VIVALDI BY CANDLELIGHT, First Presbyterian Church, Dec. 10

One of the most enjoyable concerts of the year is without question Vivaldi by Candlelight. A benefit for the Utah Council of Citizen Diplomacy it has rung in the holiday season like no other concert has for the past 29 years. There are no overtly Christmas themed works on the program but in spirit it’s definitely festive.

Focusing on the works of Antonio Vivaldi and his contemporaries and predecessors, the concert is a cornucopia of baroque music. Under the direction of Gerald Elias, the focus of the programs  has been on the lesser known works by the prolific Italian composer, and this year’s concert was no exception.

Saturday’s concert in the First Presbyterian Church didn’t have any of the master’s  concertos; instead, there were three of his more infrequently performed sinfonias.

Of the three, the Sinfonia in C major, L’Olimpiade, and the Sinfonia in G major, Alla Rustica, are short, vibrant works. And under Elias’ baton the Vivaldi Virtuosi (made up of members of the Utah Symphony, University of Utah faculty and others) gave wonderfully articulate, meticulously crafted readings of these two works.

The Sinfonia in B minor, Al Santo Sepolcro, the third of the Vivaldi pieces, is completely unlike the other two. This work shows Vivaldi can be more than just a cookie cutter composer. Dark and somber, this is gorgeously expressive and tinged with a spirituality that one doesn’t normally associate with him. And Elias and the ensemble gave a stunningly lyrical and emotionally charged reading that captured the seriousness of the work.

J.S. Bach was represented on the program by two works: his ever popular “Air” from the Orchestral Suite No. 3, BWV 1068, and the Concerto in D minor for Two Violins, BWV 1043, with symphony colleagues David Porter and Lynnette Stewart as soloists. The two played their parts engagingly with finely crafted phrases and expressions, which was mirrored by the ensemble.

Also on the concert was Elias’ arrangement for strings of Giuseppe Tartini’s Sonata in G minor, Devil’s Trill. This transcription keeps intact the virtuosic writing of the second movement as well as the expressive writing of the outer movements.

Rounding out the evening was Heinrich Biber’s Battalia, an oddball piece that takes a humorous look at war. It’s witty and funny with a number of special effects, and a movement that could come out of one of Charles Ives’ scores for its dissonances and cross rhythms. Elias and his musicians made the most of it and brought some welcome lightness to the concert.