To accompany the Hybrid SACD release by the Combattimento Consort, Amsterdam and its musical director Jan Willem de Vriend of the complete opus 6 Concerti Grossi of George Frideric Handel (CC72570), Challenge Classics are re-issuing the ensemble’s recording of the earlier opus 3 set with new notes and packaging.

George Frideric Handel’s 6 Concerti Grossi opus 3 were first published in 1734. As with the opus 6 set of 1739 the style is strongly influenced by the music of Corelli, however, as

against the later group of concertos in the opus 3 works the composer varies the concertino group in each concerto, and the oboe rather than the violin is the predominant solo instrument.

Having studied the violin at the conservatories of Amsterdam and Den Haag, Jan Willem de Vriend went on to found the Combattimento Consort Amsterdam in 1982. In his capacity as violinist and artistic director of this ensemble he has conducted numerous concerts and opera productions both in the Netherlands and abroad. The Consort’s repertoire concentrates on the period 1600-1800, not only familiar works but also lesser known masterpieces, which are often only available in manuscript form.