Canada’s The WholeNote has praised violinist Cristina Prats Costa’s solo album debut, Spiritillo Mediterraneo, calling it a dazzling array of spirited, colourful music that simply jumps out at you from the CD.
Reviewer Terry Robbins highlights the album’s exploration of 17th- and early 18th-century Mediterranean music, noting Costa’s emphasis on the region as a crossroads rather than a boundary, blending Italian virtuosity, Spanish rhythmic fire, and French elegance across works by composers including Vivaldi, Biber, and Gaspar Sanz. She is joined by Charlotte Nediger, Lucas Harris, Michael Unterman, Joseph Phillips, and percussionists Nagmeh Farahmand and Esmeralda Enrique.
The review notes strong Tafelmusik connections throughout the recording, from ensemble members Nediger and Unterman to producer Julia Wedman and the Toronto recording venue, Trinity-St. Paul’s United Church. Costa performs on a 17th-century Bolognese violin loaned to her by Aisslinn Nosky.
The WholeNote sums up the result as an album that explores the imagination, freedom, and ornamented dialogue that defined Baroque performance — and does so quite superbly.
Spiritillo Mediterraneo is out now on PENTATONE.
