Charles Avison (1709-70) was a leader in English music–a noted keyboardist, pedagogue, impresario, and prolific composer who penned no fewer than 60 concertos. However, what we hear on this set is a recasting of music by a better-known composer. Taking material from 29 authentic Scarlatti sonatas as well as from other, unattributed works (some of which are suspected of being Avison’s own), Avison fashioned a set of 12 enjoyable concerti grossi. While a newcomer might not learn a great deal about Avison’s capabilities as a tunesmith, these works do illuminate his first-rate arranging talents. Scarlatti’s sonatas are woven into tonally coherent four-movement works, and Avison’s writing skillfully exchanges the palette of the more-percussive harpsichord for the plusher sounds of a string band.
While this two-CD set (made from 1985 recordings) serves as a good introduction to music that is easily overlooked, it doesn’t match Roy Goodman’s 1994 recording for Hyperion with The Brandenburg Consort, released as Vol. 28 in the label’s “English Orpheus” series. The differences in approach are notable: whereas Goodman’s forces offer a deliciously light, transparent reading, the Ensemble Berlin goes for a rich, gooey, Mittel-europa sound, complemented by the fine depth of these LP transfers. (These players are a mysterious, apparently leaderless lot, about whom we are given no information.) Koch Schwann’s pricing is alluring, however, and should entice listeners to take a chance on Avison.
