Austrian composer Karl von Ordonez (also Carlos d’Ordonez) is often mentioned in the same breath as Haydn, including him among the most noteworthy symphonists of his day. Judging from the works here, his was a minor talent. All of these are three-movement pieces lasting between 10 and 15 minutes. The style is pleasant, graceful, and heavily dependent on sequences, almost like an updated version of Vivaldi. It was smart of Naxos to include three works in minor keys: this automatically adds harmonic tension and interest, though to be honest Ordonez doesn’t exploit the minor mode with anything like Haydn’s or Mozart’s intensity and concentration. Still, Kevin Mallon and the Toronto Camerata deliver well-paced, charming performances, with the prominent oboes and horns adding to the music’s textural interest. I suppose that closer acquaintance would have resulted in playing with a bit more dynamic range and nuance, but you get a very clear idea of what the man was about from this well-recorded disc, and if you like early Haydn, you may well want to give Ordonez a listen. At least now you can.
