“La Casa Del Diavolo” = GLUCK: Dance of the spectres and furies from
“Don Juan;” C.P.E.. BACH: Sinfonia No. 5 in B Minor for strings and
continuo; LOCATELLI: Concerto grosso Op. 7 No. 6 “Il pianto d’Arianna;”
W.F. BACH: Concerto in F Minor for harpsichord, strings and continuo;
BOCCHERINI: Sinfonia Op. 12 No. 4 “La casa del diavolo” in D Minor for
2 oboes, 2 horns, strings and continuo – Enrico Onofri, solo
violin/Ottavio Dantone, harpsichord/Il Giardino Armonico/Giovanni
Antonini, dir. – Naive OP 30399 *****:
Another exciting program of 18th century music from the gutsiest early
music chamber ensemble out there. This time they’ve assembled a concept
album with a cover drawing by Picasso of the Devil. The selections are
not your predictable ones on the theme of things devilish – such as
Tartini’s “Devil’s Trill” Sonata. Instead, the notes on the album
are headed “The Animal Cry of Passion,” and the theme seems to be the
broader idea of music arousing or depicting extreme passions. The
opening and closing works are obvious. The Locatelli work concerns the
storm of emotions of Arianna when she learns that her lover Theseus has
abandoned her. The two works by members of the Bach family are both
vividly dramatic in an almost Romantic period style. You can guarantee
that the Giardino Armonicos will wrest the utmost drama and emotion out
of this music – though the effect is not as startling as with familiar
music such as Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. And the sonics fit the bill
successfully. Credit to all concerned for making some early music
education a pleasure.
– John Sunier
