I Musici
Since the early '50s, the pioneering chamber orchestra I Musici has focused on the music of the Italian Baroque but performs a variety of other works. The group set a basic pattern for countless other small Baroque orchestras.
I Musici ("The Musicians") are also known as I Musici di Roma. Originally, the name was intended to suggest a pure enthusiasm for musical performance. The group was formed in 1951 in Rome, where the members -- nine men and three women, the latter unusual at the time -- were students at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia. I Musici gave its first concert at the Santa Cecilia church in March of 1952, and it quickly gained national and even international success. The idea of a chamber orchestra devoted to Baroque music was quite new at the time, and one without a conductor (I Musici has a first-violinist leader who coordinates the group) was newer still, but group members contended successfully that for much of the Italian Baroque, a conductor was not used. Within its first several years, I Musici toured Europe; the group then visited the Americas, Japan, Australia, and southern Africa. I Musici's membership has changed but has been marked by stability; violinist Felix Ayo, leader from 1952 to 1958, performed with the group into the late 2010s. The group was championed early on by legendary conductor Arturo Toscanini, who gave them a signed portrait of himself, inscribed with the words "Good, very good! No, music does not die!"
At first, the orchestra's repertory focused heavily on the music of Vivaldi, Corelli, Albinoni, and other Italian Baroque composers, much of which was uncommon on concert programs in the 1950s and early '60s. Later, the group began to perform string works by 20th century composers, including Barber, Bartók, and Nino Rota. The orchestra has performed consistently at major music festivals, including those in Edinburgh, Salzburg, and Aix-en-Provence. In the '70s, I Musici made the first classical music video. Several famous musicians have passed through I Musici on the way to solo careers, including violinists Salvatore Accardo, director from 1972 to 1977, and Pino Carmirelli from 1977 to 1986 (the founder of the Carmirelli Quartet). The group's recording activities stretch well back into the LP era. I Musici played a major role in popularizing Vivaldi's Four Seasons violin concertos, which it has recorded several times; the group's recordings remained strong sellers for many years. For much of its career, I Musici was associated with the Philips label and then with Decca when both those labels were absorbed into the larger PolyGram conglomerate. In later years, the group has recorded for various labels, including Urania, IDIS, and Dynamic. Through the many innovations and changes of fashion in the performance of Baroque music, I Musici has remained successful and viable. The group released a new recording of The Four Seasons on Decca in 2022, by which time, its catalog comprised some 100 albums.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Cinque concerti festivi
I Musici, Evert van Tright, Roberto Michelucci, Felix Ayo
Classical - Released by Jube Classic on 2 Dec 2022
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
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Handel: Concerti grossi, HWV 327, 328 & 330 (Mono Version)
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Torelli: Concerti grossi, Op. 8 (Mono Version)
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1956
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Corelli: Concerti grossi, Op. 6 (Mono Version)
Felix Ayo, Walter Gallozzi, I Musici, Vincenzo Altobelli
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1956
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Giazotto: Adagio pour cordes et orgue - Vivaldi: Concerto pour flûte, RV 433 "La tempesta di mare" (Mono Version)
Maria Teresa Garatti, Gastone Tassinari, I Musici
Classical - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
L'école de Naples (Arranged by Vittorio Negri Bryks, Mono Version)
Enzo Altobelli, Severino Gazzelloni, I Musici
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1962
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bonporti: Concerti grossi, Op. 11 Nos. 4, 5, 6 & 8 (Mono Version)
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1958
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Concerto grosso, Op. 6 No. 4 - Bach: Concerto pour piano No. 5 - Haydn: Concerto pour violon, Hob. VIIa:1 (Mono Version)
I Musici, Felix Ayo, Maria Teresa Garatti
Classical - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1963
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Adagio et fugue, K. 546, Divertimenti, K. 137 & 138 - Giordani: Concerto pour clavecin, Op. 23 No. 2 (Mono Version)
I Musici, Maria Teresa Garatti
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1963
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Vivaldi: 6 Concerti pour flûte, Op. 10 (Mono Version)
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1959
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Concerti grossi, Op. 6, Nos. 9, 10 & 12 (Stereo Version)
Classical - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1961
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Torelli: Concerti grossi, Op. 8, Nos. 2, 3, 6, 9 & 12 (Mono Version)
Classical - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Oct 1956
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Rondo for Violin and Strings, D. 438 & Five Minuets With Six Trios, D. 89 - Mendelssohn: String Symphony No. 9, MWV N9 (Mono Version)
Classical - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1962
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Rondo, D. 438 & Minuets and Trios, D. 89 - Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 9 (Stereo Version)
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on 1 Jan 1962
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Migranti
Pop - Released by Universal Music Italia srL. on 6 Apr 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vivaldi: Violinkonzerte (CC)
Classical - Released by Decca on 1 Jan 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Great Classical Music #135 : Richard Strauss // Ottorino Respighi // Igor Stravinskij
Boston Symphony Orchestra, I Musici, English Chamber Orchestra
Classical - Released by Ermitage Records on 14 Aug 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo