Description

Cellist Benoît Loiselle and organist Vincent Boucher combine their talents for this unusual recording of chamber music by Antonio Vivaldi. This CD was recorded at St. Matthias Anglican church in Westmount, Québèc, on the Karl Wilhelm organ built in 1973. Vivaldi’s interest in composing for the cello parallels the instrument’s rapid rise from supporting role in the continuo section to a full-fledged solo voice. Though cello and organ were often used in continuo sections, Baroque pieces composed expressly for these two instruments are rare, and the Red Priest himself composed nothing for this unusual combination. To bridge the gap, Loiselle and Boucher have selected transcriptions of some of Vivaldi’s well-known works, including the first movement of the Stabat Mater, two sonatas for cello and basso continuo, and two concertos by Bach based works by Vivaldi. The programme comprises Boucher’s own transcription of the Concerto in D Minor for violin and organ.