L. Arruga, D. Lombardo, & Friends
Vivaldi: The Meeting
Thirsty Ear
Now here’s something I’ve been waiting an eternity for. Finally, a great metal musician proves to the world that metalheads can handle “real” music. You want to trick your snobby friends into listening to metal? (Probably not, why would you have friends who don’t share your tastes in music?) Give them The Meeting . After they tell you it’s the most amazing record they’ve heard all year, inform them that they’ve just listened to Dave Lombardo, the former drummer for Slayer, perfectly crank out selections from Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons,” “Ottone in Villa,” and “Orlando Furioso.” (It’s only fair to warn you that, while I do indeed love classical music, I am an extreme novice to it, bear with me…)
Mr. Lombardo is, mind you, accompanied by Luca Avanzi on oboe, contralto Caterina Calvi, Giorgio Carnini on organ, Ottavio Dantone on harpsichord, soprano Paola Quagliata, and Mauro Scappini on flute; Lorenzo Arruga conducts and plays harpsichord and keyboards as well. This is not a metal record. It is a classical album featuring world-famous classical musicians. Dave Lombardo, however, took up the challenge, and makes this an awesome work. It must be heard to be understood and believed. The Meeting , which conductor Arruga conceived, was based on Cuban novelist Alejo Carpentier’s Concierto Barroco , a story about Vivaldi meeting a Cuban percussionist. Since Dave Lombardo happened to be born in Cuba, and Arruga’s into metal(!), the recording appears to be a fulfillment of destiny. Your destiny, as a metalhead or classical freak should be to get this album and blow your mind. Harpsichord and double-pedal speed metal drums? Accompanying an opera soprano? The result is incredible, crank it up!
Thirsty Ear Recordings, 274 Madison Ave., Suite 804, New York, NY 10016
