More than two centuries before John Lennon favorably compared the Beatles' popularity to that of Jesus, Italian violin virtuoso Francesco Maria Veracini confidently remarked that there was only one God, and only one Veracini. He was one of the first stars of the violin, younger than Corelli, roughly contemporary with Vivaldi and Tartini, who is better known only because of the satanic verses he wrote for the instrument.

The first half of the 18th century saw an insatiable demand for new opera seria, or dramma per musica, in Venice, Rome, Milan and, principally, London, where composer and teacher Nicola Porpora ran the Opera of the Nobility, putting poor Handel very firmly (though temporarily) in the shade. This collection of castrato arias includes six astonishing discoveries, many recorded for the first time, from Porpora, Johann Aldolf Hasse and Giuseppe de Majo, sung by the beguilingly agile Simone Kermes with delightfully pungent playing from La Magnifica Comunità.

The title and theme of this set of concertos is 'Human Passions.' The detailed booklet argues that Vivaldi was unique in attempting to portray human emotions in the instrumental concertos. As examples of this, the first disc consists of six violin concertos written around about the time of the opus 8 set which includes the Four Seasons. These extra concertos may have been intended to form a new set of six related concertos all linked by Human Passions. The concertos are are titled and five are as follows: Il Sospetto (Suspicion); L'Inquietudine (Anxiety); Il Riposo (Repose); Il Piacere (Pleasure) and L'Amoroso (The Lover). The missing sixth title could have been one of many options and on this disc the extra concerto played is Amato Bene (Beloved Creature).