Antonio Vivaldi had the misfortune of living at the same time as Bach and Handel: overshadowed by his contemporaries, he has never attained the popularity he deserves. Monday night's concert by the Cambridge Collegium Museum presented five examples of his many-sided talent--enough of a sample to make anyone want more.

This was the group's second concert of the season, and it surpassed the first in many ways. The balance between instruments was much better; harpsichordist Erwin Bodky played with more restraint, and the entire ensemble gave precise, well though-out performances.

The best part of the program was the D minor Concerto Grosso, a work of sustained energy and good spirits.

The D-major Concerto for flute and string was the evening's novelty. Called the "Bullfinch Concerto" because of its opening bird-call effects, the piece abounds in sprightly melodies and contains some material used by Vivaldi in his great "Four Seasons." However, the performance was marred somewhat by Phillip Kaplan's breathy flute-playing.

Cellise Samuel Mayes was, as last week, the outstanding artist. In his solo playing as well as ensemble work, he again demonstrated that he is an interpretive artist of the first rank.