Vivaldi: Spring from the Four Seasons for Violin & String Quartet
by Antonio Vivaldi
String Quartet - Digital Sheet Music

SONG OF THE BIRDS: After the storm, the birds return with their song.
II. Largo - THE SLEEPING GOATHERD: On the flowered meadow, the goatherd and his dog roam among the blossoming trees. The Barking Dogs
III. Allegro - PASTORAL DANCE: Nymphs and shepherds dance to the bagpipes under the beautiful skies of spring.

Vivaldi's "Spring" is part of a set of four violin concertos, each representing a season of the year. The Four Seasons is one of Vivaldi's most famous works and is considered a masterpiece of program music, as it provides a musical expression of the events and emotions of each season. Vivaldi published the concerti with accompanying poems, possibly written by himself, that elucidated what it was about those seasons his music was intended to evoke, making it one of the earliest and most detailed examples of program music. Vivaldi took great care to relate his music to the texts of the poems, translating the poetic lines directly into the music on the page. For example, in the middle section of the Spring concerto, where the goatherd sleeps, his barking dog can be marked in the viola section. The music of "Spring" is an interpretation of a sonnet, and it is widely believed that Vivaldi wrote the sonnets himself, as the words and music are so entwined. King Louis XV became very fond of the spring concerto, ordering it to be performed numerous times, indicating its widespread appeal and popularity. These facts highlight Vivaldi's innovative and detailed approach to composing The Four Seasons, making it a timeless and celebrated piece in classical music.