Review: Vivaldi - The Four Seasons (Nishizaki/Gunzenhauser)

Humour me for a moment, okay? You decide, for whatever reason, that you want to purchase a recording of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. You find the only record store in existence, and you start perusing the selection. The Four Seasons is one of the most frequently recorded pieces in the classical repertoire, so there are lots of options to choose from. Which one do you go for? Put another way, why do you choose one particular recording over another?

I can’t speak for everyone, but I’d look for one of two things: First, I’d be drawn to a recording made by a soloist, orchestra, or conductor I’m familiar with. For example, Joshua Bell made one with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields. I haven’t heard it, but I’m kind of curious to based on my knowledge of those involved. Second, I’d seek out a somewhat out-of-the-ordinary recording: one based on historically informed performance practice, or one with some other distinguishing characteristic.

This recording, made in the earlier days of the Naxos recording label, is neither of these. It’s perfectly fine, maybe even good, but there’s nothing remarkable about it, and in my opinion, when it comes to this piece, ‘good enough’ is simply not good enough. The soloist, Takako Nishizaki, is perfectly competent, but doesn’t do anything surprising. The orchestra and conductor, Capella Istropolitana and Stephen Gunzenhauser, do a fine job, but again, there’s nothing that makes their performance distinctive. This is a perfectly acceptable, middle-of-the-road interpretation of some extremely familiar music. If that’s what you’re looking for, this will work, but if you want something more than that, you’ll want to look elsewhere. I have a total of four recordings of The Four Seasons—five, if you count Max Richter’s ‘recomposed’ version—and this is probably my least favourite, not because it’s bad, but because it’s so generic. I’ll say it again: This is a fine recording, but I prefer my Vivaldi with a little more personality than what we get here.

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