Vivaldi: L'Estro Armonico DVD

Imagine being on holiday in Venice, making a home movie and then playing it to friends with a favourite CD of Vivaldi as soundtrack. That's pretty much what you get with Vivaldi: L'Estro Armonico, except that the performance of this selection of concertos from the wonderfully ebullient early Vivaldi collection is no great shakes either. It comes from an eastern European orchestra and feels distinctly leaden compared with the best readings around today. And that's it, folks: 56 minutes of video footage of Venice, with the only guidance on what you're seeing coming from... the "Travel Notes" menu option that gives background information on some of the locations. Never mind the price of this DVD: it can't be recommended unless you have a relative playing in the band or you want to check out Venice's sights before booking your holiday. On the DVD: Vivaldi: L'Estro Armonico on disc has theatrical trailers for other DVDs. The "Travel Notes" are useful, if superficial, as is the brief biography of Vivaldi. Sound quality is no more than passable, despite the Dolby Digital remastering and the picture quality is disappointingly washed-out. --Harriet Smith [show more]

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