Andrew Manze, Richard Egarr - Corelli - Violin Sonatas, Op. 5 (2002)

Corelli's Op. 5 Violin Sonatas have always been admired by chamber music fans; there are a couple of good recordings of them already available. But this new one by Baroque specialist and virtuoso Andrew Manze and harpsichordist Richard Egarr presents the sonatas in such a bright, exciting, and improvisatory light that they seem brand new. During the composer's lifetime, these sonatas were widely played and tremendously influential; there's a good chance that it was assumed that virtuosi took what was written on the page as a starting point for embellishing and sheer showing off. Manze is breathtaking--fast, articulate, conscious of the genuinely good tunes some of these sonatas contain--and his variances from the written music are thrilling. Egarr knows how to embellish too, and he matches Manze every step of the way. If you're wondering if 131 minutes of only two instruments can keep your interest, don't worry. This will. -- Robert Levine