Despite this more cosmopolitan approach favoured by some Italians, there was still a large demand for Vivaldi’s concertos, particularly amongst the European virtuosi. Along with Tartini, Vivaldi stood at the forefront of advances in violin technique with many of his violin concertos demanding technical wizardry from the soloist. Occasionally, Vivaldi would find himself adapting a concerto for a different soloist who required the work to be tailored to his or her particular strengths. Concertos that show such reworkings include the concerto in E minor (RV281) and the concerto in B flat (RV365). To these may be added the concerto movement in B flat (RV745) which probably served as a replacement to a concerto finale; the use of bariolage and upbow staccato are typical of his late concertos.

from notes by Adrian Chandler © 2019