Early Music Today
May 2004
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VIVALDI:
Four Seasons
Dorian
DOR 90317
Reviewed by Peter Skuce
There can
be no doubt that with every Red Priest performance of Vivaldi’s
Four Seasons, dear old Antonio (the red priest himself) turns in his
grave – but only because he wants to get up and join the show.
There’s a thin line between genius and insanity and Red Priest
have crossed that line several times, the trouble is I can never be
sure in which direction.
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If you think you know the Seasons,
if you’ve heard it (or played it) far too often to ever want
to hear it again – go straight out and buy this recording. Red
Priest’s performance on this disc is passionate but criminal,
drunken and disorderly, manic and demonic, outrageous yet compulsive.
Their playing is virtuosic to the point of dementia, infectiously
irreverent, laughable but hilarious, exciting yet excruciating….
This stuff is cheaper than cocaine, but there’s no way it should
be legal. I only hope that next time Customer Services put me on hold
for twenty-five minutes it’s the Red Priest version that’s
playing. |
