Vivaldi: The Four Seasons

The opening measures of this stately performance announce the ensemble's unusual approach: Instead of leaping with joy at the first sounds of "Spring," as is typical when interpreting Vivaldi, they hang back a bit. But not at the expense of vibrancy; the stately pace allows for a gleaming interplay to emerge between Joshua Bell and the Fields players. Their crisp dynamics bring the work’s pictorial suggestions to mind: There’s a fragile warmth during the “Adagio Molto” of “Autumn,” and a frigid contrast between the strings in the first movement from “Winter.”