Music / Vivaldi’s  “Four Seasons”, Phoenix Collective Quartet. At Wesley Uniting Church, November 4. Reviewed by GRAHAM McDONALD.

THIS was as enjoyable a performance of Vivaldi’s well known set of concertos by the Phoenix Collective Quartet, augmented by harpsichordist Ariana Odermatt.

The four concertos were first published as part of a larger set of 12 concertos written between 1716 and 1725, but the others have faded into obscurity. This is early “program music”, with the music describing the weather and rural activities in an Italian village over the seasons of the year.

The four concertos are usually played with little or no break between them. Phoenix Collective director Dan Russell cleverly separated each concerto with a spoken introduction, outlining what each movement of the concertos represented musically (sometimes with short examples) which made each work quite distinct. He also read short extracts from the descriptive poetry that was originally published with the music in 1725.

It is also a showpiece for solo violin and PCQ leader Dan Russell, who was obviously enjoying himself with some clever harmonics and spectacular playing with the other four musicians providing tight accompaniment with the orchestra parts stripped down to one instrument each. This allows no room for error in either pitch or phrasing and they rose to the occasion splendidly.

The timing and the dynamics were a delight. Odermatt’s harpsichord rippled away quietly in the background throughout, though it does get a featured spot in the slow movement of the third (autumn) concerto where arpeggiated chords sit under long sustained notes from the strings.

This was music performed with loads of good humour and affection, finishing with a short arrangement of “Lose Yourself to Dance”, from French electronic duo Daft Punk. It fitted remarkably well.