The most noteworthy piece on this disc of Respighi rarities and premiere recordings is the early Violin Concerto, revised and completed by conductor Salvatore Di Vittorio. The first two movements are complete, the finale sketched out as to its initial thematic material. Di Vittorio has completed it quite effectively by turning it into a rondo based on the tunes of the earlier movements, a process very similar to that found in, say, Gershwin’s Piano Concerto or Bartók’s Second for that instrument. Suffice it to say that the piece sounds like genuine Respighi, with anticipations of such characteristic moments as the catacombs in The Pines of Rome. Laura Marzadori plays the piece very well, with a nice balance of lyrical fulsomeness and virtuoso flashiness.
The Suite for Strings, in six dance-inspired movements, is the largest work in this recital, and reveals the composer in one of his neo-baroque moods. Rossiniana makes an appealing conclusion; it’s not nearly as well known as the composer’s other Rossini pastiche, La boutique fantasque, but it’s just as much fun (the funereal second movement has remarkable atmosphere and sounds more like Verdi). The orchestra, a New York “pickup” ensemble, plays quite well for the most part; there are a few moments of splayed ensemble in the strings in the concluding Tarantella of Rossiniana, but otherwise there’s very little to carp at, and the sonics are quite good. For fans of the composer this disc is a must, and I also can see the opening Aria for strings getting a good bit of radio play. It’s a charmer.
