The Italian Job—La Serenissima/Adrian Chandler; Gail Hennessey & Rachel Chaplin, oboes; Peter Whelen, bassoon (Avie 2371)
Drive Time host and movie quizmaster Bill O’Connell writes: “The irresistible title of this disc brings to mind two caper movies of the same name, the 2003 film with Mark Wahlberg & Charlize Theron—which I recommend—and the 1969 version with Michael Caine (and Benny Hill!) which I haven’t seen. La Serenissima is the London ensemble that specializes in music by Vivaldi and his contemporaries, and the group seems fond of adopting film titles for their CDs: two of their Vivaldi discs are The French Connection and The French Connection 2. Adrian Chandler and his merry band present a feast of instrumental color featuring oboes, bassoons, trumpets, trombone, timpani, strings and continuo. The music here comes from four Italian cities with rich musical heritages: Venice (Albinoni, Caldara & Vivaldi), Bologna (Torelli), Padua (Tartini) and Rome (Corelli)." [The link sends you to the Avie Records site.]