that would touch the audience. But this is exactly what Paolo Tagliamento did when he played at the Lionel Wendt on September 5th and the audience rewarded him with a standing ovation that went on and on.

Tagliamento has already won many prestigious national and international prizes, and is set to take the world by storm.

He has performed as a soloist with several orchestras in Italy and France, and to hear him play The Four Seasons with the Chamber Music Society of Colombo (CMSC), led by Lakshman Joseph de Saram, was a great honor. This was a fine performance, full of zest and sparkle, and the manner in which the soloist and the orchestra meshed into an organic whole and captured the spirit of the music, with its lush syncopated rhythms, was something to behold.

Tagliamento is a gift from the land of tagliatelle – or should I say, heaven? A sublime technique, inborn musicality, and a suave stage presence are his unique trademarks. His breezy and eloquent style of playing is ideally suited for Vivaldi. One wonders how a teenage violinist could be expected to perceive all the nuances of color, mood, texture and emotion woven into the fabric of The Four Seasons.

Only a prodigy could do it, and a prodigy he undoubtedly is. His playing was a tantalizing mix of technical fluency and lyrical imagery. His timing was perfect and his depiction of atmospheric effects (summer heat, swirling winds, lighting, thunder, winter chill, to name a few), deeply poetic. Moreover his playing was always “centered,” which is the hallmark of a highly focused, “thinking” artist. For about forty minutes, he held the audience spellbound.

If he has not yet fully mastered the principles of baroque embellishment, he can be forgiven. One cannot expect too much from a fifteen-year old. (Actually, on stage, he looks a good three years younger!) Picture him returning to the Wendt and playing The Four Seasons again in ten years’ time!

While the second half of the concert belonged to Paolo Tagliamento, the first half belonged to Gordon Fantini, another brilliant musician from the land of tagliatelle. The maestro played two Vivaldi pieces back to back with the CMSC, namely Bassoon Concertos RV 484 and RV 495. This was a masterly performance, with the soloist displaying excellent rapport with the orchestra.

The first movement of RV 484 is sublime and the bassoonist captured all its emotional and aesthetic nuances with aplomb. Fantini is not a showman, but an artist, he definitely is. Grace, fluency, maturity, sensitivity, quiet dignity…these are his distinguishing qualities. On that night, the CMSC went to a higher level, thanks to some excellent direction by the distinguished guest conductor from England, Leo Phillips. The synergism, overall, was as pure as it was profound. If Tagliamento was divine, then Fantini was magical. Viva Vivaldi! Viva Italy!