This double album is an invitation to explore the forces of nature, so vividly depicted by the composers at the turn of the XVIIth and XVIIIth centuries.
With this stunning (and first) recording of Jean-Fery Rebel’s Les Elements, Jordi Savall displays his unmatched vision of the baroque orchestral repertoire, proving that authenticity and timbral beauty aren’t mutually exclusive.
New recordings of works by Locke, Vivaldi, Marais, Telemann and Rameau - a splendidly varied and expressively wide-ranging selection - is a welcome addition to the existing landmark recordings made by Savall in this repertoire.
Pellucid engineering complements the live performances perfectly, offering warmth without excessive resonance, and letting the players shine.
*****
Jordi Savall directs with typical grandeur and depth of tone. The subject-matter means plenty of work for the two-man wind machine and rumbling drum department, but there is exquisite contrast too in, say, the fluty stillness of Marais’s Ritournelle or the exquisitely graceful ‘sleeping Thetis’ Sarabande of the Telemann. Gramophone
a very rewarding exploration of how several Baroque composers treated the themes of nature and the elements. Music Web
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