ANTONIO VIVALDI Presented by: Jessica Bruin

PRELUDE  Antonio Vivaldi was born March 4, 1678 in Venice, Italy  His father, violinist, supported his son’s aspirations and helped enlist him in the Cappella di San Marco orchestra at a young age.  Vivaldi became a priest in pursuit of education at the age of 25.  He later was excused from attending meetings due to possible asthma.

PIO OSPEDALE DELLA PIETA  Vivaldi wished to continue with his musical aspirations after his excusal of his priestly duties.  The Pio Ospedale Della Pieta offered a position for Vivaldi to teach the musically talented orphaned girls.  Many of Vivaldi’s compositions began as warm-up routines for the girls, and their popularity increased.  Vivaldi held his position at the Ospedale for over 38 years.

PUBLICATIONS  In 1705, Estienne Roger published Vivaldi’s first set of twelve trio sonatas.  Roger was also know to publish other well-known composers such as Albinoni, Corelli, Alessandro Scarlatti, Lully, Lebègue, and Marin Marais. He later put together the twelve concerti of Vivaldi’s L’Estro Armonica. The first four of these made up The Four Seasons in 1711

OPERAS, CONCERTI AND MORE  Vivaldi was recognized for his exceptional work on operas.  Examples were: Armida, Teuzzone, Tito Manlio, and La Conduce o siano li veri amici  In 1720, Vivaldi began staging new operas with Teatro Sant’ Angelo.  Vivaldi continued to compose operas throughout his career  He was commissioned by many rulers to work on various arrangements of music.  La Sena Festeggiente was written for the French king Louis XV as an example to the commissioned Vivaldi.  In 1717, Vivaldi took up a post as Chamber Capellmeister in Mantua for Lord Landgrave Philips van Hessen-Darmstadt.

ROME Vivaldi left Venice in order to expand his career and to heed the requests given to him by certain potential patrons. Some important steps were made in Rome that assisted him in his quest.  Cultural influence of many composers such as Scalatti, Handel, and Corelli were present.  Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni became one of Vivaldi’s patrons.  Carlo Goldoni, a famous playwright, produced many operas in collaboration with Vivaldi starting in 1734 Vivaldi is requested for performance in Amsterdam in His search was a success.

ECONOMIC CRISIS  After a big ten year boom of financial success, derived from his operas and famous concertos including his famous publication The Four Seasons(1725), Venice suffered a terrible economic crisis.  Vivaldi was struggling to sustain himself.

DIMINUENDO OF VIVALDI’S LIFE  Vivaldi sold individual pieces of music to numerous customers in order to raise money to leave Venice in  Seeking patronage from Charles VI, Vivaldi left the Ospedale della Pieta for good after being nominated as the Concerto Master.  Shortly after reaching Vienna, Antonio Vivaldi died He died without a penny to his name. His grave was unmarked, a pauper’s grave.

PROLONGED FINALE  Vivaldi died on July 28,  50 years later he was properly recognized as a great composer, following a proper burial.  His accomplishments were listed as follows:  More than 500 concertos  73 sonatas  46 operas  Sacred music (largely performed by the Ospedale della Pieta)  Symphonies and  Chamber music  At last Vivaldi could rest in peace.

VIVALDI STYLE  Brought forth a change of the Baroque style into a more “impressionistic” approach.  His music, joyful and emotional with an emphasis on string instruments, broke through the more traditional Baroque styles. Instrumental music in that era usually conveyed an overall abstract mood Vivaldi made the music come alive  Bordering Romantic

INFLUENCES  Vivaldi was influenced by his previous Baroque composers, such as Albinoni, Corelli, Alessandro Scarlatti, Lully, Lebègue, and Marin Marais.  During the Baroque period, his emotional influences were notably over King Louis XV and Charles XI.  His interpretation and style became strong influences for future composers, notably Johannes Bach

ANTONIO VIVALDI’S FOUR SEASONS  Antonio Vivaldi’s Four Seasons concerto is one of his most famous concertos  It consists of the four seasons of time:  Spring  Summer  Fall  Winter

COMPOSITION HISTORY  Amsterdam,1725, that Vivaldi published twelve violin concerti, Il Cimento Dell’amonia e dell’inventione, translated as The Contest of Harmony and Invention  The Four Seasons or Le Quattro Staggioni contained the first four of these compositions.

THE SEASONS Vivaldi created sonnet prefaces in order for the audiences to understand his musical work. Here are some summaries of what those prefaces said:  Spring  depictions used in Vivaldi’s preface included a “profusion of birds, the breath of gentle breezes, a murmuring stream, swaying plants, a goatherd lulled to sleep and shepherds holding a celebratory bagpipe dance”  Summer  depicts blazing heat, the noise of insects and storms.  Fall  musically illustrated with celebratory pieces that indicate successful harvest and hunts.  Winter  teeth chattering, snowy trails with feet stamping along the cold ground, icy paths that lead to slippery travel, comforting fires, and ferocious windstorms.

THE FOUR SEASONS 1940’S- PRESENT  The Four Seasons interpretation has taken various courses. It wasn’t until  1957 Marc Pincherel wrote the first biography of Vivaldi.  Initially the music Vivaldi composed was written for the Ospedale della Pieta.  Each piece was meticulously thought out by him, even unto describing one measure of music as “the tears of the peasant boy  Since the 1720’s The Four Seasons were not played again until 1942 when Bernardino Molinari and the St Cecilia Academy of Rome performed it.  Interpretation of his style has been directed individually from each composer endeavoring to recreate his music.  Today The Four Seasons continues to be altered and taken apart, forming hundreds of interpretations of the composition

LISTENING GUIDE  The First Movement Allegro, joyful melody that floats along the vibrant and living background. The harmony consists of a steady thumping in the background from cello strings that are plucked. It’s a beautiful spring morning. The movement is filled with ritornellos. Birds chirping depicted. Violin emphasis

LISTENING GUIDE  The Second Movement Soft water-like “rippling” occurs, introducing us into the second movement. Gurgling streams, melodic and rich. Arched tonalities Sharp upward scales interrupt the watery fun with lightening. Faster tempos are riddled at the end mimicking rain.

LISTENING GUIDE  The Third Movement Starts off with beautiful pastoral-like melody and rhythm. A soft and thoughtful melody appears. Somber atmosphere enlightens the listener that there is some occurrence of importance. Solo Violin in a lulling rhythm. Folk-type motifs throughout the movement. Triplet “jumping” scenes

BIBLIOGRAPHY  Gifford, Katya. "Antonio Vivaldi Biography." June Humanities Web Website. October  GNU. "Antonio Vivaldi biography." March notes Web site. October  Gutmann, Peter. "Antonio Vivaldi The Four Seasons." Classical Notes Web Site. October  Photos, Deposit. Musical Notes. November  Pincherele, Marc. Vivaldi: Genius of the Baroque. Norton,  Sartorius, Michael. "Baroque Composers and Musicians." January Baroque Music Website. October  Talbot, Michael. Vivaldi. Schirmer, 1992.

THE FOUR SEASONS  Summer Summer   Spring Spring   Fall Fall   Winter Winter 