Forza azzurri

Looking at the variety of Italian baroque instrumental music on offer to today's listener, one could be forgiven for thinking that Vivaldi had faced little competition during his lifetime. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Whilst the volume of music that flowed from Vivaldi's pen was unusually plentiful, many other composers were needed to fulfil the needs of the regional courts and churches throughout Italy. Expert early-music ensemble La Serenissima perform works by Lorenzo Gaetano Zavateri, Giuseppe Sammartini, Evaristo Felice Dall'Abaco and Giuseppe Antonio Brescianello alongside works by Vivaldi on this new album of Italian Baroque masterpieces.