Six years ago, violinist Nicola Benedetti discussed the idea of a Baroque album with the management at Universal Records, but felt the time wasn’t right. “Baroque repertoire can be controversial in terms of style and interpretation,” Benedetti says. “I wanted to make sure I felt ready.”

And this past year, she was.

In January, Universal’s Decca Classics label released Benedetti’s new album, Italia, a collection of Italian Baroque music accompanied by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. The program ranges from the well-known, such as Vivaldi’s “Summer” from The Four Seasons and Tartini’s “Devil’s Trill” Sonata, to lesser-known concertos and transcriptions of opera arias.

Making the album involved various choices about Baroque style and performance practice. After immersing herself in Baroque music—by taking lessons, listening to recordings, experimenting with gut strings, and collaborating with Baroque players—Benedetti came up with a style that is comfortable for her: using modern strings on her 1712 “Earl Spencer” Strad and a Baroque bow loaned to her by violinist Rachel Podger, and playing with minimal vibrato. While she knows some purists will disapprove, she’s OK with that.

“For anyone in an expressive art form, you expect people to disagree with you,” she says, speaking on the phone from San Francisco, where she was about to play a New Year’s Eve concert with the San Francisco Symphony. “And if you try to please everyone, you come up with a blank canvas.”

Benedetti’s favorite piece on the album is Vivaldi’s “Grosso Mogul” concerto. “It’s not quaint, polite Baroque, but wild, Italian Baroque,” she says. “It’s rhythmic and very catchy and you don’t have to listen to it many times to get the whole vibe of the piece.”

Still, the most challenging part of the album was picking the repertoire, Benedetti says, a process that involved listening to vast quantities of Baroque music. But while Benedetti has found past recording experiences nerve-racking and stressful, this one was different. “It was the most enjoyable album recording experience I’ve ever had,” she says.

“There’s something so infectious about the music that carries you through it.”

Benedetti, 24, knows something about Italian culture: she was born in Scotland to parents of Italian heritage. She calls the album an ode to her ancestry, down to the album art, which includes sepia-toned images of her wearing clothes designed by Dolce and Gabbana with a sleek Vespa motor scooter in the background. While the idea for the art was all Benedetti’s, the Italian scooter is not.

“I wish it was!” she says, laughing. “It was on loan to us for the day.”