The creator of hundreds of spirited, extroverted
instrumental works, Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi is
widely recognized as the master of the Baroque
instrumental concerto, which he perfected and
popularized more than any of his contemporaries.
Vivaldi's kinetic rhythms, fluid melodies, bright
instrumental effects, and extensions of instrumental
technique make his some of the most enjoyable of
Baroque music. He was highly influential among his
contemporaries and successors: even as esteemed a
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The creator of hundreds of spirited, extroverted
instrumental works, Italian composer Antonio Vivaldi is
widely recognized as the master of the Baroque
instrumental concerto, which he perfected and
popularized more than any of his contemporaries.
Vivaldi's kinetic rhythms, fluid melodies, bright
instrumental effects, and extensions of instrumental
technique make his some of the most enjoyable of
Baroque music. He was highly influential among his
contemporaries and successors: even as esteemed a
figure as Johann Sebastian Bach adapted some of
Vivaldi's music. Vivaldi's variable textures and
dramatic effects initiated the shift toward what became
the Classical style; a deeper understanding of his
music begins with the realization that, compared with
Bach and even Handel, he was Baroque music's arch
progressive. Though not as familiar as his concerti,
Vivaldi's stage and choral music is still of value; his
sometimes bouncy, sometimes lyrical Gloria in D major
(1708) has remained a perennial favorite. His operas
were widely performed in his own time.Eighteenth
century tourists flocked to the Sunday services at
Venice's wealthy religious establishments. Jean-Jacques
Rousseau himself wrote a glowing report of the music
sung in the Scuole grandi, or confraternal churches, of
the city; he specifically claimed that the music at the
Venetian Pio Spedale della Pietá was far superior to
Venetian opera singing, and might rival any musical
performance in the world. The "hospital" of the Pietá
maintained a large (female) choir and a professional
maestro di cappella; in addition, for nearly 40 years
they were in the habit of commissioning music from
Venice's own Antonio Vivaldi. Many of his more splendid
choral works for the church received their first
performances at the Pietá, including the single
best-known piece in his lifetime, Vivaldi's Magnificat
in G minor.
In its best-known form, RV 610, Vivaldi's Magnificat
disposes the canticle text (Luke 1:46-55) across nine
movements. It serves the festal celebrations of the
evening Vespers service. In this version, a full string
ensemble supports a mixed choir -- either four or eight
voices plus soloists. The very beginning features a
homophonic wall of sound, praising God in a highly
chromatic idiom; Vivaldi used the same lush progression
in at least four other pieces of music, two mass
movements and two concerti. The second movement
resembles a brief instrumental concerto, with an active
violin Ritornello, three successive vocal solos, and a
"punning" interruption by the full choir that echoes
the word omnes (everyone). A central trio of choral
movements each display Vivaldi's witty sense of
text-painting: an affective chromatic passage with
seventh leaps for Et misericordia (and His mercy), a
stormy string accompaniment for Fecit potentiam (He has
showed strength with His arm), and a wild orchestral
unison for the Deposuit (He has cast down the proud).
Two further soli movements (one of which suddenly
introduces two oboes) and a choral hymn lead to the
final chorus. Vivaldi once again presents a musical
pun, as the text "As it was in the beginning" refers to
the very chromatic opening music; a jubilant fugue
brings the piece to a close.
Although originally composed for Voice (2 Sopranos,
Alto, Tenor, Mixed Chorus (SATB)) & Orchestra (2 Oboes,
Strings & Continuo), I created this arrangement of "Et
misericordia ejus et progen" (And His mercy is for
those who fear Him) from Magnificat in G Minor for
Winds (Flute, Oboe, English Horn & Bassoon) and Strings
(2 Violins, Viola & Cello)).
PARTITION